In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?Question One

• A magazine is a publication (on paper, or digital) containing articles and illustrations, often on a particular subject or aimed at a certain audience. An audience is the identified consumers of the product. The front of the magazine is one of the most important parts of it. At the top of the front cover would be a masthead, which is a title. They're usually the same font throughout the same magazine company. There is always a photo of a person on the front of a magazine, in which would have a direct gaze. The photo would be either a medium shot or a close up and will relate to the main cover line. Cover lines make people want to buy the magazine, and are almost always on the left third of the front cover. If they are not on the left third, then they'll be surrounding the image so they don't overlap onto it.

•Magazines are made mostly to make money. They contain various different items, a few examples would be; advertisements, articles about things people want to see and photos. Also on the front cover, there needs to be a bar-code, price, issue number and possibly a website. Sometimes there's a strap line which adds additional information and buzz/puff words which draw the audience in further. A couple of examples of buzz/puff words would be 'free poster' or 'win a signed CD'.

•In a magazine, there is normally a contents page at the front which tells you what is on each page. Sometimes there are colour links, where the texts would be the same colour. This would most likely be because of a seasonal event coming up, it's a themed edition, or that's just the colours or the magazine's style.

• In the design of my music magazine, I made sure that the masthead was at the top of the front cover and the cover lines were on the left hand third which follows the technical code of what they're supposed to be like. I cropped the image on the front cover to eliminate any un-necessary objects and keep the background clear. The font is kept the same throughout the front cover, contents page and double page spread. The size of the masthead is larger than anything, so it stands out and it would be easy to read when on a shelf. I put a drop shadow on the masthead and cover lines so they’re easier to read on the contrasting background.

•I used the colour red as a theme throughout because it links with the scarf that the model is wearing. It is also a vibrant colour and will attract a younger audience. The clothing choice is also something that the audience would consider wearing. I made sure the model was standing up against a blank background which would make her features and cover lines stand out clearer.