My magazine is an R’n’B music magazine so I based it around the conventions of other R’n’B magazines such as “VIBE”. The main convention that is noticed on an R’n’B music magazine is the bold masthead that often is placed behind the image of the artist on the front of the magazine.
This convention is normally used to show that the magazine has got a high status and that an audience will recognise the masthead even though half of it may be covered by an image. I used this convention in my media product as it makes the magazine look more professional and important and an audience will be familiar with the look so they will know what kind of content to expect from the magazine. Another convention that is common in R’n’B magazines is the mise-en-scene used in the images on the front cover. Generally the mise-en-scene in R’n’B magazine images involve the serious expression of the artist on the front cover this makes them look intimidating, which relates to the type of music they produce as a result of being an R’n’B artist. It also includes the relevant type of fashion that that is considered admirable by the audience also showing that the artist’s life, talent, style, etc. is admirable. I used this convention in my media product as it makes the audience want to aspire to being more like the artist on the front therefore more willing to buy the magazine in order to gain this aspiration. The conventional colour scheme of real R’n’B music magazines is normally quite simple but very bold this makes the magazine stand out but also professional and tidy while easier to read. I incorporated this convention into my media product by keeping the colours throughout all three pieces to three colours. The last convention I used in my media product is the way that the artist’s name is bigger than any of the sell lines which shows the success and high status of the artist.
This convention is normally used to show that the magazine has got a high status and that an audience will recognise the masthead even though half of it may be covered by an image. I used this convention in my media product as it makes the magazine look more professional and important and an audience will be familiar with the look so they will know what kind of content to expect from the magazine. Another convention that is common in R’n’B magazines is the mise-en-scene used in the images on the front cover. Generally the mise-en-scene in R’n’B magazine images involve the serious expression of the artist on the front cover this makes them look intimidating, which relates to the type of music they produce as a result of being an R’n’B artist. It also includes the relevant type of fashion that that is considered admirable by the audience also showing that the artist’s life, talent, style, etc. is admirable. I used this convention in my media product as it makes the audience want to aspire to being more like the artist on the front therefore more willing to buy the magazine in order to gain this aspiration. The conventional colour scheme of real R’n’B music magazines is normally quite simple but very bold this makes the magazine stand out but also professional and tidy while easier to read. I incorporated this convention into my media product by keeping the colours throughout all three pieces to three colours. The last convention I used in my media product is the way that the artist’s name is bigger than any of the sell lines which shows the success and high status of the artist.
My media product represents a particular social group by using particular conventions associated with that social group. Such as I used a young male and the mise en scene of the images throughout the pieces relates to the age group and gender that are interested in the type of magazine my media product is because they are able to relate to someone their own age, gender and image. Also the type of fonts I used in my media product also appeals to a male audience as it is very masculine this relates to the images throughout the three pieces as they are also more appealing to a male audience. This is quite a typical representation of a young male audience as it is used in many other magazines such as XXL.
The media institution that will distribute my media product will be a company called RedActive Media Group. They seemed the most suited publishing house as they are able to publish your magazine however frequently you would like. Their advertising base is also quite good meaning that they will have no problem raising the status of my magazine. One of the main reasons I chose this publishing house was because they were able to offer a variety of services, such as leaflets, medical journals, etc., meaning that the company is very competent and will be able to handle to design a music magazine that will appeal to the target audience I want it to appeal to. http://www.redactive.co.uk/
My target audience is young males from the age of sixteen to the age of twenty-five. I was able to suit my magazine to this target audience by using masculine fonts that will appeal more to males. Also by using a young male artist I made the image and content relevant to this target audience as they are able to relate and aspiring to be this artist. The sell lines also appeal to the target audience as this is what young males would like to read about. My magazine also follows R’n’B music magazine conventions making it more appealing to my target audience as this is the type of magazine they would most likely be interested in.
The main way I aimed to attract my target audience is by using mise-en-scene in the images throughout the pieces to create an image that is relevant to the target audience age, gender and taste. The target audience will be more likely to but a magazine with someone on the front cover they can relate to or aspire to be. Also I used sell lines that will interest and relate to my target audience such as ‘New addition to young money?’ which is a relevant group to young males and they would like to read about it. Also the mode of address used is related to the way most young males would speak or write themselves meaning that it is easier for them to enjoy and read. The articles including inspirational stories of rising artists will satisfy the reader of my media product as it relates to the title of my media product, ‘Arise’. An audience would most likely like and buy my media product as it has the same conventions as a R’n’B music magazine however it includes a more fulfilling content to help inspire the audience.
I researched popular existing magazines such as Choice FM’s own magazine ‘Music Potential’ which advises young people on how to enter the music business. I was able to incorporate this into my own magazine. I also constructed a questionnaire that allowed me to understand the wants and needs of the target audience and based the design of my project around these wants.
Final products
I have gained knowledge of Photoshop during the completion of this project as I have never used it before so I learnt the basic workings of the programme and was then able to apply that to my work. I was able to use the resources in Adobe Photoshop to create the effect I wanted in my magazine by using the airbrush tool, contrast, etc.
My knowledge of creating a blog has also improved as I was able to create and use a blog effectively to showcase my project.
From completing the preliminary task I was able to learn how to produce a magazine that appealed to the specific target audience. By researching the target audience and other existing magazine that are targeted at the market I was able to base the preliminary task around my findings. This helped in the final project as I knew how to go about finding out about my target audience and how to apply it to the production of my final project. I was also able to improve on certain aspects that I did in the preliminary in my final project such as my use of Adobe Photoshop. Also my knowledge of magazine conventions was broadened and was therefore able to apply this to my final project. Overall I have learnt how to use Adobe Photoshop effectively, how to apply music magazine conventions to a magazine to attract a target audience, how to apply to a certain target audience through use of research and then later apply it to the making of the product.
