Evaluation - Question 1 and 2

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of real media products?
I named my magazine ‘Viper’. I feel it is a catchy and memorable name which also sets the tone of my magazine. The font I used to create the title of my magazine is also a key aspect of the final product. I used the font ‘Masterplan’ which I found on ‘www.dafont.com’.

I deliberately chose a distorted font to give the magazine a grungy, confident look to the magazine. I felt this would suit the genre of a rock/metal type magazine. I applied various effects to make the font stand out and grab attention. I chose a red font because it contrasted really well against the black background of my front cover and also connotes the idea of danger and power. I added a black stroke, outer glow and bevel emboss effect to give the font an edgier look.

This was a technique I picked up on during the earlier stages of research. Kerang! magazine was a key influence to my work and it also uses a distorted, grungy font to set a rock/metal tone to the magazine as this immediately attracts the target audience.




The Front Cover
The style of my magazine is similar to that of existing indie/rock magazines. I used a simple but effective colour scheme: black, red and white, the use of a model with a distinctive style and attitude that represented the type of music expected in the magazine and also the use of grungy fonts and images as this is also a common feature of rock magazines. Comparing my magazine with Kerang! and Q magazine shows these factors.


I chose my model carefully in order to achieve a successful shot. I was inspired by the Q Cheryl Cole cover as this is shot only showing the face and shoulders. This gave me the potential to make full impact with the facial expression. My model had the ability to do strong, confident and aggressive poses which was an important aspect as this is the image I wanted for the cover of my magazine. The dark, aggressive facial expression delivers a punk ‘rebel’ look, which is the image I wanted to represent. The use of a good model on the cover is important to the sales of magazines. I styled the model according to the colour scheme: black and red. I used dark, dramatic make-up and the aviator glasses give the artist a sense of mystery, drawing the audience in. The model is wearing a leather jacket which connotes a punk look. As the model had dark hair I was able to fade her into a black background. This meant the facial shot did not take away from other aspects of the magazine such as the titles of the articles.

I also included a photo of an inside story on the front cover. I again chose this model to convey a punk/rock look. The fact the model is doing a confident/cocky pose displays the type of attitude of my magazine. The artist also is showing his tattoos which again was to represent a rock image.




I kept the same colour scheme throughout my magazine, which is a common factor of the music magazines I have researched.

Setting/Location

To create a black background for these shots I set up a studio at home by using black fabric and dramatic lighting which I was able to alter in photoshop to improve the over all look of the images. The black background enabled the images to be focused entirely on the models themselves, it also fit in well with the colour scheme of my magazine as well as giving the models a more dramatic, powerful look. If I had used a white background I feel the models may have looked a lot more subtle. Black connotes an aggressive rock image which is what I wanted in my photos.

I used an outdoor setting for my double page spread. The location was underneath a bridge in my local park. I believe that this setting adds to the grungy, rock style of my magazine due to the graffiti and urban feel to the setting. The bridge is quite dark and dingy which created a good location for a rebel, confident, poweful look.

2. How does your media product represent particular social groups?

I believe that my magazine represents the fans of Indie/Rock music. The models, articles and overall style of the magazine would suit their own fashion sense and interests which I have consistently tried to keep up throughout my project.
The main model I used in my magazine was Jasmine Monet. I chose this model as she represents the genre of music successfully. She was able to create an effective indie/rock look through her dark clothing and make-up as well as her confident attitude which I tried to capture in my photography. Also as my magazine would target a younger audience she is more appealing to this audience as she is in her late teens.

The three models I photographed for my inside stories all fit into the indie/rock look. I have photographed the models to fit into the style of my magazine which again meant confident poses and punk styling. One of my models has tattoos which strongly suggest a rock image. I based this models image on Pete Doherty who I noticed featured in the type of magazines I was looking at such as Q and NME.