In what ways does your media product use develop or challenge

forms and conventions of real media products?

Front cover

Masthead

Use◦ Jazz magazines only use one colour for their mastheads.◦ Jazz magazine often have their Masthead at the top of page because people read

in the Z shape starting from the top and ending at the bottom, so it would make sense to put the masthead at the top of the front cover.

Develop◦ I have use the ‘Park Lane’ font from the round softer fonts used in Jazz

magazines, this is because I wanted to celebrate the time when Jazz was most popular, the 1920s.

Challenge ◦ I have put my masthead on a coloured background which is not common for Jazz

magazines but I wanted to make sure it stood out from the rest of the front cover.

Main cover line

Use ◦ I have placed my main cover line over the main image, this is popular in most

Jazz magazines as it anchors the main image but also draws attention to it. Develop

◦ I have put the main cover line in two different fonts as I wanted to draw attention to my models name.

Challenge◦ I have put the cover line in a box so that it would stand out even more compared

to my sub lines which are not in boxes. This is so the reader will be drawn to the main cover line as it looks more exciting than the sub lines.

Main image

Use ◦ I have put the main image in black and white

which is common in most Jazz magazines as it makes the artist and the magazine seem more sophisticated

◦ There are also no secondary images as Jazz magazines don’t tend to have them so the reader concentrates more on the main image.

Develop◦ My model is in causal clothing which is not really

normal for a female jazz artist to be photographed in as they normally dress quite formally.

Challenge◦ I have not photo-shopped any of my models as I

feel that photo-shopping is wrong and immoral.

Comparison to other magazines

Smooth Jazz

Masthead◦ The mast head while in different colours

follows the conventions and forms of a mast head on a jazz magazine. It uses smooth rounded fonts and is placed at the top of the page.

Main cover line◦ The main cover over laps the main image

and is in white so it stands out against the main image.

Main image◦ There are some secondary images on the

front cover which challenges conventions and forms of a Jazz magazine. But the main image takes centre stage filling the whole front cover and almost acting like a background so the reader take notice of that first.

◦ It is also in colour which challenges forms and conventions but the colour in the photo match the colour scheme used in the front cover and I think a black and whit picture would make the magazine look boring and dull.

Downbeat

Masthead◦ The Masthead follows the forms and

conventions of a Jazz magazine. It has a rounded font, it is one colour and is placed at the top of the page. But it is being cover by the main image showing that this magazine is popular and see the reader doesn't have to see the whole masthead to know which magazine this is.

Main cover line◦ The main cover line also follows forms and

conventions of a Jazz magazine because it cover the main image and anchors the main image. Although I don’t think this works well as the white writing against the models checker suit is not nice to look at.

Main image◦ The main image is not in black and white but

in colour which makes the magazine look brighter and more colourful. I think the reason that they have done this is that the front cover has quite a dark colour scheme and if the main image was in black and white it would make the magazine look dull and boring.

Jazz magazine

Masthead◦ The mast head sticks to the forms and

conventions of Jazz magazine front covers with a rounded font but challenges them with using two colours for its masthead. It think this is so the word ‘magazine’ stands out against the word ‘Jazz’.

Main cover line◦ This is a 15th anniversary addition of the

magazine and so this the only cover line we get is one telling us this. But is does conform to forms and conventions of Jazz magazines as it just text printed over the main image.

Main image◦ The main image is in black and white

and so follows the forms and conventions of a jazz magazine. I think the reason they choose to do this was to make the magazine seem epic for lasting so long.

Contents

Masthead

Use◦ Most Jazz magazines have their mastheads at the top of the contents page so

you know you have the real magazine. Develop

◦ I’ve used the same font for both the word contents and the masthead because I wanted the reader to put together that they are reading a real ‘All that Jazz’ magazine.

Challenge◦ I’ve used quite a dark blue for my masthead and contents title because it

matched my house style. Most Jazz magazines either go for a black masthead or a white one.

Images

Use◦ I have featured a album cover in my images, most Jazz

magazines are guaranteed to have one in their contents pages.

Develop◦ I have used a lot more images than most Jazz magazines

use as they often go for a minimalistic style, but I felt that my contents page would be empty without them.

Challenge ◦ I have anchored my images with more than just page

numbers as I felt that it would useful to readers if they knew what the picture was about.

Features

Use◦ I have a top stories and a regulars column so

readers know which are going to recurring stories and which are unique to this issue of my magazine.

Develop◦ I’ve colour coded my features so that the reader at a

glance knows that there two different types of stories.

Challenge◦ My features are not the central focus of my contents

page. Most Jazz magazines don’t have anything other than their features and a few pictures in their contents page. But I decided to put an authors note, subscription box and lots of pictures in my contents page because I felt it looked to blank with out them.

Comparison to other magazines

Jazz Inside

Masthead ◦ The mast head is at the top of the page and

is in the same font and colour as is seen on the front cover. It is larger than normal magazines but that just draws the readers attention more to the fact that it is the real thing.

Images◦ There is only one image on the contents page

which is normal for a Jazz contents page, although it is anchored by a page number it is also anchored by text which breaks forms and conventions of Jazz magazines.

◦ It also links to the image on the front cover so readers know where to look for this artist.

Features◦ The features are split into six columns. Clubs,

concerts and events, columns, interviews and sketches, venue review, Cd reviews, product review. This makes it easier for the reader to find the articles they want to read. But the contents only takes up half of page, the rest of the page is just adverts and terms and conditions. Which makes the contents page very boring and a lot less intresting to read.

Front cover

Jazzwise

Masthead◦ The masthead is at the top of the page

and is the same as the masthead on the front cover so this magazine so far conforms to the forms and conventions of Jazz magazines.

Images ◦ There is only one image which also

doubles as the back ground. This is normal and often a trick used by Jazz magazines as it makes the contents page look like one big image.

Features ◦ There are not separate columns for

different features but we can assume that the articles in bigger fonts are more important that the ones in smaller fonts. This breaks form and conventions as most magazines have their features spilt into different columns so the reader which are regular stories and which are unique to this issue.

Smooth Jazz

Masthead◦ The masthead is not on the contents page

but instead at the bottom in the URL next to the page number. This breaks forms and conventions and makes it confusing for the reader as they wouldn’t know if they have the real Smooth jazz magazine or just a pirated copy.

Images◦ There are three images which is a lot for a

Jazz magazine but they are anchored by page numbers which is typical of Jazz magazines so Smooth Jazz both conforms and breaks forms and convention when it comes to images in contents pages.

Features◦ The features are spilt into eight columns.

Cover story, Artist review, Cd reviews, Cd releases, concert listings, festival season, feature articles, concert review. Splitting the features into eight columns allows the reader to easily find what their looking for.

Double Page Spread

Headline

Use◦ Most Jazz magazines have a very simple headline for their double page spread

because Jazz magazines have a very simplistic style to them.◦ They are also at the top of page which I have done here as well so the reader

knows what article they are reading. Develop

◦ I have used quite bright colours in my headline but that is because I needed to match my house style.

Challenge◦ Haven’t really challenged any forms or conventions here because I really liked

the style that Jazz magazines have when it comes to their double page spreads.

Columns

Use ◦ I have very wide columns which is

usually normal to see in Jazz magazines as the article is usually the main focus of their double page spread.

Develop◦ I have colour coded my question in stead

of putting them in bold because I would make the questions stand out more.

Challenge◦ I have put quite a big gap in-between my

columns and that is so I would fill my page more evenly.

Main image

Use◦ My picture is in colour, normally Jazz

magazines do this because it contrasts the main image on the front cover which is often in black and white.

Develop◦ My model is on the right hand page so that

when the reader turns over the page they will she her first and know that they are at the main article advertised on the front cover.

Challenge◦ I haven’t really challenged any forms or

conventions for my main image because I like the way the models are photographed in Jazz double page spreads.

Comparison to other magazines

Albemarle

Headline ◦ The headline follows form and

conventions as it is at the top of the page and is very simplistic which is normal of jazz magazines.

Columns ◦ The columns are wide but not huge and

have small gaps in-between them giving the double page spread a more professional look to it.

◦ But this isn’t a double page spread article on an interview so I can not compare the actual text to my article.

Main image◦ The main image is in black and white

which challenges the forms and conventions of Jazz magazines. But this has been done to make the light blue headline stand out and it also makes the picture look older than it actually is which fits in the theme of the article ‘iconic images from the Paramont theatre.’

Blues and Soul

Headline◦ The headline is very minimalistic and this

makes the double page spread seem very sophisticated and because the headline is at the top of page it makes the article seem even more professional.

Columns◦ The columns are wide and have small gaps in-

between them which not only follows the forms and conventions of Jazz magazines but also gives the article weight but also keeps up with the clean cut style of double page spread.

Main image◦ The main image is in colour which conforms to

the forms and conventions but also draws our attention to the image as the article is on the right hand page and so when the reader is flicking through the magazine they’ll see the article first so a colour picture will draw attention to who the article is about.

◦ There is also a secondary image which breaks forms and conventions in a Jazz magazine but when flicking through the pages the reader will come across the article first and see the secondary so they can get a rough idea who the article is about.

Jazzwise

Headline ◦ The headline is simplistic which follows forms and

convention of a jazz magazine. It is also at the top of the page which means the reader will notice it first.

◦ Likewise the headline reads ‘music of the spheres’ and the headline is in a circle which adds humour to the article and means readers are more likely to read it as we like things that make us laugh. This breaks forms and conventions as most Jazz magazines won’t have their headlines in shapes, as if not pulled off well it can look childish but here it looks very professional.

Columns ◦ The columns aren’t really that wide but they do

have a small space in-between them so this magazine breaks and conforms to the forms and conventions of a Jazz magazine.

◦ I think they have done this to make the article look even and neat to keep with the simplistic style of the magazine.

Main image◦ They main image is in colour with is normal for Jazz

magazines and also the background is blue which matches the blue background of the headline. And the black outfit worn by the model contrasts from the light colour palette, making him stand out.