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

I followed many conventions of a magazine when I created my own as well as developed and challenged them. 

On my front cover I used a masthead. This is a convention I feel was essential to put on my cover as it tells the reader what the magazine is called and also gives the reader a clear identity for your magazine. I placed my masthead in the middle and the top of the page in large white font that contrasts the black background. I defined conventions by keeping to a very monochromatic colour scheme with just hints of occasional colour. I did this as i think it kept in with the dark, mysterious, speakeasy feel of the magazine and makes it feel more exclusive which will attract many people. i included many other conventions also including barcodes, issue number, price cover images, tagline and stories. I think that these are all essential in making sure that people know what they are buying and also intrigue people into buying it.

My double page spread follows a lot of conventions of a magazine by having the writing in columns. my writing is also justified which is what you would find in many magazines as i feel that it made the article neater and easier on the eye for the reader. As well as that i also followed conventions by making some quotes larger and in a different colour so that at first glance the reader can get a feel for the article and it draws their attention. Like many magazines I used a a large central image which covers one side of the page. However, i defied conventions by using a black background as I feel that it denotes elegance and strength and also contrast what the model is wearing as she is wearing an array of colours. I also challenged forms and conventions by adding in extra photos throughout the article to give the reader something to associate the writing too and i think this works well.

For my contents page I followed forms and conventions by having regulars and features which is what you would usually find inside a magazine. I also included three images which is another convention of a contents page. However, i kept with my very elegant colour scheme which is also mysterious and denotes wealth. Another thing i did that challenges forms and conventions is that all the images are in black and white. I think that this works well as it makes the reader want to go to the article to see the full size coloured images. I followed simple conventions such as making the words 'contents', 'regulars' and 'features' all in a larger and different font. Other conventions i followed included adding page numbers and numbering images too associate them with the article.