Evaluation Part 1

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

In order to answer and reflect in on this I'm going to put my front cover alongside the front

cover of a printed magazine.

As you can see there are many differences between my front cover and Musical Stages front cover. Musical Stages front cover is more conventional and simple whereas mine challenges the typical conventions and is more complex as it has more on it. A similarity is that both front covers include the issue number and price which is vital information. Musical Stages also includes the season release 'Winter 2010/11' which provides more information for the consumer and is helpful for keeping record as well as informing the reader as to how recent it is. If I were to construct my front cover again I would include this information as it is generally easier and helpful for everyone.

Both covers have a subject to the image - close-up of the male in my cover and long-shot of the actors in Musical Stages with focus on the standing male. There are different in that mine includes other pictures whereas Musical Stages has just the one picture. I personally prefer mine as there is more to grab the consumers attention and will attract more customers as the range of images appeals to a greater range of audience. Also, for my scrap-book house-style it is necessary to have several images.

The text on Musical Stages cover is very simple, plain and clear. Mine is also clear but links to musical theatre as it appears to have lights like a theatre dressing table mirror. I also feel that the colours I have used grab the readers attention more as they stand out against the background. As far as my house-style go I am not sure as to whether the text on the front cover is 'scrap-book' enough as to me it looks clearly edited. If I had more time and was doing this again I would probably look at hand-painting or drawing this but still taking inspiration from this particular font found on picnik.

To conclude my media product takes forms and conventions e.g the main picture, title positioning and barcode then develops and challenges these around them. For example the other pictures are placed in positions so that the fill the space and I have added other features like the buttons, ribbons and cardboard musical note. I think that I have developed and challenged conventions enough to make my magazine stand-out yet still be aesthetically pleasing for consumers.