Question 1 evaluation of conventions for my front cover

1. Question
1
Front Cover Analysis

2. Conventions Adhered To
The Model
The model is wearing dark
clothing with dark eye
makeup. Mulvey said there is
a ‘male gaze’ that females in
magazines attempt to attract,
which could be applied to the
cover as she has quite
voyeuristic high heels on.
However there is a
counterargument to this as it
could be showing how
powerful she is.

3. The Model
The model is looking directly
into camera, which follows
conventions. It helps draws in
the audience and catch their
eye by creating a connection
with the model.

4. The Model
The model is holding a
dynamic pose, breaking the
glass around the headline, as
well as the ‘Exclusive’,
showing she is rebellious and
strong, which goes against
Mulvey’s theory of the ‘male
gaze’.

5. The Colour Scheme
The colour scheme I used is
black and white with yellow
and purple highlights. This is
both a convention of rock,
and a way to draw in a more
female based audience.

6. The Masthead
The masthead is in a large
bold font so the magazine is
easily recognizable on a shelf
in a shop. It is also in a sans
serif font, which adheres to
the conventions of rock. Other
rock magazines use a similar
style, such as Kerrang.

7. The Masthead
The masthead is in the same
font and style as the
headline, creating synergy.
Having similarities between
the masthead and the
headline is a convention of
rock which I am adhering to.

8. The Banner
A convention of most rock magazines is to
have a banner advertising the contents of
the magazine. I have adhered to this
convention, by including a banner
advertising a freebie and a new artist.

9. The Barcode
The convention for rock
magazines is to have a
barcode code with the
issue number. I have
followed this convention by
having the barcode, the
issue number, date and
price together.

10. The Pug
The convention of rock magazines
is to have a pug advertising the
contents of the magazine to
encourage the audience to turn
the pages and look inside, as well
as to stand out of a shelf. I have
included a pug, in a purple colour
to help attract the female audience
even if not much of the front cover
can be seen on a shelf.

11. The Cover Stories
The conventions of a rock
magazine are that the front cover
will contain multiple interesting
stories to help draw in the
audience. These will often be in
another font to create more
diversity on the page. I have
followed this convention and have
cover stories in a different font to
my masthead and headline. They
also contain a rhetorical question
that means the audience would
have to read the magazine to find
the answer to.

12. The Strapline
Convention of rock magazines say that the
headline should have a strapline to help attract
the audiences’ interest by telling them a little
about the article. I have adhered to this
convention by telling the audience a little about
the article, so they know it is about V!olet and her
new album.

13. The ‘Exclusive’
Conventions of the rock genre
state that words such as ‘free’
and ‘exclusive’ should be used to
help attract an audience by
offering them downloads or
making articles specific to that
magazine so if the audience was
interested they would have to buy
that magazine. I have followed
this convention by stating that the
main article is an exclusive.

14. Conventions Manipulated
The Background
The rock genre has the
convention of having a
plain background, which is
kept however I wanted to
make the background
more interesting for my
audience so I added a
gradient.

15. The Colour Scheme
I have adhered to the
convention of having a
mainly black and white
however I have included a
purple colour when
highlighting certain stories
to bring in a more female
audience.

16. Conventions Challenged
The Model
The model is overlapping the masthead, however this
is to show that the magazine will have a distinct style
that will be easily recognizable to its audience when it
is on the shelf.

17. The Layout
The convention for rock
magazines is to have a busier
front cover however the
magazines published by
TeamRock, who would be the
distributers of my magazine
have a clearer style, therefore
I wanted to replicate that in my
front cover. It also fits in with
what my target audience said
that they would prefer.