Conventions of a School Magazine:-

1. Cover Lines
2. Mast Head
3. Different Colours that attract the eyes
4. Principle of thirds
5. Hot Spots
6. Route of the eye
7. Used photos of students that others may recognise
8. Includes different topics in the magazine, e.g events at school.
9. Uses Bold font to attract attention
10. Uses the colour of the School logo for the front cover
11. Short Cover Lines to attract the target audience(11-16)
12. Issue Date/Number/Term
Metal Hammer Target Audience

Metal Hammer is a well known music magazine and is one of the leading music magazines in the UK.
This year metal hammer have been looking at the future of the company, they have started this off
by partnering with Yuza mobile, this will then allow Metal Hammer to have a application on the
iphone, this ties in well with the target audience that Metal hammer is aimed at, this is due to the
magazine typically being read by 22year olds, at this age they want to have the most up to date
phone. As the magazine includes established bands and new bands, the bands in the magazine are
from such genre as punk, hardcore and gothic rock, this music is stereotypical related to males, this
then ties in well to explain why 64% of its readers are male. As the magazinecosts3.99 to buy of the
shelve, we known that the audience who read this magazine typically have money to spear, so they
have to be middle class, this is further backed up by the information that shows the people who buy
this magazine are on 22,100 a year, this shows they would have enough spare money to buy this
magazine and the advertising in this might affect them more then the lower classes.

We can further show that metal hammer is a good source of advertising from companies and
discussion point for many individuals this shown by 59%ofconsumers buying something threw the
advertising that is placed in this magazine, Metal hammer articles also cause discussion between
individuals with54%oftheir customer base discussing the articles after reading it. Due to Metal
Hammer being based and evolved around music, this then influences the its audience to play either
guitars or other musical instruments, but the instrument that they do learn to play are stereotypical
for the genres in the magazine, This could be guitars, drums, etc. this point is backed up by 46%of
metal hammer readers playing a instruments.
1st Magazine: - Observer Music Monthly
I am going to begin my analysing of the three magazines with a magazine called Music Monthly, this
magazine comes free with the newspaper called “The Observer”. This Newspaper is aimed at a
higher middle class audience, from the age range of 30 to 50, this causes the magazine to show a
professional and mature Layout so that it can link in and follow the same style of which the
newspaper is set upon. The observer has been published since the 4th December 1791, the magazine
“music monthly” was introduced to the Broadsheet newspaper about three or four years ago (2005-
2006), they done this to cause the Newspaper to have a unique and individual look to the other
newspapers.

Front cover:-
The front cover for the magazine “music monthly” is very important to the type of target audience
that the newspaper is aimed at, this is B, C1, the age rating for these social classes are between the
age of 30 to 50. With this magazine they have to catch the audiences attention well, with this they
have choose to convey a plain but yet professional look to the magazine. They have done this by
using very clear and plain colours, for example there is white on the floor to signify purity, they have
then shown a light colour grey as the background at the top, this is to show that the magazine is
serious. One last colour that the magazine has used to portray a professional look is Gold for the
Cover line and the background around the mast head, this connotes Wealth.

Music monthly has portrayed the professional look very well with the use of the principal of thirds
and route of the eye, on the front cover they have used the principle of thirds by putting the
celebrity’s faces around the hot spots and also putting the cover line bellow the bottom of the
hotspots. This causes the audience to pay attention to this area as it has all the detail in that specific
area. The front cover has used the route of the eye to great importance on the front cover, they
have done this by putting the masthead at the start, these causes the target audience to notice
what the magazine is and were it has come from. At the end of the first line of the route of the eye
they have some information that says “SELF-PORTRAIT BY RADIOHEAD”, this gives the impression
that the Band took the photo themselves, with this it shows that the Band is a independent Band
and do not sell labels threw big lapelled companies. When the route of the eye goes diagonally down
the front cover, they have choose to have the leader of the Band taking the photo, this emphasises
the fact that Radiohead are there own independent Band. At the bottom of the Front cover the
route of the eye goes threw the sub heading, this sub heading is “why it’s better to give than to
receive a world exclusive interview”, the reason for this sub heading is to drag the target audience in
as the last thing they read so would then cause the audience to want to know what the sub heading
is about.

The font that is used in the front cover catches the audience attention well, they have done this by
showing the mast head in Bold white Writing, the reason for this is because it is the name on the
magazine and it is white to represent the magazine is pure and specific. The Cover line is Bold and in
gold this is so it represents wealth which backs up the previous comment about the magazine being
aimed at the higher end of the middle class. The cover line is in sans serif and the sub heading is in
serif, this is so it gives an impression of contrast, the sub heading is White, this is so that the
audience can link it with the mast head. The title of the magazine that is above the mast head
named “The Observer” is in sans serif and in Black this is to show that it is a serious magazine, and
shows who the magazine is published by.
Contents page:-
The contents page for the magazine Music Monthly is important, this causes the target audience to
have a first look at what is included in the magazine and a brief outline of who worked on the
magazine. The contents page also shows the audience what exclusive interviews music monthly has
got, this is important to the audience because it gives the impression that the magazine gets
interviews for the target audience and no one else.

The contents page shows the target audience well and reinforces it from the front cover, the
contents page has used a unique layout that catches the audience’s attention. They have also
chosen to use a number of colours that link in together but still catch the audience’s attention.

The contents page has a unique layout compared to other magazines, the contents page for music
monthly uses circles to place a photo from the article in and then in another circle that is smaller
then the circle, the page number and cover line is placed, this is different to normal magazines,
because stereotypically magazines have a list of the different cover lines and the page number. But
with Music monthly they have choose to add some interesting photos from the articles, this causes
the audience to want to read the article in more detail to find out what the photo is about. Music
Monthly has also placed a list about what is in the magazine to the right of the page, the reason for
this is so the magazines is linked with other magazines and gives the impression that it is reliable as
it is similar to other magazines. They have also placed a area at the bottom just above the individuals
who are involved in the magazine, this are is headed “contributors” this is a area to show exclusive
interviews and also shows by lines of the three stories, this is so the audience reads the by line and
wants to go threw the magazine and read the article in full.

The colours that are used in the contents page of this magazine create an appearance that attracts
both types of audiences, both male and female , they do this well, for example they have used a dark
pink colour, this is continuous over the contents page and throughout the magazine, they have also
used yellow title heads, the reason for this is to crap the attention of the target audience, in the
photo of the man on the contents page he is wearing a white t-shirt with a white hallow this
connotes that he is pure and allows a link between the photo and the title named “man of the year”.
There is a photo of another band, they show two individuals wearing black outfit and playing a
guitar, this shows that the band is a serious band and with this, again links in with the title and
reinforces the how they got “album of the year”.

The type of Font and writing that is used on this content page is both sans serif and serif, they have
put all the headings that leads onto something else in serif, this allows the audience to notice hat
this heading is important, they have then used sans serif for the cover lines which are on the left side
which represent what is in the magazine, and the sans serif allows the magazine to look more high
class and attract the intended target audience.
Double Page Spread:-
There is a number of double page spreads throughout this magazine, the general layout is for a big
photo that relates to the article or a advertisement, the reason for this is because the picture give s
the audience a idea about who the article is about and what kind of article it would be, the reason
for the advertisement is because this magazine is given out free with the observer, and the
newspaper needs a way of making money from the publishing of this magazine and so the
companies pay the newspaper to have their advert put into the magazine, where their intended
audience will see it.

There is one double page spread that I noticed linked together with the picture on one side, which is
conventional for this magazine. The layout of the page with the article on, does not use the principle
of thirds or route of the eye very well, this is because the article itself is not aimed at attracting the
target audience as much as the picture, the article is there to inform the target audience and also to
give a professional look. It does this well, the reason for this is because there is not a dark coloured
background , instead it is white, so the title of the article is large and bold, this is so the audience can
automatically see it and then link it to the picture. The heading is in serif, the reason for this is so it
attracts the eye and is clear enough for the intended target audience to read. There is then sans serif
sub heading that adds more detail to the heading, this allows the magazine to look different to other
magazines and also add a clean and professional look. There are two names that are highlighted in
this sub heading, the reason for this is to show the audience target reader that they are important
people and also attracts the readers eye. On the page of the article, they have used the colour Gold
once again, the places that this is used is in the circle above the title lapelled “women of the year”,
two lines above and below the title and subheading, they have also done a slogan in the middle of
the text in gold, this is so the article can relates back to the front cover, but also connotes wealth
and the upper class.

On the left page which consists of the image that relates to the article, they have used the principle
of thirds and route of eye well here, the reason for this is because in the hot spots of the image
there is varies things that attract the audience, for instance the two highest hot spots have been
placed on her tattoo and cleavage, this is to show that she is rebellious and does what she wants,
the bottom two hot spots are placed on the chicken, this allows the image to relate to the heading
of the article which is “she is one rare bird” this allows the link to be established. The route of the
eye runs in a similar manner, for example the route of the eye runs thru dialog that is placed in the
top right hand corner that tells the reader who the person in the photo is, where they were and
when it was taken, the route then goes over her face and down her face, she has her mouth open
sticking her tongue out to emphasize that she likes to make her own rules, the route then runs down
her back and cuts across threw the chicken this allows the reader to see the chicken last and then
when they move to the next page they would make a link between the two straight away.
The second magazine: - NME
The name NME is short for the real name of the magazine that is New Musical Express, over the
years this magazine has built up its profile to be the most respected weekly magazine. This magazine
contains contempory music, this means that it is aimed at that kind of audience that enjoy music of
the current age, it also shows bands that are stereotypically aimed at teenagers, so this magazine
will be aimed at teenagers and individuals who enjoy indie music.. NME has been published ever
since 1952 and has published one magazine every week ever since than. 28.3% of the music
magazines sold every year are NME, this shows that the magazine is very popular and in demand.

Front page:-
the front page of this magazine attracts the target audience well, this is due to the use of the
principle of thirds and route of the eye, the front cover has used this by putting the masthead at the
start of the route of the eye, this allows the reader to see the name of the magazine, notice it as a
reliable and good brand, which then adds to the effect of the rest of the front cover. They have then
placed a coverline in the top right corner, this attracts the target audience well, the reason for this
is due to the magazine being aimed at individuals who enjoy contempory music, with indie being
involved in this having a coverline that mentions indie allows the reader to notice what specific
music groups are involved in the magazine and having parties involved in this, allows the magazine
to be aimed at a younger audience, and stereotypically the younger audience tend to look for
parties to go to. They have then placed a celebrities face on the diagonal line of the route of the
eye, this then causes the photo to link in with front cover lines, and is emphasized more by the
celebrates face being placed on the hot spots and cover line, this allows the reader to link both the
photo and cover line together. They have then put the price of the magazine in the terminal area,
the reason for this is the audience sees the price last and because the front cover has attracted the
reader, they shouldn’t notice the price as much. They have then put Bands that are well known and
popular to the target audience, these magazines all run down the left side (dominant area), this than
causes the magazine look different and so attracts the reader to the bands even more.

There are not a lot of colours that are used, which are not from the photo on the right, but the
colours that are used around the Photo are what are recognised from the Mast head, for example
there is White font that connotes purity and gives a serious look to the magazine. They have then
used Black for some writing on a white background. They have then caused red to run down the
dominant side with the photo looking as if it has been ripped out, this adds an effect of rebellion
which then attracts the target audience, as teenagers are stereotypically rebellious. They have also
caused a part of the text on the bottom of the page to be in blue, this is to show that it is significant
and important to the magazine.

The fonts that are used on this front cover, follow the conventions of a music magazine, this is
because it is often hat serif is used to attract the attention of the reader, which is what is used for
the main titles on the front cover, they have then underlined some aspects of the cover line, this is
to show that it is significant to what is in the magazine. They have caused the keywords to also be in
bold, this again is to attract the reader to a particular article and want to read the magazine.
Contents Page:-
NME is well known for its information on contempory music, and for this they like to give a idea of
the features and information that is shown in the magazine, this means that the way the contents
page is laid out depends on weather the individual wants to read the magazine further, or even if
there is information on their favourite band in the magazine, the context page that I am analyzing is
laid out very well for individuals who would like to see if there favourite band is in the magazine.

The layout that is used on this contents page is very well presented, for instance they have caused
the Band index to be at the very start of the route of the eye, this allows the reader to look for there
band straightaway, this then gets them involved in the magazine and makes them want to read the
magazine because there is bands that they do know about. After the Band index, they have placed
the NME logo and the masthead, this allows the individuals to remember the NME logo, and also
allows them to notice what the page consists off. After the top line of the route of the eye they have
placed the date, this allows the reader to tell weather they are buying the latest magazine or not.
The diagonal line of the route of the eye then goes threw the middle of the photo that is on the
page, it then draws the attention to who the celebrate is, they have also placed the photo on the
hotspots, this allows the readers to notice the celebrate, but if they don’t then the coverline is
placed on the hot spots as well, this means that if the reader does not recognise the celebrate then
they will get drawn into the article. The contents page route of the eye finishes in a conventional
way, this is by the bottom line running threw a advertisement that is promoting people to subscribe
to the magazine, this is good as it allows the reader to think that if they do like the magazine then
subscribing may be cheaper for them, it allows the target audience to believe that NME is trying to
offer them the best offer. In the terminal area of this page they have placed a cover line that would
make the target audience want to read it as it is in the terminal area, it is the last thing that the
reader sees and therefore would encourage them to read the magazine, as the majority of the
readers either enjoy going to gigs, or would like to go to one.

The colours of this contents page, once again are linked with the mast head, the reason for this is so
the audience gets to recognise the three colours that are used, which are white, red and black. This
then allows the magazine to have a common look throughout, this then gives a professional and
serious look to the magazine. For instance they have used white on a black background to make the
cover lines stand out more, and link together with the mast head. They haves caused the advert at
the bottom of the page to be in yellow, the reason for this is so it stands out from the rest of the
contents page, but also gives a effect that it is not part of the page.

Once again the font that is used on this page is conventional to NME, a example of this is the cover
lines being in whit, bold and serif, this makes it stand out from the page. The headings are then in
black and in a smaller font, this then allows the reader to see that the headings are not as important
compared to the cover lines and the headings come with in the cover line.
Double Page Spread:-
The Articled in NME vary depending on what the article is written about, for example the double
page spread that I am going to be analyzing shows its context and what the article is about very well,
just from the photos used and the colours used.

The layout of this double page spread is set out very well for the target audience that it is aimed at,
for instance the heading for the article is laid out across the first line of the route of the eye, in the
title is says “THE” at the start, this word is placed upon a different part f the flag then the rest of the
title, this allows a emphasizes on the word “THE” as this is the first word, having this emphasizes on
it allows the title to be in the readers face straight away, then causes the reader to want to read
more of the title and wonder what it is about. The route of the eye then goes diagonally across the
two pages, they have places a NME tour logo for 2007 to be places at the start , this encourages to
the reader as it has a USA flag at the bottom, this automatically causes the reader to notice that
NME went to America on tour, due to this they would want to read the article to find out were they
toured in America, why they toured there and what for. Further down this line, they have placed a
quote from a celebrate, in this quote he mentions another band, due to this the reader sees this and
wonders why the celebrates has said that, and so would read the article to find out why. At the end
of the line they have placed a caption for a photo, this allows the reader to see the caption, notice
what is being said and then look at the photo, due to this the reader would either recognise the
band in the photo and read the article because of this, or not recognise the band and read the
article to find out who they are as the caption does not give a lot away. This continues across the
bottom line as well and goes by the same concept, but these photos have been placed in a scrap
book way, this reinforces the idea of it being aimed at teenagers as it is a bit messy so attract more
attention. In the terminal area they have placed the stars of the American flag once again, this
allows the audience to see this last and then recognise that the article is based around a American
tour.
Andre Marsh

Magazine Questionnaire

1. What is your age?

2. Gender?

3. State of Occupation? (e.g. education, employment, etc)

4. Do you read Music magazines?(If yes go to question 6)

5. Can you explain why you do not read music magazines?

6. What genre of magazine do/would you buy?

7. Would you expect a famous Band to be on the front cover?

8. What Camera shot would you expect to be on the main image at the front, on the front
cover?

9. What kind of articles would you expect to see in the magazine?

- Reviews
- Interviews
- Informative article
- Other
____________
Andre Marsh

10. What colours are stereotypical for Music magazines?

11. What is conventionally placed in the terminal area?

12. What would you expect to see at the start of the route of the eye?
Andre Marsh

Magazine Questionnaire

For my questionnaire I asked open questions so I could get more of a idea about what kind of
aspects of a music magazine attracts the eye, the people asked was media students, in sixth form,
this is because they fit into the target audience of music magazine which is typically aimed at 14 to
25year olds. The reason I asked media student is because they have analyzed a number of music
magazines and now know what aspects of music magazines attract the audiences eye, if I was to
pass this questionnaire out in public, I would replace the media terminology with clear and precise
definitions. As it is I was asking a specific group off teenagers, due to this I asked the following
questions;

1. What is your age?

2. Gender?
3. State of Occupation? (e.g. education, employment, etc)
4. Do you read Music magazines?(If yes go to question 6)
5. Can you explain why you do not read music magazines?
6. What genre of magazine do/would you buy?
7. Would you expect a famous Band to be on the front cover?
8. What Camera shot would you expect to be on the main image at the front, on the front
cover?
9. What kind of articles would you expect to see in the magazine?
- Reviews
- Interviews
- Informative article
- Other
____________
10. What colours are stereotypical for Music magazines?
11. What is conventionally placed in the terminal area?
12. What would you expect to see at the start of the route of the eye?

For my first question I asked how old each individuals who filled my questionnaire out was, the
majority of people who filled it out was sixteen and seventeen year olds. I also got a thirty year old
to fill it in, the reason for this is to see how people above the stereotypical age of music magazines
think of music magazines. Due to this I will not only be contrasting how these results could help me
with my magazine but also how the different ages now look at music magazines.

The second question I asked was what gender the person was that was filling questionnaire in, this is
due to my research proving to me that it is mostly males that read music magazines, for instance the
Metal Hammer readership states “64% of its readers are male”. This is emphasized with my
questionnaires as seven of the ten questionnaires are filled in by Male, only three by females. This
instantly shows that I should aim my magazine at males as this is the biggest available source of sale.

The third question I asked was what occupation each individuals has, for example student, nine of
the ten individuals I gave the questionnaire out to was students, this is based upon this being my
target audience for my magazine, this their for allows me to notice what different students expect to
Andre Marsh

see in a music magazine, I have also asked someone who is in work, this is to tell if people in work
have the time to notice what music magazines there are and what catches their eye by looking at it.

My next question included whether or not each individual actually reads music magazines. This
would then give me a indication on how reliable there answers will be. Form this I got a splitting the
number of questionnaires I gave out, I had five people say that they do not read music magazines,
do to me asking media students who regular evaluate magazines and how they attract the eye of the
target audience, they were able to confirm with me some valuable aspects that they have noted
from seeing the front cover of the magazine, this is the most important page as it is the first sign that
the reader will get off the magazine, the other five people who answered the questionnaire said that
they do read music magazines this is important as it gives me a idea on the existing niche market.

The fifth question that I asked on my questionnaire was only aimed at the individuals who answered
no to the previous question, I asked for them to explain why they do not read magazines, this would
allow me to note if the front cover does not attract their or they do not enjoy reading about music.
Thereof the five individuals said that they do not interest them and were not very specific with their
answer, this could be a area were I could improve my questionnaire by giving them options instead
of expecting them to answer a lengthily question, the two people that did give me specific answer
however said their was a lack of consistency in this market and they just prefer other magazines, for
instance a female said that she does not read music magazines as she prefers gossip and fashion
magazines, this enforces the fact that music magazines are aimed more at males then female. The
lack of consistency gives me the valuable information that music magazine are not consistent, so if I
made my magazine consistent then I would attract more consumers due tot his being my unique
selling point.

The sixth question I asked was what type of genre they would want to read, two of my questionnaire
that females filled in, choose fashion as their choose of magazine, this reinforces the fact that music
magazine are stereotypically aimed at males and Fashion is stereotypically aimed at females, so
theses two results reinforced previous information. One person answered none, this was due to
them not wanting to buy a music magazine as they want to see consistency, no music magazines
have this at the present time, this allows me to make sure my magazine is consistent so I could also
attract all types of teenagers. One more person said NME to this question, I cannot count this as a
result as it is a magazine and so contains more then one genre of music, I have researched this
magazine in depth. I had three people answer Indie to this question, I also had three other answers
which stated metal, rock and alternative. Form this I can tell that there are a number of genres that
attract the target audience, due to these answers, I noticed that I will have to make my magazine
include a number of different genres, this is so I can attract a number of different types of teenagers.

I then asked weather they expect to see a famous band on the front cover, everyone said yes to this,
from these results I noticed that if there is not a band that is well known and recognised throughout
music then the audience would not be drawn to that magazine as they do not recognise the front
cover, with a famous band on the front cover then it also makes the individuals believe that the
magazine is a trustworthy magazine, as there is a famous band on the front cover.

The eighth question I asked people was what shot would they expect to be used for the image on
the front cover, the answers I retrieved back was that 5 people expect to see a mid shot on the front
cover for the image, I then received one saying the it is a long shot, I also got 3 other answers that
Andre Marsh

stated a mid shot or a long shot, from this I can tell that the majority of people tend to see mid shots
on a magazine but also see a long shot from time to time, this then allows me to have the freedom
of picking between the two shots, this is because the target audience does not expect to see a
certain shot but the two shots that were mentioned tend to catch the readers eye more frequently. I
also received one answer that said not fussed, this reinforces the fact that a particular shot for a
image on a magazine does not catch the eye much more then any other.

The ninth question I asked in my questionnaire is what kind of article they would expect to see in a
magazine I got mixed responses to this question, as I gave them four options to choose from
reviews, interviews, informative article and other, I had two people state that they expect all of
these to be in the magazine, with freebees to be the other, this allows me to look at the idea of
possible adding a free bee to my magazine, which would also be another unique selling point. I then
got three answers that says they would expect to see both reviews and interviews in the magazine,
this shows that the target audience likes to have a variety of things that they like to read, along with
this it could attract the other five people who stated just one of these two options and with a
variety that offers both then it would still attract the target audience in a big way.

The tenth question I asked was what kind of colours would they expect to see in a music magazine, I
got a number of different colours put forward, but the primary once that were constantly being
mentioned were Black, white and red, the reason for this is because these colours are commonly
used to represent music that the target audience listens to. I now need to take this finding and
make sure I can put these colours constantly throughout my magazine, which would also create a
consistency about my magazine.

The eleventh question that I asked in my questionnaire was what the target audience expects to
see in the terminal, the answers I got varied from the price to cover line to barcode, from these
results I can tell that each music magazine put something different in the terminal area, this shows
that each magazine places something different here this depends on what they want their target
audience to see last, for instance if I was aiming my magazine at heavy metal gig going teenagers, I
would place a advert in the terminal are that advertises gigs, this is because it is the last thing the
reader will see, so would cause the teenagers to read on to find out about the gig.

My final question that I asked on my questionnaire is about what conventional is placed at the start
of the route of the eye, all the answers that I got from the questionnaire is the masthead and cover
lines, this tells me that the people who look at music magazine see the mast head first and then
begin to trust the magazine and read on, I am going to use this information in my magazine and put
the mast head at the start, so my magazine looks professional, it looks professional because of the
use of conventional aspects.
 Andre Marsh
Neale-Wade Community College
Wimblington rd
March
Cambridgeshire
PE15
Adam Gill
Neale-Wade Community College
Wimbligton Rd
March
Cambridgeshire
PE15
Consent Form
I am writing this letter about a recent project I have taken on, this project is a magazine, for this
magazine I will need to take my own photos, due to this I need a model. In turn I would like your
consent to use you as a model in my photos.

Along with the consent of using you as the model, I would like you to clarify that I would be allowed
to borrow your guitar during this photography period, this period should only last a week and so
would be returned after that.

Signing this letter, you agree for me to use your photographs on a public product, this in turn also
means that individuals would have access to these photos on the internet, signing this letter gives
me permission to use the photos and for others to have access to it.

Signature:...................................

Name:.........................................

Date:.........................................