Conventions of magazine covers

If you are creating a magazine cover for your coursework :

You are advised to use imagery that you have created yourself when completing Media production coursework.

8 3/8” x 10 7/8” is the most economical and common magazine page size. Most press and bindery equipment is designed to produce this size efficiently and with minimum paper waste. 

The generic conventions of magazines cover 

One Main Image that takes up most of the cover

• Usually the main feature article. - Studio photographs as opposed to a paparazzi shot, 
• usually in mediumclose-up or mid shot 
• - Direct mode of address.

Masthead or Title

• Has a trademark, a unique font. - Usually consists of one or two words.
• Fills the width of the cover, or is in the top left corner. 
• Positioning statement – how the magazine positions itself in the marketplace against the competition - Price and issue sometimes near to the barcode, date near title this is often (11pt size).
• Puff
• offers something else to the magazine such as free giveaways
•  Buzz words 
•  usually with the main feature article. Used to attract attention e.g. “EXCLUSIVE, FREE, PLUS” 
• Barcode 
• This will be positioned at the bottom right, or up the right side. Along with it will sometimes be the date/month of edition, price, website and issue number
• Coverlines 
• lines of text on the front cover designed to attract the audience’s attention and make them pick the magazine up and look inside. 
• Main Coverline 
• This is the largest text on the cover after the title and it anchors the meaning of the image. Usually a sub line in smaller text giving more information about the article. Other cover lines are usually one or two words with sub lines explaining them. Some are used to intrigue the reader. These must represent the stories inside. There are only 5 or 6 and they are positioned down the sides, framing the image, so the main image is not covered. These are usually in the same font to create a distinctive design.
• Strip 
• across the top or bottom containing lists of items which feature in the magazine. This conveys the magazine is full of interesting stories and the audience is getting value for money.
•  Colour – often a limited palette is used with a simple colour scheme adding to the distinctive design.

Size

COMMON MAGAZINE SIZES:
There are two standard sizes for magazines.
Standard Size:
8 3⁄8” x 10 7⁄8” is an economical and common magazine page size.

More info on magazine size here

Task 1: 

Using Adobe Photoshop, create a mock up of a magazine cover for a magazine which deals with music festivals or traveling with a target audience of 20-35 year olds. . 

Be sure to include the codes and conventions as set out above.

This is not an art exam, annotation is sufficient.

Conventions of DVD covers

Learning Objective: 
To apply the conventions of DVD covers to a mock up DVD cover of the sequel to a film you are familiar with.

Key words: 
Main title, main image, hierarchy, spine, cast, age certificate, blurb, synopsis, reviews, awards, running time, institutional logo, lettering, action line, handwritten.

You are advised to use imagery that you have created yourself when completing Media production coursework.

Tagline – draws the audience’s attention sometimes by asking them a question.

Iconography – relevant to the genre or images of famous actors, or even places – because the  audience may recognise them from other films they are familiar with.

Industry reviews – gives the film critical acclaim, often accompanied by stars out of five.

Sequel – audiences may have seen the first one and will find a sequel appealing.

Blurb or synopsis on the back of the DVD cover – wording is sensationalised mentioning actors' names and giving information about the narrative.  Sometimes asking asks questions to the audience to create enigmas making them want to find out more.

Bonus features – the audience is getting inside information about the film, the actors, crew. Gives the text a personal feel.

Awards – gives the film recognition to the audience. Audiences want to watch successful films.

The production company – audiences recognise them from previous films and give them an indication of the style of the film.

Director – audiences might recognise the name from other films they have made.

Film classification – necessary organisational issue.

Screen grabs – gives the audience an insight into the film.

Task 1:
Discuss and list the conventions evident on this annotated DVD cover (Wizards). Ignore the typos. Orange books.

Task 2: Take notes from this DVD cover presentation. Orange books.

Analysis Of Dvd Covers 

Assessment. Task 3: 

Using the template provided, design a mock up of a DVD cover for the sequel to a film you are familiar with. If you are investigating film for your research investigation then this should provide you with your title. Make notes on the back of the handout rather than annotating your design.

This is not an Art exam so just indicate any colours along with the connotations for that colour.

Peer Assessment.

Use the handouts provided to assess the work of your peer.

Award 20 marks for each of the success criteria indicated above giving a final total out of 100.

The assessment focus for this task is: DVD cover - codes and conventions

Year 13 written tasks success criteria:

Knowledge of the concept of audience/representation/narrative

Awareness of relevant theories/debates/views

Uses examples to draw on relevant issues

Use of media terminology/key words

Quality of written communication

Conventions of CD covers

Learning objective: To deconstruct the codes and conventions of CD covers

Key words: Genre, target audience, conventions, fonts.

If you are creating a CD cover you need to produce the front and back cover plus the spine and at least one page of an insert for the first CD of a new performer or band.

You are advised to use imagery that you have created yourself when completing Media production coursework.

1. Be sure of the genre of your new artist/band the name needs to reflect this to attract the target audience.
2. The colour and imagery needs to appeal to the same primary target audience.
3. The track list needs to deal with the issues faced by the target audience.
4. The font and graphics should also reflect the genre.
5. You can use an existing distributors that are known for the genre or invent one yourself (with logo)
6. The artwork and photography needs to be your own work.
You can manipulate your images in P-shop

Conventions Of An Album Cover 

Conventions of cd album covers 

Cd Cover Analysis 

CD cover analysis 

Textual analysis:

‘Investigate how genre conventions are used in the CD cover ROCKFERRY by Duffy’

This is for analysis of :

The CD cover contains many recognized codes and conventions.

Main image

A large black and white image of the star Duffy dominates the text set against an out of focus background which includes the carriages of an old fashioned train. 

The photograph has been taken with a shallow depth of field. The image is typical of the soul genre of the Sixties and has connotations of that iconic period in popular music which includes the promotional images of The Beatles and models photographed by David Bailey. 

Duffy looks as though she doesn't want to let go of her youth, is she afraid of the journey she is about to take possibly to adulthood which would be identified with by a teenage audience.

The cover reminds us of the sixties British white soul singer Dusty Springfield: (Fig 2).

(Fig 2)

Duffy is looking down and looks a little sad about the journey she is about to take.

The photo is taken at eye level and is a naturally lit mid-shot taken in a realistic setting.

We can see from Duffy's body language, holding on to her coat that she may be apprehensive.

The symbolic codes of dress which include a bold black and white coat and bleached blonde hair. Again this reminds us of the Sixties and iconic singers like Dusty Springfield who is reknowned as one of the greatest white, British, female soul genre singers. Duffy's style of singing has been called Blue eyed soul.

The presence of the train could suggest the star is about to take a journey. Rockferry is a small working class town on the Wirral and a well known narrative of 'rags to riches' is being constructed. 

There are connotations of the English North /South divide which exists today as it did in the Sixties when the Beatles traveled from Liverpool to London in the film A Hard Days Night.

Graphics:

The title of the album is in capitals and the serif font STENCIL has been used.

Stencils are used by rail companies to identify their cargo, so the lettering has connotations of train travel.

Above the main image is the signature of the artist. It can be described as feminine This will appeal to the target audience who may feel they are buying something unique or collectible, like the autograph of Duffy the celebrity personalising the CD for fans.

In conclusion, the codes and conventions used on the CD are typical of the British soul genre which was reborn through artists like Duffy in the mid noughties.

________________________________________________________________

Task1:
Write the codes and conventions of CD covers into your Orange books.

Task 2:
Using the template provided, rough out a cover for a new CD promoting Nirvana's greatest hits to a new audience of young people aged 15 - 25.

Peer Assessment.

Use the handouts provided to assess the work of your peer.

Award 20 marks for each of the success criteria indicated above giving a final total out of 100.

The assessment focus for this task is: CD cover - codes and conventions

Year 13 written tasks success criteria:

Knowledge of the concept of audience/representation/narrative

Awareness of relevant theories

Uses examples to draw on relevant issues

Use of media terminology/key words

Quality of written communication

Conventions of RnB.

Learning outcome: To explore the codes and conventions of the R'n B' music genre.

Key words: 
Conventions: The visual codes expected by an audience of a genre.

You are advised to use imagery that you have created yourself when completing Media production coursework.

 Conventions of RnB.

RnB Costumes - MEN:

Topless – For example Trey Songz (see below) is usually pictured in his videos with very minimal clothes on; this is because a lot of male RnB singers target market is young teenage girls.

Jeans – If the artist is pictured topless they are usually wearing jeans, slightly hanging low so you can see their boxers. They will also have a designer belt on which a few close up shots will be shot as a form of advertising for that particular item.

Tattoos – A lot of RnB male artists have tattoos a majority of the time they are on their chest if not it will be on their arms. They also have multiple tattoos, it will not just be one. This expresses masculinity to the target audience.

Artists may be describing their own vulnerability as well as their toughness.

Jewellery – Unlike males in hip hop, RnB stars wear subtle jewellery like a watch, chain and earring – where as in hip hop they would wear bundles of jewellery.

Male artists tend to wear more jewellery than female artists.

RnB conventions are more subtle than Hip Hop.

Costume - WOMEN:

Minimal clothing – women in R&B usually have very little clothing on and their stomachs are on show a majority of the time; this is because to male fans they are meant to be seen as objects of desire. The costumes also express femininity.

Hair & Makeup – their hair is always styled in a very dramatic and eye catching way. Their makeup is also very bold and defined, especially their eyes they always have dark coloured eye shadows with gold's which makes their eyes very alluring. To show power some females wear red lipstick in their videos. The artists have strong personalities.

Shoe heels – R&B females wear very high heels to elongate their legs because if they are wearing hardly any clothes the higher the shoes the longer their legs will look. However some R&B females wear trainers in their videos for choreographed scenes. 

Jewellery – Big earrings, necklaces but usually when they wear a lot of necklaces they are breaking gender stereotypes because it is usually R&B males that wear that much jewelry.

Poses (body language): Often reclining with a direct mode of address. Looking straight out at the audience.

ICONOGRAPHY. MEN:

R&B videos are usually very sexual and the topless men in the male R&B videos connote that sense of sexuality. 
A majority of R&B videos these days are filmed in grey scale/sepia tone which adds a sensual tone to the imagery in the video. This technique also has connotations of seriousness. Lyrics are often 'a matter of life and death' particularly when it comes to affairs of the heart.
R&B male stars wear jewelry however not as much as Hip Hop stars do because although they are trying to depict their wealth, a majority of the video will have close ups on their bodies and abs. 

Trey Songz – Can’t be friends:

Similar to males in the R&B genre, females in R&B also convey their sexuality through their clothing which is very minimal; they also place emphasis on their sexuality through their makeup. R&B females are usually portrayed as soft goddess type people in their videos, but more recently there has been a lot of gender stereotypes being broken in their videos with the females being seen as more powerful than men. Ciara's "like a boy” video.

• CHALLENGING STEREOTYPES:
• Recently, producers of videos are challenging gender stereotypes more and more, especially when dealing with  female R&B stars. 
• In some videos females will be depicted in similar ways to males in their videos, conveying a message to the audience that the woman is a powerful person. This message is often conveyed through costume, because a change in the way women are dressed can make them seem powerful automatically – although the stereotypical image is black skimpy clothing .
• SLOW SONGS:
• Slow R&B songs that are often about being in love or breaking up. These kind of “love” songs are usually performed by females. Rather than wearing very minimal clothing, females in these songs will wear clothing that depict them in the same light as goddesses; the clothing will be bright and colourful to show happiness if the song is about being in love. 
• Whereas if the lyrics are about breaking up, the typical convention used is often a grey scale filter to show emotion and they will be wearing dark clothes. A lot of nude coloured/natural makeup will be used to convey the sense of natural beauty, because a lot of close ups of the artist's face will be included. Some of these types of songs have a narrative but some of them will just be shots of the artist. 
• A majority of the time, the location for these songs will be a beach or a tropical island looking place (this will then mean a lot of wide shots showing the location) – especially if the video is a love song. 
• Songs about breaking up usually take place in a plain black room with  a chair or very minimal items in the room, because these songs tend to concentrate on the artist by using close ups to show significant facial expression and body language.
• FAST SONGS:
• Fast tempo-ed R&B songs by females usually involve them wearing bright colours, but it not about being in the club like the way the males are depicted. Many videos including females are done in the studio because there are a lot of special effects especially in the background (for example: Rihanna – rude boy). 

• Some critics such as Andrew Goodwin, argue that music video changed the way we view moving image. Through MTV, the music video has moved away from the classic hollywood narrative structure; 3 acts with a start middle and end. So, if you start to analyse them using the same rules then they won't work.

Target Audience:

• A majority of R&B fans are teenagers/young adults roughly between the ages of 13-25. This could be because of the explicit lyrics in some of the songs, a majority of this age group are also females. The lyrics deal with issues faced by this age group as set out Maslow.
• It is usually females that are attracted to R&B music because female R&B artists stereo-typically make songs about being in love or being heartbroken – this is something that will appeal greatly to teenage girls and young adults. 
• The fast paced R&B songs will also involve a lot of fashion and the synergy of music and fashion is something that will also attract females because if they are into that sort of music they are usually also interested in fashion. The target audience of R&B males is also majorly made up of females because they are portrayed in a very sexual way, through their nudity and lyrics. Females will find this appealing because usually they will also be physically attracted to the male artists. However some males will be attracted to the jewelry, naked women and depiction of wealth in these videos.

Task1: 

Rihanna's 2007 hit Umbrella was arguably the biggest selling song of 2007 in most countries around
the world. 

Analyse the artwork and the video to see how both conform or challenge genre conventions ofR&B through the use of visual and technical codes. 
200-300 words.

GCSE Coursework Format of my coursework production.

Charlie Kirk: 

Production: Music mag. Young adults. Rap. NWA.

Research: Annotate texts. Internet research.

Planning: Mood board. Print mock up for composition.

Albert Moyo:

Production: Magazine music genre. R&B. Young adult audience.

Research: Annotate texts. Focus group.

Planning: Mood board. Print mock up.

Jordan Daniels:

Production: Games magazine. Sport. 3+.

Research: Annote texts. Questionnaire.

Planning: Mood board. Print mock.

Joseph Groves: 

Production: CD cover with insert. 18+. Rap (emminem).

Research: Annotate. Focus group.

Planning: Mood board. Character profile.

Connor Stirrup:

Production: Travel magazine. Young adults and students. Lonely Planet.

Research: Annotate texts. Questionnaire.

Planning: Mood board. Print mock up.

Joe Lewin:

Production:
Gaming Magazine. Individual. 14-18 Target audience.

Research: Annotate texts. Industry research. Focus groups. Questionnaires.

Planning: Script. Mood board. Print mock up.

Jayson White:

Production:
Gaming Magazine. Individual.16+ Target audience.

Research: Annotate texts. Industry research. Focus groups. Questionnaires.

Planning; Mood board. Print mock up.

Kieran Wright:

Production:
Animation. Individual. Young adults. Anime.

Research: Survey. Annotated text.

Planning: Script. Storyboard. Character design. Background design.