CONVENTIONS

Toby Ayres

NME Front Cover

IMAGESA mid-shot is commonly used to show 1 or 2 artists. The use of a mid-shot allows us to see the artists clothing so that the audience can associate them with the indie genre, as well as this we can see their posture and facial expression, these are commonly used to show masculinity as NME has a predominant male primary audience.

FONTS/TYPOGRAPHY Bold fonts are used on the masthead, cover lines and cover stories to make them stand out and look appealing on the page. NME commonly use a sans serif font as it gives an informal element to the cover and effectively the whole magazine. This has been used to suit the young demographic of NME.

LAYOUTNME have quite a cluttered layout on their front cover. This is achieved through wide usage of cover stories surrounding the main cover story of the magazine. Each cover line contains a small amount of text which is either a pull quote or further detail of the cover line.

COLOURNME tend to feature a black, white, red and yellow colour scheme on their front cover. These colours fit the quirky and different appeal of the indie genre conventions.

NME Contents Page

IMAGESNME use a number of images, often close ups and mid shots are used so that indie genre conventions in the form of mise-en-scene (clothing, props etc…) are revealed.

LAYOUTThe cover story is situated in the top middle third of the page and is the largest feature on the page. It is then surrounded by other stories and features such as promotional offers. each story has their own box and the title is always at the very top of the page.

TYPOGRAPHYNME use both serif and sans serif fonts on their contents page, they do this to create contrast on the page. This is conventional as it has both formal and informal elements. Serif fonts make things easy to read and sans serif font have better aesthetics and make the page look more appealing.

COLOURNME do not use many colours besides black, white and a dash of red. This is used to accentuate the colour of the images used. This makes them stand out more on the page as a good contrast is created. The red box is used to promote the offer they have.

NME Double Page Spread

LAYOUT Image is placed on the left side of the page and the body of text is on the right side. There is normally a headline accompanied with a pull quote related to the story. They also use a kicker and standfirst. The text is always in columns.

TYPOGRAPHY They use a kicker as it is conventional for all articles and has a good professional element to it. They use either serif or sans serif for the headline, this is dependent on what the article is about; whether it addresses a serious or light hearted matter. The main body is serif as it brings more clarity to the text and looks more professional.

COLOUR The image usually provides the main colour for the page. The right side is usually a white background with a black body of text over top of it. Some letters are in colour to make them stand out more. This is usually the kicker or part of the standfirst.

IMAGESThey usually include a mid shot. This is to show how the band/artist are represented and how it fits the indie genre. They also use a wide shot as it allows the whole band to be seen and can portray them to be united etc…

Front Cover

IMAGESI used a low angle mid shot, this is a similar shot type that you would expect to see on an NME front cover as the audience can see the indie appeals and conventions of my artist, they see this through the use of mise en-scene shown in the clothing, props and facial expressions. The artists on my cover look stern and are dressed fashionably for an indie magazine cover. The mid shot allows us to see these features.LAYOUTSimilar to NME I heavily use the left third by placing a majority of the cover lines down that side. Also, to appeal to my masculine primary audience I give my page an ordered style of layout which is not overly cluttered.

COLOURI use a black, white and red colour scheme. This is quite simplistic and looks good to the eye. It is also appealing to a masculine audience as all of the colours that I selected have mainly male appeals. The colour of the image I used is quite bright and contrasts well against the colour of the text.

TYPOGRAPHYAlso, just like NME I only use sans serif font styles on my front cover. This is to make my magazine look fun as it gives informal elements to the magazine. I also use different colour fonts to suit the background surrounding it. This is to make particular pieces of text to stand out more.

Contents Page

TYPOGRAPHYI used a selection of fonts including a serif and sans serif font. I did this to create contrast on the page. It blends both formal and informal features to bring a professional balance to the page. In my pull quotes I use italics, this makes the writing look like spoken word and is conventional among all magazines as it appeals to the eye more professionally.

LAYOUTMy layout is quite ordered which is conventional as it brings masculine appeals to the page. Each feature has its own box with a headline and a pull quote. The use of blue prevalent in the right third of the page, this is done to focus the attention of the reader to the promotion in the bottom right corner.

IMAGES Similarly to NME I use mainly mid-shots and wide shots on my contents page. This displays the indie characteristics of my artists through the use of mise en-scene.

COLOURI use a blue, black and white colour scheme on my page. I selected these because they are very masculine associated colours to further appeal to my audience. This is conventional as it appeals to my primary audience and is also aesthetically pleasing.

Double Page Spread

TYPOGRAPHYMy magazine’s typography follows conventions as again it uses both serif and sans serif fonts. The sans serif font make the page look informal and fun whereas the professional serif font that I selected makes it look sharp to the eye. The headline is in a serif font, this is conventional as it is the piece of text the audience will look at, the serif font displays that the feature is addressing a serious topic and sets the tone of the whole interview.LAYOUT

Conventionally, the image takes up the left side of the page and the main body of text is on the right. Each paragraph has a clear space between it to bring extra clarity and order to the page.

IMAGES My images is a wide long shot. I chose this shot type as it suitably occupies the whole of the right side of the page and still looks good. From this shot type you can also see what the artist is wearing and can see his facial expression which is conventional for indie music magazines.

COLOURI simply chose a black and white colour scheme, these are masculine colours and are also very simplistic. They make he page look clear and contrast one another well for easy reading for the audience which is the main focus.