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

I looked at several other magazines for ideas and inspiration for how I should go about designing mine. I wanted a magazine with strong visual impact that would appeal to an audience interested in rapping, familiar with the strong identity of the rap world. I looked at how rappers use imagery on their cds and promotional material and in videos. I looked at what rappers wear as they have a strong sense of identity conveyed through fashion. I wanted to convey the same imagery associated with rap, such as graffiti, in the magazine.

My product uses some traditional forms of communication such as large scale photographs of celebrities on the front cover to attract potential buyers. I have developed the use of celebrity imagery to be a more stylized black and white graphic image, imitating that of graffiti with a paint splattered background. The features in contrast are highlighted in a vibrant red to catch the eye of the buyer. The limited colours work well to give the cover a strong identity which will be continued each throughout the year. The contents page challenges more traditional magazine layout. The emphasis is on one image. The contents appear in a small diagonal section at the right bottom corner of the page, but are still clear and informative. The double page article on Iron Stu again reflects the striking but simple palette of the cover, mainly black and white with a strong emotive image of Stu sweeping the page, brought to life with graffiti style coloured highlights.