• A main image or object relating to feature article with page number on

• Page numbers that aren't in chronological order

• House style which usually follows the rest of the magazine

• Structured layout  which has been created using grids/ guidelines

• Columns vertical rows of text, usually more than one but less than four

• Blurb of contents which shows main stories and cover line info and images 

• Date and issue no. showing the reader regular information

• Pug/starburst with subscription information about getting the magazine regularly
• Columns of text

• Variety of font styles
• Masking of image over text/images
• Gutter - using guidelines

For my image I have used and followed the conventions as I have ensured my model is making eye-contact with the camera so they connect with the reader. Also I have taken the image as a medium close-up which is also a key convention, it enables the audience to see the models facial expression clearly.

I have ensured I have used the convention of having a clear house style. I have kept to having just 3 main colours: black, white & pink. I have chosen these colours because from my questionnaire results my target audience mostly wanted black, white & another colour. I chose pink to be the other colour as I think it works well and brightens up my media product. My media product is aimed to appeal to both sexes, which I think it does as the pink isn't too bright.

I have included a diagonal banner in the bottom left-hand corner which is a another convention I have used. This has information in about winning festival tickets in a magazine competition. This is quite a conventional place to put competition info as it stands out and is separate from the cover lines and strap lines.

The masthead develops the conventions too as the 'F' and the 'N' have pointy ends which makes the masthead 'Fusion' uneven. I think this creates a futuristic effect which is one of my brand values for my magazine. In most magazines the masthead is completely flat along the bottom and edges and I wanted to change this convention slightly.

I have also challenged the conventions as the image has a shadow around the one side of it. This is very rare in magazines as most photographers do not include shadows in their images. I thought it would be important to keep the shadow as it is so relevant to the headline 'Stepping out of the Shadows' and acts as a play on words which I think is very effective.

I have also used a large main image which relates to an article with a page number on. I have chosen 'Elijah' to be my image which relates to an article on page 4. The image takes up around half of the page which allows for the 'blurb of contents'.

Also I have included by-lines, editors signature, page numbers, date and issue number. These are all conventions which I have used in my contents page. These ensure my product looks professional and like a conventional contents page of what you would expect in a music magazine.

By having titles to my blurb of contents this is using the key conventions as in almost every contents page in magazines they have 'features' and/or 'news' and 'reviews. This means the reader can pin point to what type of article they want to read.

I have also taken the 'loose layout' approach as there are no fixed lines between the text and the image. This is so it is line with my brand value/identity of being minimalistic.

I have left a shadow on the side of the image and I have also kept the 'I' in Elijah lower case so it looks consistent with the front cover.

DIFFERENCES

The vibe contents page is completely black and white whereas mine has colour and pink shapes. 'Contents' is written on 3 lines which is quite cliché whereas mine is written the conventional way. 

SIMILARITIES

They both have just one column of text with 2 separate headings one which is 'features'.

They also both have only one image which takes up half the page.

Dazed's main image covers half of the mast head and the mast head is pink where mine is black and only covers a small part of the masthead.

My image - you can only see shoulders upwards of Elijah whereas Dazed's image is more of a medium close-up where you can see the upper body.

Fusion has a lot more cover-lines than 'Dazed'.

SIMILARITIES

We both have positioned the masthead in the same place.

The image is also in the same position and the model is making eye-contact with the camera.

The main image is 'Elijah' and takes up the whole of the left page. This gives the reader a true feeling about the article and what the person looks like, it gives them a visual image instead of imagining. Many music magazines like the examples below use a large image of a celebrity too so I have used this convention so my DPS looks conventional.

I have credited the photographer and the writer of the double page which is called a , as this is a key convention in any magazine article/double page spread.

Also I have used the convention that colours should be used which are consistent with the front cover and contents page. I have stuck to the same three main colours which are pink, black and white.