Codes and Conventions

Regional magazines cover topics that are directly related to the specific region that the magazine chooses to cover. For example the Somerset times may cover topics such as the Frome Sunday market as this is a big event in the calendar for people in the area. The magazine will then cater their adds to fit their specific target audience; for example in the Somerset times they mat advertise gardening products or farming equipment, they would of made sure these are the correct adds for the correct people to maximise the effectiveness of the advert.

Cumbrialife follows these rules while also using codes and conventions such as the masthead and main cover image to give off the correct vibe the magazines creator was looking for. The target audience for Cumbrialife are middle aged people with a high disposable income to be able to pay for the magazine as well as the activities the magazine recommends such as high end dining “from top lakes chefs”. It will also target people living in Cumbria or maybe interested in moving to the area/going on holiday. The aim of the magazine is to sell the area in to tourists to boost the image of the place. The masthead uses a serif font which connotes professionalism as it is very simple which makes the topic of the magazine very clear to its audience, this is a convention that I will consider applying to my magazine as the conventional reader of a regional magazine are older than say that of a music magazine, so they will be looking for a more simplistic font rather than a more ‘artsy’ font that a young audience would be more accustomed to.

However, veering off from this convention, I may add a second font that is in a ‘calligraphy’ style to promote a different aspect of the magazine as I plan to have a slightly younger target audience than other conventional regional magazines. They also do not overlay the masthead on the main cover image, which is often used if the brand is very well known, for example VIBE music magazine uses this technique, as they want to promote the music star as much as possible. However this magazine is not internationally known so it is important to promote both the masthead (brand identity) and the main cover image as these are directly linked through setting. I am not planning to follow this convention of using a banner at the top of the page as it takes away from the main cover image. Instead I will have a main cover image that is ‘bottom heavy’ so no features of the image are blocked by the masthead.

The main cover image shows an image of the Lake District with farms and hills included, this is a stereotypical image of the Lake District and shows off its aesthetically pleasing features which will draw in audiences who may want to read into the information the magazine makes available about the location. This will definitely apply to my magazine, as it is important to promote the area the magazine is based around through the use of an image that sums up the region. In my magazine the region will be Frome, therefore I will take a photo of Frome that is recognisable to the local readers while also striking to outside readers. “Life” in Cumbrialife uses a red font, stepping away from the

black font colour, this is to highlight that the magazine is about the lifestyle available when you visit Cumbria. My magazine will apply this convention as it makes the masthead stand out and can also promote a meaning. This red colour scheme is used throughout the magazine to highlight the important parts of the magazine such as badges and plugs. The badge is promoting a competition that is running, with the winner winning a “£1000 luxury lake break”. This draws in new readers as they may not be interested In the topic of the magazine but will want to win the holiday. The plug uses the red colour on the 5 of “5 great walks” which draws in the eye of the reader. This links in with the theme of the Cumbria area which includes the Lake District, this plug directly addresses their target audience as most people who choose to go to Cumbria are interested in walking around the countryside. I will expand on this convention by using a brand colour throughout my whole magazine to promote brand identity and also make important aspects my magazine stand out. Red is used well in Cumbrialife as it branches out from the conventional colour palette, which makes the front cover stand out.

anyone can partake without being a professional hiker/bike rider. This appeals to their target audience who are not partaking to get fit but to enjoy their surroundings. The Masthead; unlike in the Cumbrialife magazine has part of the text covered by a tree which connotes that the brand is an established one so can make their front cover look more appealing by not taking away from the main cover image. They use a serif font to give it a different feel to the cover line which suggests that the magazine may cater to different audiences, this links with the header of the page which uses a similar font in black which plugs other interesting things available in the magazine, this has been done to make it clear what the magazine includes so that people can see if there Is anything that interests them.

This contents page follows the general rule of contents pages by putting in the magazine title. In the top left of the page to promote the brand identity; this makes it clear to the audience that it is the Sussex style magazine which is important to make it clear what magazine is being read by the reader. This is a convention I will apply to my magazine as it a staple of contents pages in all genres of magazine as it promotes brand identity. They have positioned it in the top left of the page, as this is the first place the reader will look. To the right of this is the masthead which informs the audience of what page they are own, this will intrigue the reader of what the magazine will contain

This contents page follows the general rule of contents pages by putting in the magazine title. In the top left of the page to promote the brand identity; this makes it clear to the audience that it is the Sussex style magazine which is important to make it clear what magazine is being read by the reader. This is a convention I will apply to my magazine as it a staple of contents pages in all genres of magazine as it promotes brand identity. They have positioned it in the top left of the page, as this is the first place the reader will look. To the right of this is the masthead which informs the audience of what page they are own, this will intrigue the reader of what the magazine will contain

With the page number (28) in the food and drink colour (red). These numbers use a serif font which gives the page a very simplistic feel; in turn making the page very clear to the audience. This is important as the main aim of the page is to inform the audience of what the magazine entails. This is something that I will take very seriously when creating my contents page, although the page needs to look visually appealing it is more important to keep the page clear. Sussex styles main aim for this page was to make it very clear for the audience, as well as the other things mentioned they have used a white background to make the colours pop which makes the magazine look aesthetically pleasing.

This content page follows the similar rules to Sussex styles contents by making the page simplistic and using image boxes. Using image boxes is a convention from this magazine that I plan to follow, as this is another way of promoting the more ‘important’ articles while also making the page more visually appealing. This makes the page very clear to the audience; this is important as the main aim is to inform. It is clear from the colour scheme that it is aimed at middle-aged woman with the use of crisp white colour scheme with a hint of pink to give off a feminine vibe. This compliments the main images of fashion and nature, which is stereotypically associated with middle-aged women. This has shown me that I must have a specific target audience and use media techniques that fit with this specific group. For example for my magazine I will use a bright colour scheme to fit in with the topic of my magazine and my middle aged target audience. This magazine uses a clear font for “September” the font is professional which links with the target audience of the magazine which is aimed at middle aged successful women with a disposable income. The font size also makes it clear what issue the magazine is which is important to inform the audience, this will be important with this specific magazine as it will be based around seasonal topics such as “post summer skin” so that the audience will be aware of what the general topics of the magazine will be about. This is a convention that I will apply to my magazine as I plan to create a Christmas themed magazine

This advert uses a very bright and crisp colour scheme, the use of red makes the magazine stand out to the audience, which is the main aim of the advert is to draw in readers. From the main cover image it is clear that it is aimed at middle aged people with enough disposable income to purchase the things in the advert. The badge highlights the sale on “15% off”. When creating my advert I will need to make sure it applies to my target audience so that it links with the rest of the magazine. This draws in audiences with the chance of having reduced prices, the use of the heart shaped badge has connotations with love which gives off the vibe that the product is made with ‘love’ this makes the product more appealing to the audience as an older audience will be more inclined to buy something that is high quality and also made with ‘love’. This style of advert is something that I would like to use as the light colour scheme makes it very clear and make the product seem inviting to all the target audience.