Analysis of magazine front covers BY LIZZIE SEFFER

MASTHEAD BARCODE &PRICE

COVER PHOTOGRAPHThe photograph goes really well with the cover, especiallybecause Julian Casablancas is dressed all in black, whichgoes well with the red. He is also wearingred glasses. The long shot works well in this picture as it shows his outfit, showing the audience more than just his face and connoting what kind of music he does and what kind of guy he is.

MAIN COVERLINE(To go with coverPhoto because JulianCasablancas is theLead singer of TheStrokes)Goes with the mastheadbecause same colour andfront. Makes front cover work well and makes it look professional.

COVER LINES

HEADER

RULE OF THIRDSRule of thirds is used really well in this magazine seeing as it is pretty much perfectly divided into thirds and is symmetrical.

COLOUR SCHEME Only yellow, white and red are used which connotes that it is a magazine that is quite serious about their music. The red goes with the whole rock image because it connotes danger etc. Red is also a noticeable colour so it will draw your eyes to it and then white contrasts nicely.

In tiny font and one of the smallest things on the page which makes the reader most probably look at it right at the end, by which time they will have most likely made up their mind that they want to purchase this magazine.

RULE OF THIRDSThe cover, just like the other Clash colour is really symmetrical and perfectly divided into threes.

MASTHEADBold and capital letters create a sophisticated, interesting look. It grabs the audiences attention, especially because of the contrast between the blue and white, just like the other clash magazines contrast between the red and white.

BARCODE+ISSUE DATE

FRONT COVER IMAGEThe hair surrounds the face to create a natural frame. This close up picture has great effect, especially because it’s right in the middle of the magazine. Her blue hair looks interesting and futuristic which goes with the main cover line which includes the word ‘future’

The hair is also the background colour, which contrasts with the masthead.

COVER LINEOnly one cover line, except forthe main cover line. This is hardly ever the case with most other magazines and makes it look quite plain, but not empty. It adds to the whole sophisticated look and makes it look quite

MAIN COVER LINEInteresting font is used, but it doesn’t stand out too muchwhich adds to the sophisticated look. The word‘future’, as I said before,connects with the blue hair.

COLOUR SCHEMEBlue and white are the only colours used.

RULE OF THIRDS

MASTHEADIt’s black which fits in with the rock genre. There is also an effect which looks like smashing glass which makes the font look rebellious and dangerous. Instantly connotes what kind of genre this magazine is aimed towards. The word ‘Kerrang’ sounds like a noise a rock instrument might make, which again, fits perfectly with the magazine music genre.

FRONT COVER IMAGEThis cover, differently from the other two covers, has several different photographs of different artists on the front. This is effective because it will attract more people to the magazine as there is more a chance that it will be a band they like. The main image of Bring me the Horizon goes well with the masthead and connotes the rock genre because of the long hair and tattoos.

MAIN COVER LINE The white font contrasts the dark suits in the image and goes well with the masthead background cover image. Easy to read and bold. The red stands out and draws the eye to that cover line.

HEADERGrabbing articles that catch the readers attention and their interest. The red outline highlights and brings out the white font.

COVER LINES

COLOUR SCHEME

BARCODE+ Price+ Issue Date

Mainly black and white with some red. The bands outfits contrast with the main cover line and the red stands out, drawing attention to special articles and to the magazine in general.

Analysis of magazine contents pages

Editor’s letter and photographMakes reader relate more to the magazine because they know what kind of people wrote it.

Magazine logo

Biggest picture on the contents page which relates to the main article in the magazine, which is also shown on the cover page. The picture is energetic and fun and makes the reader want to find out more about this event.

Small preview pictures of articles within the magazine, giving the reader an instant idea of the kind of articles in the magazine and also they might like the look of one and read that one straight away.

COLOUR SCHEME

Like the front page, mainly black and white are used to connote that dark rock theme. It would look weird and wouldn’t fit in with the genre of rock and hardcore if it was colourful and colours such as pink or orange were used.

A small amount of yellow was used for a few words, including the content headers etc. to make them stand out from the article numbers and names and categorize the articles.

Photo credits

Date and Issue number of magazine.

Several smaller pictures relating to some of the articles listed. Readers can recognize artists or get more of an idea what that particular article is about.

Date of Issue

Unlike some content pages, for example the ‘Vibe’ one, this content page has a picture for all the main articles within the magazine. This is useful because it may show what kind of article it is and makes the page more attractive and the artists more recognizable. A reader can almost instantly go to an article they want to read because they recognized the artist on the picture.

Differently from most content pages, the title of the page is ‘Inside this week’ instead of the usual ‘Contents’. Makes this magazine seem different from other magazines.

COLOUR SCHEMEExcept for the pictures, the only colours used on this contents page are white and black. Gives the impression that this magazine is serious about music and makes the font very easy to read because white and black contrast completely.

Largest image on the content page is black and white, whilst all the other smaller ones that surround the main one are in colour. Draws attention to the main picture. Also it is in the middle of the page.

Title looks interesting because the word ‘Contents’ is written on three lines, and is in small font at the right side of the page.

Photography credits

Photo caption

The whole contents page mainly consist of a large long shot of two R&B/Rap singers which dominates the page. The ratio between image and font is about 70% to 30%, meaning that the first thing the reader will look at is the image.

The picture used is ideal for ‘Vibe’ magazine because it is a magazine based on the genre of Hip Hop, R&B and Rap. Both of the girls have the look that women in that genre are usually portrayed as and the look that connotes that kind of music. Short, revealing clothing, high heels, make up, jewellery, straightened/curled hair etc. The image wouldn’t work if the artists were wearing black boots and had Mohawks for example.

COLOUR SCHEMEApart from the picture, the only colours used for the font and background are black and white. This makes the image stand out even more and makes the small font still easy to read.

Analysis of magazine double page spreads

HEADLINEBlue and black contrast well.

BYLINEDROP CAP

PICTURE CREDITPULL QUOTE

CAPTION

SNAPSHOTSTells the reader more about the band and shows what kind of band they arelive

Large, colourful picture which is in a casual setting, connoting that the band is laid back

and fun.

COLOUR SCHEMEThis article is colourful and looking inviting to read. The blue and white and blue and black work well together and stand out.

Short fact file makes it an easy to read article that gives a lot of information about the band.

Short byline, which is not exactly revealing makes the reader want to read this article and find out more.

Issue Date

HEADLINE In ‘Times New Roman’ like the other font on this page. Very easily readable. Unlike some other articles, the headline is not the largest font on the page, which may connote that ‘Jenny and Johnny’ and not very well known yet.

BYLINETells reader what genre music these artists produce.

Large, colourful article picture. The American diner setting connotes where they are from: America. The setting also creates a fun feel which goes well with the genre of these artists, which is ‘power-pop’. This is a noticeable and attractive article, particularly because of the picture, it’s size and the fact that it appeals to the sense with the food.

CAPTION

DROPCAP

PICTURECREDIT

COLOUR SCHEME Apart from the picture and the ‘Q’ icon, the colour scheme is just white font. The picture is used as a background for the font and contrasts decently with the font although it might not be the easiest article to read seeing as the font is quite small and blends in with the background in some parts.

This is a weekly used feature, so regular ‘Q’ readers will most likely already be familiar to this and are more likely to read it.

Despite the fun setting, the artists’ facial expressions look bored, serious and annoyed. Contrasts with the setting and shows there might be a more serious side to their music or personalities.

Issue Date

HEADLINE

PICTURE CREDIT

BYLINE

Large article picture which takes up a whole page. This connotes that Madonna is important and has a lot of achievements in life, seen by some as an icon. The image dominates the article and is what the reader is most likely going to look at first. Could be symbolising how Madonna ‘dominated’ the world.

COLOUR SCHEME The colours used in this interview article are very soft, feminine colours: purple, light and medium blue and white.

Font is black, which contrasts perfectly with the white background, making it easy to read and sophisticated/

professional looking.

Soft make up and colours are used, making Madonna look feminine and pretty. The eye make up is very ‘Edie Sedgwick’ which may connote that, like Edie, she is an ‘It girl’.

Boldest and largest font on the page, showing Madonna's status and importance.