Magazine front cover analysis

Colour- the colour scheme is very just black and white this

is very simple, this is because they don’t want to bring

away the attention from the image with bright colours.

Black and white are very sophisticated colours this conveys

Rihanna’s sophistication showing that you can be

sophisticated yet sassy too. The important names are

written in bold black emphasizing their importance

especially Rihanna’s name as all the spotlight is on her.

Administrative detail- the website is placed on top

of the masthead as this is where people will look and

most likely see it though it is very small. The barcode

is placed right at the bottom of the magazine, though

it’s right at the bottom it’s still noticeable for the

audience to see.

Main image- the main is full bleed, it takes up most of

the magazine this indicates that Rihanna is the main

subject, all the spotlight is on her. The image covers the

mast head suggesting that Rihanna is more important

than the masthead, it’s all about her, the image is the first

thing the audience see so it has to be appealing and in

your face which this image is as Rihanna is looking mighty

fine posing the way she is. She is making direct contact

with the audience by staring right at the camera this will

make the audience feel that they are connected with her,

her body language is very sassy, there is a lot of attitude

in the way she is posing showing that she is confident

with herself this will motivate the audience to want to be

like her, sassy and confident as though there is nothing

that can get in the way. The back ground is just plain

white again this brings all the attention to her because no

one is going to be interested in a white plain background.

She is wearing a light vest this is seductive and will get the

audience’s attention. Her hair is covering half her face

again this is provocative and is appealing to the audience.

Masthead- the mast head is Rolling stone which originally

means to go and live life to the full. It’s covered by

Rihanna’s head emphasizing her importance in the

magazine. The mast head is red, one would associate the

colour red with danger or not to be dealt with this is the

message of the magazine to be confident and not to take

crap from anyone. The mast head has a back border line

emphasizing it so that it is still noticeable under her head.

Typography- the font varies with the level of

importance the more important words are

written in bold black to bring the audience’s

attention to it. Rihanna’s name is the only font

with serifs this again emphasizes her sassiness,

the font if different from the rest of the fonts

making it unique like Rihanna. The rest of the

fonts are san serif and normal they don’t stand

out as much but they are bold making them

important. All the fonts are in capital indicating

again their importance.

Typography- the font of Taylors name is big

bold and prominent so that it may be seen

and also to show that its important and

belongs to the main image for those who

don’t know who she is. The main font that is

used is serif and is plain white. The colour

scheme for the writing is very simple there

are just two colours being used, and they

are white and green theses colours are very

refreshing colours suggesting that Taylor is

refreshing

Masthead- the mast head like with

most mast heads is being covered by

the main image, indicating that the

main image which is of Taylor swift is

more important than the name of the

magazine. The mast head stretches

out the full top part of the magazine

so that it still may be seen.

Main mage- the main image

doesn’t take up all the space

however all the focus is on Taylor

emphasizing her importance in the

magazine and indicating that she is

the main subject for this issue of

the magazine. Taylor is giving direct

address this way the reader can

connect with her, her hair is being

blown out of her face, it covers

some of the masthead emphasizing

how beautiful her hair is. As the

focus is on her so is all the lighting

again this conveys her importance

she is in the spotlight. She seems to

be in a studio shot in this pic

suggesting that needs to be the

centre of attention. The camera is

pointed right at her from front this

again helps the audience connect

with her.

Colour- there isn’t much going on in

this front cover, the only colour

here is the colour in the background

with looks very mature this

suggests that she is mature and

independent from the girl we first

saw.

Main image- the main image is of Nas the rapper, the

image is full bleed it takes up most of the emphasizing its

importance as this is the first thing the audience will see.

The image is very dark he doesn’t look very happy, he has

the “don’t mess with me” kind of face on which is common

with rappers. He is wearing big chains which is again very

common with rappers, theses chains suggest he is rich and

powerful which is what he is trying to pull off. There is

direct address with the audience, this will make the

audience feel like they can connect with him. His pose

suggests he is unapproachable which again is what rappers

want they try to give themselves a tough image. He is

wearing a hoodie which once again is common for rappers

as it gives off a tough image. The image was taken in a

studio I know this because there us a white blank

background this focuses all the attention on the image

which attracts the audience.

Slogan- the slogan used is

love/hate this slogan suggests

that you either love rap or

hate it, or it could suggest a

love hate relationship the

artist shares on the audience

because not everyone likes

rap, there are haters and

there are fans.

Typography- the fonts that are mainly used

are bold and in capitals there are no serifs

because it’s a tough and masculine magazine

and serif suggest feminine. The colour scheme

are dark colours like black and grey, theses

colours relate the genre of the magazine it’s

not colourful at all, this will appeal to only a

certain audience like people who listen to rap

music. Some of the words are written in bold

indicating that they are important e.g. young

yeezy which is a name of another rapper

which the audience will be familiar with and

so they will want to read and see. His name is

written in the biggest font right underneath

the main image which indicate that it is his

name, it’s written the boldest because the

magazine is all about him, and he is in the

spotlight. The names on the left side of the

image are either written In back or grey this is

in accordance to their importance e.g. lil

scrappy is a name of a well-known rapper

whereas ice cube is the name of an old rapper

who doesn’t rap anymore.

Administrative detail- the website is written

right at the bottom of the page, but it’s still

noticeable as it’s in a different colour and it’s in

bold. The barcode is also right at the bottom of

the magazine but it’s also noticeable because it

white and there is a black background, making it

stand out.

Masthead- the title of the magazine is XX, some part of the masthead is covered

indicating the importance of the image the masthead is red and white one would say

that the colour white associates with danger, which relates to the image because nas

looks dangerous with his hoodie and chains he I also making a face that someone

would not want to approach. The letter x is not a common letter, this relates to the

magazine being unique and different. The masthead is in the top left corner. Which is

not very common with magazines, most magazines have the masthead above the

image fill the top part of the magazine making this magazine different from others.

The masthead also stands out because the XX is in a red background bringing more

attention to it.

Contents page of magazine analysis

Q magazine contents page Layout- the layout of the page is as most

magazine contents pages are. The images are all

placed around the text, they are neatly placed in

certain places. All the attention of the contents

page is directed toward the main image as this is

the biggest thing on the page and the most eye

catchy. The page doesn’t look to perfect the

images are tilted slightly to jazz up the page just a

little. The title of the contents page is right at the

top of the page, as this is important to the reader

to know what they are reading, the colour

scheme here is very simple and in your face as

they have chosen sharp dark colours and they

have stuck to this colour scheme throughout the

contents page. The issue of the page is written in

white in the top right corner, this is just extra

information for the reader so it’s not that

important hence why the colour of the text is

white. The font of the text on the page doesn’t

remain the same, the title of the article pages are

capitalised whereas the ‘contents’ at the top of

the page isn’t in bold or in capitals which is odd as

most other magazines do not do this. The text is

broken down with a strip of red this makes the

page look neater. The page number is always on

the left hand corner this is done so that is the first

thing the reader sees. The page is laid out very

clearly.

Sections- the article is laid out

with the heading first then the

subheading which is feature

and then the images followed

by the images and the page

numbers and article name.

They have placed four articles

on the contents page, they

have limited to this many

because they don’t want it to

be too much for the reader.

There are no social media

around the page but there is

the issue number of the

magazine.

Images- there are various images on the contents page, the main

image is of the main article which is the same as the front cover of

the magazine. The other images are placed around the page

including g their page number. The images are all relevant to the

genre of the magazine and what this issue of the article is about. All

the images are shot in different locations and they are all boxed

making there page look much neater this is essential for as contents

page as the reader would just get frustrated at where to look if it was

all over the place. For the bottom left image there is some text next

to the image which Is relevant to the image, each image includes a

page number making it very easy for the reader to look for

something that catches their eye the text gives the reader an insight

of what that article will b about. The main image is the biggest image

as it is the most important because the magazine is all about the man

in the image, whereas the other images are quit small indicating that

they are not as important. The two images on the right are tilted

slightly just to jazz up the page so it doesn’t look to perfect. All the

attention is directed toward the main image as this is the biggest

thing on the page.

Nme magazine contents page Layout- the layout of this page is very messy, the images are placed all around the page, this reflects the genre of the magazine which is rock one would associate rock with loud and messy things. the masthead is obvious to the reader as it is highlighted at the back this indicates its importance, bright colours such as bright blue and yellow are used to make the heading stand out to the reader. The issue number is written in small font as it is not so important, its just extra information for the reader. The features are in your face as they have mixed two very shocking colours like back and yellow which makes it stand out among the other text as it is more important. The number of the pages are written in red clear for the reader to see and identify what article is where. On the bottom right hand corner there is a prize to be won this is outlined black clear for the reader to identify, again they have mix3d both black and yellow together to make it more obvious to the reader. On the main image there are number pages of the main article pages that the reader would want to read most.

Images- the main image used is in your face it’s the fist thing the reader would look to as the woman has a unique pose which would catch the reader attention. The girl looks like a stereotypical girl who would listen to punk rock, her clothing is simple yet effective as it is striped and stands out though they are dark colours which again reflect the genre of the article. The main image is set in a studio as there is no background this again draws the attention to her. The other images also reflect the genre of the magazine, they also place page numbers next tot eh images to indicate what page they are in to make it easier for the reader as everything is all over the page.

Sections- the article is laid out with the heading fist followed by the main image which follows the convention of a magazine contents page, the main image is eye catching to see. The colours used are bright and dark colours the bright colours are used to highlight the important aspects of the magazine and the dark colours are used for the other parts of the magazine