Analysis of Front Covers, Contents Pages and Double Page Spreads

Front Covers

This front cover is taken from ‘Vibe’ Magazine. The name Vibe suggests to the reader that this is a music magazine, with the central image connoting the magazine has a rap/hip hop/R&B theme. The masthead is the largest writing on the page, which the font colour matching the secondary colour of Kanye West’s jumper. West is the dominating central image of the piece as a medium close-up. This closeness acts as a visual lure to entice fans of West to buy the magazine as their eyes are drawn to this one. The background colour of the magazine is also the same colour as the primary colour of West’s jumper. By using colours which do not contrast with West’s clothes, it makes the central image blend with the magazine and when combined with the shading gives a 3D edge to the piece. The main cover line of the piece is situated to the left of the image of West, and is aligned in a similar angle to West’s head which informs the reader that this is the main article. The font colour scheme is a contrasting mix of blue, black and white, which helps to separate the different cover lines and lures. They are also a mix of different font sizes, with the larger fonts suggesting these articles are the most important. This front cover does not show the price, barcode or issue number.

This front cover is from ‘NME’ magazine. The name NME (when pronounced it sounds like the word ‘enemy’) suggests that this magazine is going to be controversial, which will attract the target audience of the magazine, which are predominantly rock fans. The central image of this magazine is a long shot of Babyshambles singer Pete Doherty. Unlike with Vibe magazine, where the main image was placed in the centre, this one is placed slightly to the right due to the layout of the magazine. The cover lines and lures for this magazine are placed in the bottom third of the magazine, with the main cover line placed in the central third of the magazine. The main colours of the front cover are black, white and red, which follow the magazine’s brand style and maintain the same colours and the font as the masthead. Underneath the main cover line of the front cover, a quote from the article is used as a lure. This front cover also features various puffs which offer the reader various prizes. This magazine features the barcode in the bottom right hand corner at a landscape angle.

This front cover is from the ‘Q’ magazine. The magazine gets its name from the word ‘Cue’, which it originally was going to be called (as in the sense of cueing a record, ready to play), but the name was changed so that it wouldn't be mistaken for a snooker magazine. The single letter name makes the magazine seem bold and foregrounds it. Like NME, the front cover of the magazine uses the colours red, black and white which gives this magazine a gothic theme. The tagline ‘The UK’s Biggest Music Magazine’ suggests this magazine is successful, popular and interesting. The central image of this front cover is a medium close-up of singer Cheryl Cole. Cole is the main focus of the magazine, where she is pulling a sexually alluring pose in an attempt to attract men to buying this magazine. Her lips are a deep red colour which connotes passion and also links to the main colours of the brand theme. The main cover line is situated in the bottom third of the magazine, with the writing changing colour as well as the spacing between letters increasing. This gives the effect that the writing is leaping off the page which foregrounds it to the reader. The other cover lines are situated to the left of the magazine, with a puff located on the central right of the front cage. This magazine is unusual in the sense that the barcode is not positioned at the bottom. Instead it is placed below the masthead, along with the price and date.

Contents Page

This contents page is from ‘Vibe’ magazine. The main feature of this contents page is a large central image, rather than the usual central feature which is the text. The woman in the picture is sitting in a relaxed, provocative position which relates to the cool theme of the magazine. The woman is R&B superstar Ciara, which is a ploy used to increase the sales of magazine as people enjoy reading about celebrities they like. Ciara’s legs are placed in a ‘V’ position which is shadowed in the background by the ‘V’ of Vibe magazine in the usual house style and font. The layout of the word ‘CONTENTS’ stacked on top of each other means that all of the text is on the right-hand side of the page, meaning that the picture has the space on the left and along the bottom. The sections of the text are split into two groups; features and fashion. This allows a potential customer who is browsing the contents page to view the main articles that make this magazine unique as well as the standard articles which feature in every magazine.

This contents page is from ‘NME’ magazine. Whereas for the previous magazine the picture was the main feature, this magazine has the text and content as the over-riding feature for their contents page. In the top left-hand corner is the NME brand name to remind the reader what the magazine is. The phrase ‘THIS WEEK’ at the top of the page acts as a lure, leading the reader into reading the information the contents page is providing. It also informs the reader that this magazine is published weekly and it regularly features new articles and ideas. In the centre of the page is the major article, featuring a paragraph from the article which will draw the reader into that page. The colour scheme used on this page is predominantly red, black and white, which relates to the brand style. The contents are situated on the right-hand third of the magazine, similar to Vibe magazine above. They are also divided into groups like in Vibe, however for this magazine there are more groups such as News, Radar, Reviews, Live! and Features. Along the bottom there is an advertisement from the magazine to save money when pre-ordering NME, which is a clever ploy used to increase sales. In the bottom right-hand corner there is a box claiming that NME is ‘The UK’s No.1 Gig Guide’, which is used as a unique selling point to attract customers from rival magazines.

Double-Page Spreads

This double page spread is from ‘Kerrang’ magazine. The colour scheme of the magazine is predominantly red, white and especially black which relate to the gothic fan base. The interview with My Chemical Romance is claimed by the magazine to be a ‘world exclusive’, a unique selling point against other magazines. The title of the piece is a quote from the interview, acting as a lure. It again features the house style colour scheme of Kerrang, making it stand out on the black background. The text is arranged into two columns on the right page, adding more importance to the pictures which are arranged on the left page and across the bottom. In the tagline, the text states that MCR ‘invite Kerrang to their recording studio’. This makes the article seem personal to the band as well as showing it to be unique, coupling the effect with the ‘world exclusive’ claim in the top corner. Along the right-side of the right page there is a list of questions the band have answered in a short format, which makes the reader feel closer to the band.

This double page spread is from ‘Beatweek’ magazine. In a contrast to the other double page spread, the colours are much less severe and calmer. This is because the ‘Kerrang’ magazine represents a music style that is more emotional and aggressive than ‘Beatweek’, which features R&B music that is predominantly calmer. The main colours are white, grey and beige which are very calm colours. This represents the laid-back approach of the Black Eyed Peas as well as the style of the magazine. The use of a rhetorical question as the title of the article is meant to engage the reader, to lure them into reading the article to find the answer. The picture of the Black Eyed Peas covers two-thirds of the double page spread, following the rule of thirds with text in the final third. The contrast in the colour of the picture shows the reader that Will.i.am is the main focus of the blog, as well as reminding the reader of where they will know him from. The introducing paragraph is positioned over top of the picture as this foregrounds this text as the start of the article. One part of the text is emphasised by being surrounded by a black text box, showing that this quote from Will.i.am is the main theme of the article. The questions are emboldened so the reader can differentiate between them and the answers. A pair of arrows are used to show the beginning of the article, with the use of this image being similar to the ‘fast-forward’ symbol that will subconsciously remind the reader of music.