This magazine has a masthead on the top left hand side that is red and white. This reveals that this magazines does follow some rules of conventions. It is also noticeable that the significant text is of similar typography and colour. This suggests that this magazine is colour coded, which implies that this magazine is aimed at a particular audience, in this case I would say teenagers. Also, as the font of this magazine is quite bold and basic it is another sign that this magazine is aimed at a younger audience. As well as that, the language codes are also not as sophisticated as you would find in a magazine aimed at adults. It doesn’t have too much content/features on the front page, which again means it isn’t aimed at a young audience.
In this front cover, there are two main features rather than one. Drake is wearing an army jacket, which suggests that the publisher is trying to make him look like a soldier. This is emphasised by the fact that Drake is wearing an army identity chain, which is also worn by soldiers. He also has his hand tucked in his pocket which shows a status.
However Nicki Minaj has blonde hair and is wearing red lip stick with some of her breasts showing, as well as her head being positioned in a tilted way. This is to make the model look appealing to her audience. This could be aimed at male to produce the male gaze, or perhaps it could be aimed at females as an aspiration. The male gaze would also come into play when looking at Nicki’s costume. She is wearing a leopard skin jacket over her arms. The leopard print suggests that Nicki is feisty, wild and sexy.
There is also a barcode at the bottom left hand side with a date and price on it. This is another rule of convention which is commonly found in magazines. The price and date has been written in bold to make it stand out from the serial number and other texts.
At the left side of the magazine, there are side features such as DJ Khaled and Fat Joe, as well as other side stories. Not only does this show customers what is inside the magazine without opening to the contents page, but it also allows the magazine to reach out to its audience. For instance someone may not be a fan of Drake, but when they see DJ Khaled’s name they may purchase the magazine.
ooi0kiHere is another magazine. This magazine had a masthead across the top of the page. Therefore it suggests that this magazine does follow some conventions but isn’t exactly the same as other magazines.
This magazine is clearly aimed at women. It has very feminine colours and follows a typical 3 coloured scheme. It is easy to see that this magazine is aimed at women because of its soft colours such as pink and white which are quite feminine. The typography also suggests it is aimed at adult females.
Buzz words and phrases such as ‘cool’, ‘now’ and ‘great style at any age’ are bigger than other words to get the reader’s attention, these things would interest the audience and make the want to read in to. This is because the author/publisher knows what will interest their target audience the most and wants to throw those words out there in order to grasp the audience’s attention. The phrase ‘great style at any age’ also gives away the fact that the magazine is aimed at adult women because they are losing their looks.
There is one young, female main feature on this page. She is wearing a blue denim jacket which shows freedom, and is also wearing a necklace that has a tiger print on it. This shows that the woman is wild a feisty. Her hair is also being blown back which makes her look appealing to the audience. In this case, this woman is more of an aspiration to other woman rather than a causer of the male gaze. Additionally, the fact that her hands are behind her back shows her innocence.
Here is another magazine. This magazine had a masthead across the top of the page. Therefore it suggests that this magazine does follow some conventions but isn’t exactly the same as other magazines.
This magazine is clearly aimed at women. It has very feminine colours and follows a typical 3 coloured scheme. It is easy to see that this magazine is aimed at women because of its soft colours such as pink and white which are quite feminine. The typography also suggests it is aimed at adult females.
Buzz words and phrases such as ‘cool’, ‘now’ and ‘great style at any age’ are bigger than other words to get the reader’s attention, these things would interest the audience and make the want to read in to. This is because the author/publisher knows what will interest their target audience the most and wants to throw those words out there in order to grasp the audience’s attention. The phrase ‘great style at any age’ also gives away the fact that the magazine is aimed at adult women because they are losing their looks.
There is one young, female main feature on this page. She is wearing a blue denim jacket which shows freedom, and is also wearing a necklace that has a tiger print on it. This shows that the woman is wild a feisty. Her hair is also being blown back which makes her look appealing to the audience. In this case, this woman is more of an aspiration to other woman rather than a causer of the male gaze. Additionally, the fact that her hands are behind her back shows her innocence.
This magazine is clearly aimed at women. It has very feminine colours and follows a typical 3 coloured scheme. It is easy to see that this magazine is aimed at women because of its soft colours such as pink and white which are quite feminine. The typography also suggests it is aimed at adult females.
Buzz words and phrases such as ‘cool’, ‘now’ and ‘great style at any age’ are bigger than other words to get the reader’s attention, these things would interest the audience and make the want to read in to. This is because the author/publisher knows what will interest their target audience the most and wants to throw those words out there in order to grasp the audience’s attention. The phrase ‘great style at any age’ also gives away the fact that the magazine is aimed at adult women because they are losing their looks.
There is one young, female main feature on this page. She is wearing a blue denim jacket which shows freedom, and is also wearing a necklace that has a tiger print on it. This shows that the woman is wild a feisty. Her hair is also being blown back which makes her look appealing to the audience. In this case, this woman is more of an aspiration to other woman rather than a causer of the male gaze. Additionally, the fact that her hands are behind her back shows her innocence.
After studying and annotating existing front cover pages, I moved on to annotating contents pages to have an understanding of what contents pages in the market are like. I started off with the magazine below.
This magazine contents page has a masthead at the top left hand corner as well as it being on the front page. This creates brand identity, which could then encourage brand loyalty. As well as that, by using a masthead it is following some form of conventions. It is always a good idea to have a masthead on the contents page or a logo to make your audience sure of what your magazine is called and for potential future purchases. It also has the word ‘contents’ on it to clarify what page it is. As well as that, there is a black banner which is another convention with a date. This is to show what date the magazine was published.
Inside the banner, there is a social media link. This is to have a multi-platform approach and promote the magazine using different platforms in order to reach out to the target audience and get fans.
The contents page follows a typical three coloured scheme, which also shows that it follows some conventions. The fact that all three colours aren’t very lively suggests that the magazine is perhaps aimed at an older audience.
Mise en scene can particularly be found in the main image. There are 4 middle aged men standing on a cliff with grass on it. This clearly shows that the audience this magazine is aimed at is adults. The main features also seem to be dressed very casually, however one man is wearing a t shirt with a woman portrayed in an attractive way. This reveals that this magazine is aimed at a male audience. As well as that, there is another smaller image on the bottom. This could be so that people not interested in the main feature would still read the magazine because of another artist they see somewhere in the page.
This contents page is laid out very clearly and is easy to follow. The page numbers and the text is set out clearly to the left of the page. There is another page number with text on the bottom left side of the main feature image. This is to show what page the page with the main features are on so people would save time and go to the main part of the magazine easily. The contents page also has a bit of puff on the bottom left side to reward the audience by giving them a chance to compete and win something.
This magazine contents page has a masthead at the top left hand corner as well as it being on the front page. This creates brand identity, which could then encourage brand loyalty. As well as that, by using a masthead it is following some form of conventions. It is always a good idea to have a masthead on the contents page or a logo to make your audience sure of what your magazine is called and for potential future purchases. It also has the word ‘contents’ on it to clarify what page it is. As well as that, there is a black banner which is another convention with a date. This is to show what date the magazine was published.
Inside the banner, there is a social media link. This is to have a multi-platform approach and promote the magazine using different platforms in order to reach out to the target audience and get fans.
The contents page follows a typical three coloured scheme, which also shows that it follows some conventions. The fact that all three colours aren’t very lively suggests that the magazine is perhaps aimed at an older audience.
Mise en scene can particularly be found in the main image. There are 4 middle aged men standing on a cliff with grass on it. This clearly shows that the audience this magazine is aimed at is adults. The main features also seem to be dressed very casually, however one man is wearing a t shirt with a woman portrayed in an attractive way. This reveals that this magazine is aimed at a male audience. As well as that, there is another smaller image on the bottom. This could be so that people not interested in the main feature would still read the magazine because of another artist they see somewhere in the page.
This contents page is laid out very clearly and is easy to follow. The page numbers and the text is set out clearly to the left of the page. There is another page number with text on the bottom left side of the main feature image. This is to show what page the page with the main features are on so people would save time and go to the main part of the magazine easily. The contents page also has a bit of puff on the bottom left side to reward the audience by giving them a chance to compete and win something.
Here is the second contents page I annotated. This contents page has its masthead on the top right side of the page. This is to keep clarifying what magazine the audience is reading in order to create brand identity and get brand loyalty. As well as that, it also has a date showing when the magazine was issued.
The colours in this magazine are quite harsh and masculine, suggesting it is aimed at a teenage male audience. As well as that, the red background represents anger which is a way of using mise en scene.
The word contents is splitted up in three lines. This is to challenge the conventions. Rather than having it in one line it is trying to be different and drawing more attention by using this unique technique. Further study showed that most Vibe magazines have this style of contents page, which is effective as it separates this magazine from all the ordinary magazines. The fact that ‘contents’ is in white also shows that the publisher wanted a lot of attention from that.
However, unlike some magazines, this contents page is not very detailed and hasn’t got a lot of text. The typography is also quite small, which suggests that this magazine is aimed at a young audience as there is not a lot of text. Another sign that this magazine is aimed at a young audience is that it does not include sophisticated language like magazines aimed at an older audience.
The colours in this magazine are quite harsh and masculine, suggesting it is aimed at a teenage male audience. As well as that, the red background represents anger which is a way of using mise en scene.
The word contents is splitted up in three lines. This is to challenge the conventions. Rather than having it in one line it is trying to be different and drawing more attention by using this unique technique. Further study showed that most Vibe magazines have this style of contents page, which is effective as it separates this magazine from all the ordinary magazines. The fact that ‘contents’ is in white also shows that the publisher wanted a lot of attention from that.
However, unlike some magazines, this contents page is not very detailed and hasn’t got a lot of text. The typography is also quite small, which suggests that this magazine is aimed at a young audience as there is not a lot of text. Another sign that this magazine is aimed at a young audience is that it does not include sophisticated language like magazines aimed at an older audience.
This is the final magazine contents page I decided to annotate. In this contents page the typography is interesting as it says the appealing words such as ‘Exclusive’ and ‘Band News’ in big capital writing. Even though they are subheadings, they are still appealing and made easy to find. This makes navigating to the interesting pages quick and easy.
Like any good contents page, there are the pages and titles. However unlike most contents pages, the page numbers go in odd numbers and in even numbers. Which shows that there is a mixture of double page spreads and single pages.
Unlike most contents pages, this contents page is a double page spread. There is also a section is about the other artists included in the magazine. As well as attracting a wider range of audience, it is a good and efficient way to fill up space on a double page spread. It has the typical 3 coloured scheme; black, white and purple. This makes it a magazine aimed at girls/young women.Another good feature on this magazine is that there is a band index, this allows the audience to see what bands are featured on the magazine. This is also in a different font a different, brighter colour. This allows it to be unique and stand out from the other text.
Like any good contents page, there are the pages and titles. However unlike most contents pages, the page numbers go in odd numbers and in even numbers. Which shows that there is a mixture of double page spreads and single pages.
Unlike most contents pages, this contents page is a double page spread. There is also a section is about the other artists included in the magazine. As well as attracting a wider range of audience, it is a good and efficient way to fill up space on a double page spread. It has the typical 3 coloured scheme; black, white and purple. This makes it a magazine aimed at girls/young women.Another good feature on this magazine is that there is a band index, this allows the audience to see what bands are featured on the magazine. This is also in a different font a different, brighter colour. This allows it to be unique and stand out from the other text.
Finally, I decided to study and annotate existing double page spreads to gain ideas for my own magazine. This allowed me to explore the different styles of presenting a double page spreads as there is a variety of ways double page spreads can be set out.
The photographer’s name is usually on a corner of the image, possibly with the name of the model or feature. This is for reference and to give the photographer credit. The main feature is the only image on the page, this allows her to draw out all the attention. She looks like a rock star. The font matches that ‘punky’ look. It is on the right page, where there is no text, whereas all the text is on the left side. This is a typical convention of a double page spread. These pages include quite harsh colours that are standing out. This reveals that the magazine is aimed at a funky audience, perhaps people that are into rock music.
The title/ quote and the image are spread on both pages. This shows that the pages are related. Also, the letters in the title are split up, and are highlighted in black. This is to avoid the white font from blending in to the white background.
The photographer’s name is usually on a corner of the image, possibly with the name of the model or feature. This is for reference and to give the photographer credit. The main feature is the only image on the page, this allows her to draw out all the attention. She looks like a rock star. The font matches that ‘punky’ look. It is on the right page, where there is no text, whereas all the text is on the left side. This is a typical convention of a double page spread. These pages include quite harsh colours that are standing out. This reveals that the magazine is aimed at a funky audience, perhaps people that are into rock music.
The title/ quote and the image are spread on both pages. This shows that the pages are related. Also, the letters in the title are split up, and are highlighted in black. This is to avoid the white font from blending in to the white background.
This is the second magazine double page spread I annotated. The main image is on one page, and text is on the other. The image is the artist the article is about. There is a name at the bottom of the image, which is the person who photographed. However the quote/title is spread on both pages to show that the articles are related. This shows that the article, title and image are related to each other.
The beginning of the article is started with a drop capital. This shows it is the beginning of a new article and isn’t part of any other part of the text. This is also a common convention found in double page spreads as a double page spread usually consists of an image on one page then an article about the feature on the other page.
There are also sub headings on the article, this divides the text up allowing the audience to navigate through the text easily. As well as that, important words such as ‘news’ and names of functions and celebrities are in different colours and different fonts. This allows the important text to stand out just like buzz words.
Mise en scene is an important and bug factor on these pages. This double page spread has a border line that consists of white light bulbs. This creates synergy that the article is about something bright, possibly a concert. The feature is also wearing a white t shirt with a moon on it. The colour white represents innocence.
The beginning of the article is started with a drop capital. This shows it is the beginning of a new article and isn’t part of any other part of the text. This is also a common convention found in double page spreads as a double page spread usually consists of an image on one page then an article about the feature on the other page.
There are also sub headings on the article, this divides the text up allowing the audience to navigate through the text easily. As well as that, important words such as ‘news’ and names of functions and celebrities are in different colours and different fonts. This allows the important text to stand out just like buzz words.
Mise en scene is an important and bug factor on these pages. This double page spread has a border line that consists of white light bulbs. This creates synergy that the article is about something bright, possibly a concert. The feature is also wearing a white t shirt with a moon on it. The colour white represents innocence.
This is another double page spread I annotated and studied. I personally find this lay out the best out of all the double page spreads I have studied. This is because the image is covering both pages and is divided in two, as well as the text which is also divided in two. I think this is an interesting way of presenting a double page spread as it challenges some conventions. It challenges it by not having an image on one page and all the text on the other page. In addition, the first name and surname are divided within the two pages. As Rita Ora is well known, people will know the two pages are related even though the name is divided.
The colours of the background work rather well, as it makes her the main focus, she stands out from the background. It has a typical coloured code. This is efficient as no one is likely to miss out and would be interested into reading the magazine. The colours are both the same on both pages, this is another sign that the pages are related. Also, the colours aren’t aimed particularly at one gender
Rita Ora is wearing a small skirt and a black leather coat. Black and leather connote that she is not innocent. As she is also wearing a small skirt, it would gather the male gaze and make her look very appealing to men.
The colours of the background work rather well, as it makes her the main focus, she stands out from the background. It has a typical coloured code. This is efficient as no one is likely to miss out and would be interested into reading the magazine. The colours are both the same on both pages, this is another sign that the pages are related. Also, the colours aren’t aimed particularly at one gender
Rita Ora is wearing a small skirt and a black leather coat. Black and leather connote that she is not innocent. As she is also wearing a small skirt, it would gather the male gaze and make her look very appealing to men.