Music Magazine: Double Page Spread Analysis 5

This double page spread from an issue of Kerrang is predominantly image based, with the image on the left side of the page and the article on the right. The article is split into three columns, which is a convention of these sorts of music magazines. The header to the article is a quote from the article, which is also a convention of music magazines. The article has a white, grey and pink colour scheme. None of the colours really compliment each other but the pink helps text stand out. Usually the pink colour is used to highlight words of the reader's interest, including names of the musicians and interviewers, as well as the names of bands and albums.

The headers on the page are in bold capitals, helping distinguish them from the contents of the article itself, which is presented in lower case. The first letter of the first paragraph is larger than the rest. This is so that the reader knows where to start reading. The text in the header is white and in a black box while some of the smaller headers are in white boxes with black text. The black text in white boxes is reflective of the T-shirt of the person in the photograph.

In the top left of the left page is a black box with a red title reading 'News' with a subheading listing the web address for the magazine. There is also a border made up of glowing circles around the article which compliments the colour scheme somewhat as well as adding to the photograph, giving it a glossy studio style.

Music Magazine: Double Page Spread Analysis 4

This double page spread from an issue of Q magazine is fairly formal, with the image of Lady Gaga filling up one page and the article another. The image does not overlap onto the other page like in other magazines, but the article is split into three columns, which is a convention of the genre. The title of the article is in the top right of the right page, which is unusual, as the human eye reads from left to right and usually the title is in the centre-top or the top left of a page.  The title itself is split into italics and capitals. The word 'lady' is in italics, suggesting sophistication and the word 'Gaga' is in capitals. The letters at the beginning of paragraphs are in a large, bold font so that the reader knows where to start reading.

The image is in black and white, fitting with the colour scheme, which for the most part is black and white. The black and white filter suggests an old-timey style and is reminiscent of photographs of Marilyn Monroe in the 50s and 60s, a style Lady Gaga seems to be trying to emulate. The only other colour is the red letter 'L' behind the article. It is the letter 'L' because that is the first letter of the first paragraph and the first letter of Lady Gaga's name. The red stands out a lot and can make it difficult to read the article at times. A paler colour may have been a better choice as the colour red is very vibrant against a white background and it makes it difficult to read, as the font of the article is fairly small and not very bold. One possible reason for the colour red is that it is present in the logo for Q and the designers wanted the page to fit with Q's style while also fitting with the style of the photograph.

Music Magazine: Double Page Spread Analysis 3

This double page spread taken from an issue of NME is predominantly image based. Depicting a four-shot of the band members of The Vaccines. The photo has a sepia filter on it so the band members appear more pale and the photograph fits with the tone of the paper. The photo takes up a full page and part of another. The article is positioned on the right side of the page and is fairly short at just two columns. Most other double page spreads contain articles which take up three columns. Three columns is a common convention of music magazines.

There is a main heading for the article which is in bold capitals and a subheading in a similar font but lower case. Most of the text on the page is in lower case, indicating a more formal and sophisticated style. The colour scheme is different to the traditional NME colour scheme or red, white and black, instead consisting of blue, white and black. None of these colours compliment each other like the other colour scheme.

Certain words are highlighted in blue, mainly quotes from the band members, the first letters of new paragraphs and the name of the interviewer in the subheading. This is to draw the reader's attention and encourage them to read the article. There are also blue graphics around the page, but they seem to serve little purpose other than to brighten up what would otherwise be a fairly dull image.

Music Magazine: Contents Page Analysis 5

This contents page from an issue of Q magazine is image based and follows a basic red, white and black/grey colour scheme. The text and graphics on the page all follow this colour scheme and for the most part it works, except for the black text in a red box which is fairly difficult to read. If the text inside the box were a bolder font or a different colour it may not be so difficult.

The image is a large mid shot of one of the featured artists (Richard Ashcroft) and takes up most of the page. It is accompanied by a caption in the top right of the page in red and white. Usually these sorts of captions will appear in a box of some sort, but the text stands out against the grey background because it is white and red.

Most of the content is on the left hand side of the page and the human eye reads from left to right. The Logo is in the top left of the page, which is helpful, as this is probably the point on the page the reader will likely start reading from. Usually the text is in bold capital letters which makes it more eye catching to the reader, but on this page many of the headings are in lower case. This suggests a more formal tone which is in stark contrast to magazines like NME which are almost in all bold capitals.

The headings along the side are also grouped by their colour and the red box. The page numbers are also different colours from the subheadings so that they stand out beside the the rest of the text.

Music Magazine: Contents Page Analysis 4

This contents page from an issue of Mojo is image based, with the text taking shape around the focus of the photograph. The photograph is in black and white and the colour scheme follows this. The text is black and the page numbers are red. The headers are in capitals while the subheadings are lower case. The subheadings, in terms of size, are basically paragraphs, whereas in other magazines they aren't much more than a sentence. There seems to be less reliance on photographs and graphics in this magazine than in another magazine, such as NME or Kerrang. This gives the magazine a fairly formal, clean and modern style. Mojo probably has a more niche audience, interested more in the articles and what is written in the magazine and about the music, and it shows.

The title of the magazine is at the top of the screen in the centre, as opposed to the top left where it appears in other magazines. The logo itself is fairly simple and easily recognisable. Beneath it is the issue number and the date of the issue. This text is against a photographic background without any bombastic, colourful graphics, giving the magazine a more muted tone.

There is also a quote featured beside the figure in the photograph. The text is slightly larger and the font    is slightly different from the rest of the page, more like a typewriter style font. This helps distinguish it  from the rest of the text.

Music Magazine: Contents Page Analysis 3

This contents page from an issue of Kerrang follows a more boxed layout, as opposed to the traditional image based layouts you see in other music magazines such as NME and Q. The top half of the contents page seems dedicated to an image of Slash, whereas the bottom half of the page lists the contents of the magazine.

This contents page follows a black, yellow and white color scheme, with the occasional page number highlighted in red, but it's not too noticeable. The page numbers are highlighted in red so that the reader can distinguish them from the subheadings beside them in black. The image of Slash in the top right of the page follows this colour scheme in a way with a pale black and white image of slash with no other colours. Most of the photographs of people in this contents page follow this colour scheme as well, with most of the people wearing black.

 This is why the yellow text stands out so much on the page. Most of the headers on the page are in bold yellow capitals in a black box. Most of the headers are in a bold font with cracks  in it. This reflects the genre of the magazine, an anarchic rock magazine. Exclamation marks are also featured a few times on the page in some of the titles, to catch the reader's attention. They also reflect the tone of the magazine.

The contents listed in the bottom half of the page are presented in five columns. Usually on a contents page there's only one column that lists the contents and articles on the left or right hand side of the page. This contents page also features a note from the editor, complete with a photograph and signature. Usually these sorts of magazines will contain some sort of note from the editor or feature written about some of the magazine's contributors. 

Music Magazine: Double Page Spread Analysis 2

This double paged spread from an issue of NME depicts a member of blur covering an entire page and overlapping onto the other, a common convention of these sorts of double page spreads. The image is an extreme close up with a caption in a small white box in the bottom left corner of the page. The white box is a bit small to read and may be a problem for some readers with bad eyesight. The colours of the photograph seem watered down and follow a green, black and grey colour scheme, with a slight bit of red. These colours also compliment the text on the page opposite.

The other page features the article about the band member. The top half of the page is dedicated to a quote by a band member which also doubles as the title of the article, another common convention of music magazines. The font in the title varies in size and colour to reflect the quote itself, which talks about ‘vomiting’ and band ‘Blur.’ Beneath the title is a smaller heading introducing the article and the article itself presented in four columns. Traditionally articles for double page spreads feature three. Letters at the beginning of paragraphs are slightly large and bolder so that the reader can easily find them. Since this is a particularly long article there seems to be a break in the middle, signposted by the second large letter the beginning of a paragraph that starts roughly halfway through.

In the bottom corners of the pages is the NME logo accompanied by a page number. It is common that magazines will plaster their logos everywhere in their magazines, sometimes with the issue number and date, as is the case here.

In the subheading the name of the interviewee is in bold, giving this person particular importance in the eyes of the reader. Sometimes in these kinds of magazines the interviewer's name is also highlighted in bold if they are well known or a name people will recognize  When the name of the interviewer is not well known, usually they will simple state the name of the magazine or 'we.'

Music Magazine: Contents Page Analysis 2

This NME magazine contents page has the basic boxed layout, with a single image in the middle split into two, to garner the reader’s attention. The text and feature surrounding the image follows a red, white and black colour scheme which compliments both the NME logo, which is positioned as a banner at the top of the page in bold capital letters, and the photograph in the middle, which includes predominantly these three colours. These colours are emphasized by the filters and style of photograph. The photographs depict a band on a dark stage illuminated by red stage lights which compliments the colour scheme of the magazine, which is probably why they chose to use this image on the contents page, as it is aesthetically pleasing.

The band index is pushed to the left side of the page, while the contents index is pushed to the right. The slightly larger fonts and wider columns make the right side stand out more than the left. But the feature which catches the readers eyes is the mini article underneath the photograph, as it is positioned in the middle and the chunk of text is larger than anything else on the page. The large capital 'O' at the beginning of the article helps the reader find where to start reading the article, as it may be difficult to see among the clutter of this busy contents page. Page numbers are supposed highlighted in red so that they stand out beside the headings, but because the colour red is used so much on this contents page, whether it be in the photograph or to colour the typography, it lessens the effect the red has against the predominantly black and white colour scheme, meaning it's harder to distinguish page numbers and text.

There is also an advertisement in the middle of the page at the bottom, advertising the subscription service NME has to offer. This ad breaks the standard Red, white and black colour scheme by incorporating yellow text, which can be distracting when there are so many other colours on the page at once. There is also no colour to compliment the red, blue would have been a good choice but then there wouldn't have been anything for the blue to go with. This highlights the importance of sticking with a simple colour scheme and not cluttering your page with too many different and conflicting colours. This is definitely something I will be taking into account when choosing the colour scheme for my music magazine.

At the bottom of the page is a box describing the magazine’s subscription service. The text is in yellow, making it unique to the rest of the page and it stands out compared to the rest of the page.

Music Magazine: Double Page Spread Analysis

This double page spread contains a page dedicated to a photograph of the band featured (The Verve) and a page containing an article about them. The large bold title stands out thanks to the bold black font against the plain white background and the green graphic behind the text, which adds a little depth to the page and matches the colour scheme, though there isn't much of a vivid colour scheme apart from green and black. This doesn't fit so much with the NME's colour scheme which is traditionally black, white and red.A reason for this may be that green compliments red, but the two colours never appear on this page together. The title is also in italic which distinguishes it from the rest of the text.

The start of the article features a large letter in a different font and colour to indicate the beginning of the article. This is important as it tells the reader where to start reading. There is also a subheading beneath the text featuring a band quote from the article below, which is a common feature of these sorts of double page spreads. The article is laid out in two columns, a convention of Double page spreads is traditionally they have three columns. The writer also leaves their name at the end of the article so that the reader knows who has written it. Again, the text is in a different colour to distinguish it from the rest of the article. Sometimes the writer, if they do not want to use their full name or are well know, will leave their initials to free up room.

The page with the photograph also features a quote from the band in a black box in a green font with the name of the speaker in a bold white font underneath. This sort of quote is a common convention of these sorts of double page spreads though they tend to be larger or at the beginning of the article as a title or heading.

In the top right hand corner there is a title, presumably of the feature this DP spread is taken from called 'Albums of 08.' This helps readers who may just be flicking through the magazine as they can see what the pages will be about without having to turn the page all the way. It acts sort of like a page number, which is surprisingly absent from these pages.

Music Magazine: Contents Page Analysis

The contents page for Q Magazine is based around a box layout, with a large image of a featured band displayed on the right side taking up almost half of the page. The green in the image also helps it stand out on the page thanks to the red areas of the page, which is green's compliment. The eye is instantly drawn to the image due to the size of the text around it. Everything else is small and the colours and text don’t really pop out as much as the text on the picture, which stands out because it’s in a white box against a photograph background.

The colour scheme is simple and consistent throughout. The simple red, white and black colour scheme features throughout most Q magazines, from the front cover to the double page spread. The page numbers are highlighted in red, which stands out vividly against the plain white backgrounds and the black and white fonts and backgrounds work well together because black is white’s compliment and vice versa. The red page numbers also make them stand out next to the black text, distinguishing them from the text beside them.

The title for the contents page is in the top left of the page because that is likely where the reader’s eyes are bound to be drawn to when they turn the page. The list of contents is directly beneath the title for that exact reason. The slightly larger sub-headings distinguish the titles from the descriptions underneath, which usually tease as to the contents of the article without giving the reader too much away. Each section also has it’s own header to distinguish it from the other and helpfully divide up the contents and allow the reader to find what they're looking for with ease. Special features are highlighted in gold to give them significance, but the font isn't bold enough to stand out against the reds and the blacks, which was not a great design choice.

Music Magazine: Front Cover Analysis 5

This fornt cover from an issue of Q magazine features a large close up shot of Beady Eye frontman Liam Gallagher with reflections of his fellow band-members in his sunglasses. There is a weird sort of symmetry to the image and the composition in general comes across as unconventional for a music magazine.

Q's colour scheme appears to be red, white and black, like many music magazines including NME. The fonts however differ greatly. The main feature advertised, that is the story on Liam Gallagher, is in a bold red and white font in capital letters. Other stories featured on the front are also in capitals but use a more narrow font  and incorporate other colours, such as gold into the mix. This gives the feeling of a more sophisticated music magazine without the bombastic fonts and colourful graphics. Not that the cover isn't eye catching though. It seems more image based than other magazines, with the text forming around the photograph, sometimes obscured by it.

There are also quotations from the musicians featured, presented in a typewriter style font. This is a common convention of front covers for music magazines. Also like all or most music magazines the title for the magazine is positioned in the top left of the page. The title for Q stands out because it consists of white text in a red box with a subheading. The human eye reads from left to right, so this title should be the first thing the reader sees and reads.

Music Magazine: Front Cover Analysis 4

This front cover taken from an issue of Kerrang embraces a more boxed layout, with lots of different sized photographs presented on the page with captions. There is a main title in the centre of the page, as opposed to where it is usually positioned in other music magazines further towards the bottom. This title  is roughly the same size as the actual title for the magazine. The title for the magazine is also partially obscured by the main photograph. This is a common feature of established music magazines. The colour scheme seems a bit all over the place, but the main photograph follows a red and green colour scheme. As red and green are colours that compliment each other, this image is particularly eye catching to the reader.

There is also a yellow column along the left hand side of the page with photographs or featured musicians linked to the subheading for the title of the main feature, which is a clever visual link between the title and the photographs beside it. The majority of the text is in bold capitals and the font suggests this magazine will likely cover loud rock and guitar music. There are cracks in the font used on the page which suggests a certain level of anarchy which you'd usually associate with rock music.

There is also another featured story in the bottom right side of the page just above the barcode. The red boxes around the photographs and text helps it stand out against the photograph in the background, but placing it in the bottom right of the page makes it seem like almost an after thought, as the human eye usually starts readings from the top left.

At the top of the page is a yellow header with the names of featured musicians scrawled across in in bold, black capital letters. The title of the magazine is also in a white box. It is common that music magazines place their titles in a coloured box so that the text stands out. Q magazine also has a similar idea.

Music Magazine: Front Cover Analysis 3

This front cover from an issue of NME circa 2008 featuring Arctic Monkeys frontman Alex Turner and  The Last Shadow Puppets frontman Miles Kane. The reader instantly knows this thanks to the bold white text in the middle of the the page. The names of the the two artists seem to hover over the photographs, so the reader can distinguish between the two. The photographs themselves are almost black and white, with a filter making the figures appear to be more pale than they actually are.

The front cover follows NME's familiar red, black and white colour scheme present in the NME logo, with some yellow text which really doesn't fit with the existing colour scheme. Most of the text is in red, which is a particularly vibrant colour that is likely to catch the eye of the reader fairly easily. This vibrant red against the pale tones of the photograph makes it really stand out.

The majority of the text is on the left had side of the page, with a red heading and black subheadings. This may be due to the colours red and black being the most prominent in the NME logo and the fact that they stand out the most against the white. Most of the text is in bold capitals, particularly the titles, whereas the subheadings are in lower case, to distinguish them from the titles. Other fonts are used for the band's quote, distinguishing the text from the titles and the subheadings.

The photograph is also layered in fornt of the NME logo, which is a common convention of established music magazines. The subheading is also partially obscured because it is assumed that the reader knows that the magazine is NME, which stands for New Musical Express.

Also in the top left of the cover is a black circle with yellow and white text, presumably designed to look like a sticker. This would explain why it is placed infront of the logo, partially obstructing it.

Music Magazine: Front Cover Analysis 2

The front cover of Mojo depicts all four members of the arctic monkeys in a mid shot facing the camera. They’re wearing all-black or white, which complements the background and the colour of the font. The filters on the photograph fade their skin tones, so they appear paler and compliment the cover’s black and white colour scheme. The title is also behind the band members, as to not obstruct the reader’s view of the band. 
The lead singer Alex Turner is obviously the center of attention in this image as he is the largest, with most of the other band members pushed into the background with him in the foreground. The members of the band are all in front of the main logo, but the reader still knows what the name of the magazine is. It is important not to obscure the name of the magazine if it is not an established or well know magazine.

The main title for the Arctic Monkeys is positioned in the center of the page where it is likely to be eye-catching to the reader. Since their band name is the largest on the page in terms of font, they are likely the main feature of the magazine, which is why all of the other titles for articles have been pushed to the right. 

The font is the same throughout the cover, varying in size but not much else. The white font stands out against the predominantly black and grey image. All of the text is in bold capital letters so that the reader can clearly read it. Some of the titles have captions beneath them, making them stand out even further, for example Aerosmith at the top of the page.

Music Magazine: Front Cover Analysis

For my coursework I am tasked with creating my own music magazine aimed at a specific target audience, but before I draw up my initial ideas I have to analyse certain aspects of these sorts of magazine. Starting with the front cover.

The front cover of this issue of the NME depicts Robert Smith of The Cure fame. The close-up photograph takes up the majority of the page and text is either on top or around it, to not obstruct the reader’s view of the famous musician depicted on the front. The colour scheme of the image is red, white and black. This is complemented by the colour of the text around the image, which also follows the simple red, white and black colour scheme. This gives the impression that The Cure will be the main feature of this week’s magazine.

The font on the front cover varies in style, size and colour. The Magazines name is in a fairly large, bold font in the top left corner of the page, which is common in all magazines and the featured artist, in this case The Cure is presented with a large red font, a colour which is pleasing to the eye and eye-catching to the reader.

The front cover also features several quotes, which stand out against their backgrounds thanks to the choice of colour and font.

Other bands and articles are presented in a smaller font in little white boxes with sub headings underneath giving the reader more of an idea on what else will be featured in the issue. These are pushed to the right side of the page, as the human mind often reads from left to right, meaning these are meant to be read after the Magazine title and main feature, the titles of which are pushed to the left side of the page.

Above the title, at the top of the page is a header listing some of the artists playing at Reading and Leeds Festival. The white and red colour scheme helps the text stand out against the black background of Robert Smith’s hair.

Music Magazine Project: Initial ideas and research

For my A-level Media coursework I am tasked with creating a music magazine for a particular genre of music inspired by existing music magazines currently in circulation in shops and newsagents. I will be creating the magazines in In-design and Photoshop based off audience research which I will also carry out by handing out surveys (or creating and distributing them on the internet) and interviewing my target audience, which presumably with be teenagers and young adults. I will carry out research into what kinds of social group read what types of music magazine and adjust my content accordingly. I presume a magazine about alternative or Indie music will interest a lot of people in my age group, so hopefully my knowledge of people's music tastes will help me choose the genre of and develop my magazine.

My initial ideas consist of an alternative music magazine in the style of NME or Q. But I would also like to make my magazine unique while following some of the conventions of typical music magazines. Conventions which I will be looking into and analyzing over the course of this project. I also hope to inject other genres into my magazine, such as electronic, to cater to some of my tastes as well. Indie magazines often cover smaller, more obscure bands and artists as well, which is something I hope to take and run with for my magazine. Live events are also covered in most music magazines as well as industry gossip and reviews of albums and events, which is something to take note of.

The actual bands and artists featured in my magazine will be rough caricatures of famous musicians, as I think it'll allow me more creative freedom in terms of the content which goes into my magazine. The main article which will feature in my double page spread will be about a fictional musician. I have a couple of ideas floating around regarding who this person will be 'parodying' from real life. I hope to emulate a cringe inducing interview with a pretentious, self indulgent singer songwriter in the article for my double page spread and it will be posted on my blog when it's finished.

I also hope to create all of the graphics, text and logos myself in Photoshop as opposed to using fonts downloaded off the internet to showcase my skills in design. I will post some of these to my blog along with feedback from my fellow students/target audience. The title is of particular importance to me as it can reflect the entire tone of the magazine. Is it playful and loud like NME or serious like Q? My logo will feature throughout the magazine on my contents page and double page spread as well as on my front cover.

School Magazine: Preliminary Work Evaluation

My magazine follows several common conventions of school magazines in both it’s front cover and contents page. The layout of the front cover was inspired by several styles of school magazine, particularly Roundhay Roundup. The positioning of the title on my front cover is similar to that of the title in Roundhay Roundup and the box in the bottom left corner of the page, with information about the contents of the magazine is also lifted from that magazine. The header is also lifted from Roundhay Roundup.

The contents page is also inspired by that of the Fusion, music magazine. With a header at the top of the page and smaller sub-headings and page numbers beside the text. However, I decided to challenge some of the features of the contents page, opting for a background photograph and a different layout.

During the course of this preliminary task I picked up and built on existing skills in programs such as Adobe Photoshop and Indesign. I learned how to cut out photographs quicker and more efficiently with the magnetic lasso tool and how to use the healing brushes to erase blemishes in photographs. I also used colour filters to give the image a more striking appearance. In Indesign I learned how to lay out my magazine using frames and placing the JPEG/PNG images inside of them. 

I also expanded on my SLR camera skills, using different apertures and shutter speeds to obtain the clearest, crispest image possible. I learned how faster shutter speeds can give a  clearer image and how a slower shutter speed can make an object more blurry, using the shutter speed priority setting on the camera. I also learned how different apertures can add or decrease the depth of a photograph, using the aperture priority setting on the camera.

How I went about creating my own School Magazine.

When creating my magazine I took into account many of the codes and conventions you find present on the front covers and contents pages of many other school magazines, and presented my own take on them. 

My magazine follows a simple blue colour scheme and like many other school magazines, the front cover depicts a cheerful looking student holding a textbook in a work-related area of the school, in my case the library.

At the top of the page is a blue header with a tagline: ‘The Bay’s No.1 Bi-weekly Magazine.’ This confirms the play on words of the title: Bay Weekly, a play on the term ‘Bi weekly.’

The front cover also displays text informing the reader of the contents of the magazine, which will be explored in more detail on the contents page. The most important article in the magazine (‘How to survive your first week of High School’) is presented by a large title in a bold, white font which stands out against the background picture.

The layouts for both my front cover and contents page were created in Adobe Indesign CS6, while the individual components, such as titles, logos and headings were created using photoshop and Illustrator. The vector graphics used for the logo and one of the boxes was drawn in Illustrator using a Wacom tablet and the text was added in later in Photoshop. I then applied a drop shadow to the white text so that the words stood out from the page.

I exported the components from Photoshop as PNG files with a transparent background so that they could be easily manipulated in Indesign and moved wherever I want.

School Magazine Research: Conventions of the contents page…

In preparation for my media coursework I have been researching some of the codes and conventions associated with the front covers and contents pages of various school magazines.

One of the things I noticed about many contents pages is the typography. Many contents pages contain headings for each page followed by a short tagline summing up the content of the pages. The headings can be various different colors and fonts so that they stand out. This is also usually accompanied by a page number next to the heading.

Another convention of contents pages is the use of page numbers in the corner of the page, a large heading at the top of the page, a background picture or colour and sometimes an illustration.