Analysing Magazine Pages

NME

The overall style of the magazine cover is very simple and smart in terms of presentation. The cover uses masculine colours of red, black and white, typical of the rock music genre. Many popular rock bands such as “My Chemical Romance” and “The White Stripes” use these colours as their trademark, so the magazine appeals to the same fans. The masculine colours attract the demographic of mostly males aged around 23.The focal point is the medium close up, studio shot of the artist’s face, Liam Gallagher, of a black and white photo matching the colour scheme which dominates the majority of the space. The magazine cover taglines uses the same font but in different styles, as the words are centred to the sides, giving more emphasis towards the photo. The taglines mainly state the bands and artists featured in the magazine, also enticing the reader with information about concerts featured inside. 

The masthead NME and the name of the artist Liam are in a large font block capital letters in red; drawing the audience’s attention to the most important information on the page. The masthead is short and bold, to the top left hand side of the page making it memorable and recognisable to the reader. The pull quotes such as "What would I do if I met Lennon? Lick him from head to toe" draws the reader in and creates more anticipation.

The black and white photo of Liam in a medium close-up attracts the audience. His eyes are covered by glasses and he is turning away making the audience want to see more. It shows his indifference and makes him appear in a way that the demographic will want to imitate. The black and white style makes him stand out against the background, attracting the audience.The magazine also fits in with the codes and conventions of music magazines with the barcode and price featured at the bottom right side of the cover.


 BILLBOARD


The magazine is dominated by the medium close up, posed image of the pop artist Rihanna.  It is a sexualised image as she is wearing very little clothing showing her gun tattoo and deep red lips. This draws in the audience: males who find her attractive and females who aspire to be like her. Her dress is a lacy cream colour suggesting her innocence which contrasts against her vibrant hair and sexualised look. She appears coy as her face is partly covered by her hair suggesting she is hiding something. This is connected with the quote “My fans don’t really know who I am”. This appeals to the audience as they would like to know the truth.

The colour scheme is of red, black, white and yellow. The title “Rihanna” is in bold, white font fading towards the bottom of the letters. This gives it a softer touch which matches the softness of the photo. The masthead “Billboard” is the same for each issue with the letters b. o and d coloured in with red, blue and yellow. This gives it a playful look and attracts young readers from 16- 25 years of age. Also, the caption “THE RE-RE INVENTION OF” is a play on words with the artists name as fans will recognise this as her nick name. The second “RE” is in a larger font emphasising the word play to attract the demographic.
The taglines are centred to the left hand side with the most important bits of information highlighted in a pale yellow with the writing in black. This is fitting with the colour scheme and gives the magazine a feminine feature against the masculine colours of red and black. This allows both female and male readers to be enticed to the magazine.


 Kerrang

The main image on the cover of kerrang magazine is of the rock/ metal band “Bring me the Horizon”. The most iconic person, the lead singer, is placed closer to the camer allowing him to be the focal point on the cover in a medium shot making him stand out from the rest of the band. As he is the most recognisable person, this helps the reader spot him and encourages them to buy the magazine. They are shown to be a stereotypical rock/ metal band which we see through their clothing, tattoos and hairstyles. The band are wearing smart black suits each wearing red, green or black ties, coinciding with the rock theme.This allows the targeted reader to recognise it immediately. The image is done in a posed, medium long shot done in a studio to give it a professional look. The banner at the top of the cover entices the reader with extravagant header "Travis Barker in plan crash horror!" The use of an exclamation mark interests the reader making them want to read on.The photo of the band is in front  It is also in block capitals with a red glow surrounding them to really make it stand out. It will interest the reader as 67% of Kerrang readers buy every copy and Travis Barker is featured in most of them, he will be a recognisable artist that readers will be very interested to read about.

of the masthead which is unconventional of a magazine as the photo was taken with no headroom, but allows the image to stand out further. Also, as Kerrang is a popular, recognisable music magazine, they are able to do this. The masthead is in a large, black font with white lines going through giving it a shattered look, emphasising the rock element of the magazine as it relates to rock star’s chaotic, wild lifestyle.

The three other live concert, candid images at the bottom of the cover, emphasize the rock genre. They have been placed at the bottom half of th page not to draw attention away from the main image. The images are bordered in red and white, the colour scheme of the magazine emphasizing the images although they are small. The one bordered in white stands out from the other two showing the reader it is of a different subject. The contrast between the white background and black letters allows it to catch the reader’s eye.
The magazine uses one font throughout the page, but in different sizes and three different colours; red, black and yellow emphasizing which information is most important to catch the reader’s eye. It also uses exclamation marks to emphasize the flashers showing the most important information on the images encouraging readers to see them. Also, the band names are printed on the images giving the audience that extra bit of information and allowing them to recognise the artists easier.The cover fits in with the rule of thirds as the right hand side is dominated by the main artist while the left hand side has the most text.
The barcode situated at the bottom right hand side of the page fits in with the codes and conventions of magazines allowing them to moniter the number of magazines sold and is a necessity for the sale of the magazine.