Analysis of Covers,

Contents and Double Pages

Cover - Billboard The mast head is in a very unique place as

most magazines have the mast head at the top

whereas this one is on the left side on a 90 degree angle. Although it looks very unique, it isn’t very

conventional. This is because when the magazine is on a

magazine stand, if it’s behind another magazine,

not much of the mast head is shown and it’s

unclear which magazine this is.

This mast head is a shade of blue to match the cold colour palette created by his clothing. Although it is

a similar colour to the main image, it stands out

due to the dark background and its sharp

edges.

The main cover line reads ‘Zayn Malik’s Own

Direction’ and shows the audience the main topic

that will be covered in the magazine.

This is largest font size, other than the mast head, to make it stand out more

than the other bits of text. Although the main

cover line is in a different and softer font than the

mast head, it’s still easily seen and readable

against this clothing. The use of the white colouring

allows it to stand out against the dark colours

of this clothing.

The cover lines on this cover are very small in comparison to the mast

head and the main cover line. This allows the other bits of text to stand out more than these lines.

Like the main cover line above the cover lines

towards the bottom, they too are coloured in white to stand out against the

dark colours of this clothing. These cover

lines, along with the main cover line, follow the line of his arm. This is creative

and also allows the audience to read it a lot

easier because if the text was on either side of his

arm, it would become difficult to read due to the light colours and amount of lines connecting (the sleeves of his clothing).

The cover lines at the top are also white and

contrast with the dark colours in his hair, making

them stand out.

The colour palette consists of white and

different shades of blue. This gives the cover a masculine look, blue being a stereotypical

male colour. The white parts allow the cover to feel lighter due to there

being a lot of dark colours. Although high

key lighting to used to try and bring out the lighter colours in his skin and

clothing.

The main image is a close-up of Zayn Malik. This is effective as the audience can easily see who the main featured artist of this magazine is going to be.

Because of this being a close up, not a lot is on the cover, drawing the eyes of the audience to the main features, such as the text and facial features. With the

camera being so close to him, it suggests how big of a deal his story/article is

because he is the only one on the cover, therefore the article will focus on him.

There are very few layers to this cover but as

you’re looking at it, you can see the different

depths. Clearly the text is on the very top. Beneath that sits his hair and his

arm. Then the mast head, followed but his face and the rest of his body that’s visable. Because of the sharp edges of these

different layers, mainly his arm, it makes it easy

for the eyes of the audience to see the

different depths in the image. The high key lighting all helps to

achieve this.

There are several eye lines for this cover. But I’d say that the main eye line is ‘F’ or

an ‘E’. The top of the ‘F’ or ‘E’ are the cover lines at the very top. The side of

the ‘F’ or ‘E’ is the mast head. For ‘F’, the final horizontal line is the main cover line and cover lines underneath. For ‘E’, the second horizontal line could be his hand and/or eyes as they stand out, followed

by the main cover line and cover lines at the bottom for the final horizontal line. Another main eye line is the backwards

‘Z’. The top of the ‘Z’ would be the cover lines at the very top, then to follow his

arm downwards towards the main cover line and cover live beneath for the final

line of the ‘Z’. I don’t think this very effective because it goes against the way English reads (from

right to left) and gets rather confusing with having more than one visible eye

lines.

Cover - Merlito KPOP The mast head is quite different in it’s style of font and the way the

same font is used throughout the cover. The font itself is very ‘blocky’, in the sense that it has no gaps to form the letters

fully. It’s also quite unique because it has part of the title of the magazine as

part of one of the letters. Also, the sharpness of the letters make it stand out

against the plain background.

The colour of the mast head makes it stand out

against the white background. Also, having

the smaller part of the title in red allows it to stand out against both the black and white.The placement of the

mast head allows it to be easily seen, especially

when it’s on a magazine shelve.

The main cover line reads ‘G Dragon has all the right moves’, clearly

showing the audience the main feature article to be shown in the magazine.This main cover line has two parts to it - his name and the article topic. His name is in a large font

than the topic, the font is also different. This makes his name stand out from

the rest of the text on the entire cover, a part from the mast head. The font of his name is the same as the font for the mast

head, but the main cover line has a red circle in the ‘O’ to create something

different to the mast head and it allows draws your eye towards it because

it’s in the centre of something black - the red contrasts the black a lot. The large red ‘G’ before ‘dragon’ draws the eyes towards it because of it’s size. The colour of the ‘G’

is red to contrast the white background, the

black text placed on top of it and his clothing that

it is placed upon. The second part of the main cover line has two

colours as some of it lays on top of the red ‘G’. This allows draws attention to it because nothing else on the cover has two

colours.

The colour palette consists of the classic three - red, white and

black. I think this colour palette works well here. The white background

allows both the red and black to stand out, which are both contrasting with each other too. There are also two parts of text that are white, both of which are placed on top of red. This makes these two bit of text stand out against

the bright red. The remaining text of black

and red is shared. Both of them contract the white

background a lot and each other, along with

the main image. In most cases, the red is used as a subtitle or heading and the black is used for the information about it. This draws attention because the red draws your eyes

in, but you read the black text too because of how much it contrasts the red

and white, making it stand out and unmissbale.

There are quite a few layers created on this cover. At the very bottom, there is

the mast head. On top of this is his head, shoulders, torso/hips and a bit of text. On part of his torso sits the large ‘G’ of the

main cover line. On top of that is the rest of the main cover line, a bit of text and

his right elbow. His hands are more forward than his elbows, leaving the

apple closest to the camera. All these different layers create depth for the

cover, the apple being an important part of this concept (or his own new concept). Because of the ordering of the layers, it makes the main image stand out more

than anything else because it’s on top of most layers. The main image is a mid shot of G

Dragon. This allows the audience to see who the main featured artist is whilst

also getting to see his personality through his clothing and stance.

The sizing and placing of the main image is effective because it’s central and

whilst it’s sat on a magazine shelf, the head is likely to be seen along with the

mast head. So even before the audience has even picked up the magazine, they

know the face of the featured artist. Also, because of his hair being white against the black of the mast head, it allows the

audience to want to look at his face because it stands out against the black.

The eye line of this cover is fairly simple - it’s the

classic ‘Z’. The top of the ‘Z’ being the mast head, then across his body to

large red ‘G’ for the main cover line, finally along

the rest of the main cover line. This is effective as this is the way that we

English read (from left to right). Also, the audience gets guided through the

entire cover whilst seeing all the important text.

Cover - Sparkling The mast head is very simple and stands out a

lot because of it being on a plain white background. Also, the sharpness of the font helps it to stand out

more from the plain background.

Becasue of the mast head being in grey rather than

black for example, it draws attention but not as much as a black mast head would. Although I prefer to have a softer

colour for the mast head, if it was a magazine

stand, it might be difficult to spot due to the

possible bright colours of the other magazines.

The way it’s placed on the cover is unique - on a slight tilt. Although, it

might have worked a bit better had it tilted the

other way as we read left to right and down.

The colour palette consists of white, blue, a pale pink and different

shades of grey.This is very effective because it allows the main parts of the text

stand out from everything else. Also, the lack of blue on the cover allows it to have a lot of

attention,I really like this colour palette as it doesn’t really have a gender

‘feel’ because the colours are neutral, and the pink

and blue are balance (one being stereotypically female, the other male).

Although all of the colours are very pale, they all stand out from each other because of the different shades.

Because all of the members are wearing

different coloured clothing, it allows them to

contract against each other and the

background. Also, because the white text is placed on darker areas, it allows the text to stand

out.

The main cover line reads ‘BTS Forever Young’,

showing the main article that will be featured in

the magazine. The main cover line has

two parts to it - the name of the band and the name of their new song realise

(at the time) /the name of the article. Both parts of the main cover line is in blue. Very few things on

the cover are in blue. The lack of blue on the page

allows the main cover line to stand out. Also,

because of the other colours being much paler,

it allows it to stand out even more. Moreover, as

it’s on a plain white background, that allows it

to stand out more too. Also, the font of the main cover line different to the rest of the cover - helping it to stand out even more. The different sizes of the

two parts allows the name of the band to

stand out more than the name of the song/article.

There are quite a few layers created on this

cover. The mast head and the main cover line seem to be on a separate layer as they aren’t on top or below anything or than the background. As for

the members of the band, they are blocked in a way to make the image have depth and having them on different steps

gives the image levels/height. There appears to be two

members per step and the central member

being on his own step. The text being on top of all the members. This makes each one of the

members stand out - with height, you see more,

being closer to the camera makes you seem

large in frame.

The main image ranges from a medium long shot to a long shot, depending on

the step the member is standing on. This allows the audience to see all the members clearly without the main

features being hidden by any one - their faces aren’t hidden.

Also, because of the type shot used, the audience is able to see a significant

amount of the members’ clothing. Each one of them has a different style of suit in a different colour and with different

accessories. Because of this, the audience is able to see the different

personalities of the members, this is also helped by seeing their stances.

The placing of the image means that it would be unseen from the audience when the magazine is on a stand,

possibly making them look at it because they can only see the name of the band

and the song/article. Also, the way the main image is on the page is unique. Usually, the text would

be integrated into to image, for example, having the mast head behind the

person/people slightly, In this case, that doesn’t happen. Here we see the image disconnected from the mast head, with

no connections. Although this is unseen, I quite like it because it’s different to other

magazine covers. The eye line on this cover is unclear. Although it don’t have a visible eye line doesn’t mean it don’t ‘work’ as a cover. Perhaps the eye

line is a ‘H’ on its side because of the text being placed above and below the main image.

Contents - Mojo The mast head is the same as the mast head on the cover page of the

Mojo magazine. This allows the audience to

know that they are reading the Mojo

magazine. Also, having the black on

the cream/white background allows it to

stand out. The sharpness of the font itself also helps it to stand out.

The placing of the mast head allows the audience to see it first to show its

importance. The colour palette

consists of the classic three - red, white and

black. I think the colour palette works well here. It mainly uses black for the main body (the articles on the

pages) and red for subtitles and page

numbers. It allows them each to stand out from

each other and the background.

The use of having the main image black and white allows the red to

stand out more.

The main image is a mid shot. This allows the audience to see enough of him to see his passion and attitude for music as he

is holding his guitar and the way is he sat with it.

This also allows the audience to see the second main artist to be featured in the magazine, after the first on the cover

page. The sizing of the main image allows it to cover almost half of the page, making

him seem important.

The contents page for Mojo is very similar for each issue. The layouts are very similar in the

fact that the mast head and the page contents are in the same place. This makes it easier for

regular audiences to know where to find the

information they want to know. For example, the

issue date and number is seen in the contents

rather than the cover, this is for every issue

released.

In the bottom left corner, there is a quote. This is unique. This is a quote

from one of the pages in the magazine. This grabs

the attention of the audience as they want to know what is being said

on that page.

The way the text is layout is unique because of the image chosen (this is the same for all Mojo issue

releases). The information about the

pages creates a border for the main image. This makes the image stand

out because it seems like it has a border when it

actually doesn’t.

The eye line for this contents page could be ‘F’. This is because there is the mast head (the top of the ‘F’) then the page numbers for the side of the ‘F’ and the

page information for the second horizontal line. The page information

leads to the main image and creates an eye line - so possibly a ‘H’ eye line.

Contents - Singles The mast head of this contents page is different to the one on the cover of

this bran of magazine. The mast heads on the

cover of Singles are written in an elegant font.

This is a much harsher font with much sharper

edges and ends of letters. This mast head contrasts with everything else on the page - everything is

elegant and pastel colours. However,

because of this, it makes it stand out against

everything else so that the audience know what

page they are on.The mast head is

positioned at the top of the page so the audience

can easily see it.The colour palette

consists of a lot of pastel colours including green, yellow, different shades

pink and black. Although only black is

used for the text, it doesn’t make the overall page too dark (it doesn’t

over power the pastel colours). Because all the other colours are pastel,

it gives the page a relaxed ‘feel’. A feminine style is also given, mainly because of the colours of

her dress and pastel colours aren’t typically related to males. Even though the colours are pastel, they all contrast

each other, making everything stand out as much as it should do.

The colour palette is very effective as it allows the correct things to stand out - the page content and the mast head. For example, the black text stands out because of

light green background, if the background had been

darker, it would have been much harder to see

the text.

The main image is medium long shot. This allows the audience to see enough of her to know who she is, her

style and attitude towards music through

her clothing and her body language.

Because of how large she is on the page, the

audience know that she is important of one of the

articles. Also, because she is on the contents

page, the audience already know that she is going to be important.

The main image is positioned towards the top of the page - part of her head is underneath

the mast head. This allows the audience to

see her face as they may flick through the

magazine, either in the shop or at home.

Although, it would have been more effective if

she was on the other side (as the English read from left to right, turning the

pages left to right).

The contents page for Singles are unique when it comes to the different

issues. Although it’s better to see a range of

creativity, it can be harder for the regular

readers to find what they want. But for new

readers, it would be nice because they are creative with their contents pages.

The eye line for this contents page could be a backwards ‘F’. The mast head being

the top horizontal line, her face/body being the second horizontal line and the

page content and the bag being the vertical line.

This is effective because the audience is able to see everything without straying too far from the eye line. In terms of the

way English reads, in this case, the audience would read the contents page the opposite way we read. So perhaps having the many image and the page contents swapped might work better. This contents page has a unique feature - the ‘cover look’ section to the bottom

right. This would use the main image/artist from the cover and

demonstrates the style of clothing and introduces the artist once again.

Contents - Sparkling The main mast head of this contents page is

placed on a tilt (in the same way that the cover mast head for this brand of magazine is placed)

along with the tag line for this brand of magazine.

It is placed in the top left corner of the page, so this

is the first thing the audience sees. Alongside

this is the secondary mast head that reads ‘contents’. This is also placed on a tilt in the

opposite direction. Although English from left

to right and down, the way ‘contents’ is tilted complements this, but

both mast heads can’t tilt the same way, especially

with where they are placed.

The main mast head is the same shade of pink for the boarder. I think

that because this is placed on the top of the board, this doesn’t work

as good as it perhaps should do. This is because the colours are the same and therefore blend to

create a continuous line.

The colour palette consists of different

shades of pink, white and different bright colours.

The shades of pink create the background, boarders

and mast heads, the white for image boarders

and the box at the bottom and the bright

colours are used for the different page number and content for them. Because of the main colour being different

shades of pink, stereotypically a female

colour, it gives the page a feminine style.

I think this colour palette is very effective because it’s very clear to see the

different parts of the page, especially the

different pages and their content. Also, because the background is so

pale, it allows the other parts to stand out a lot,

mainly the bright colours for the pages and their

content.

The eye line for this contents page follows the ‘Z’ style but it repeats the ‘Z’

shade several times. For each of the different pages, their content and images

a new horizontal line is created.This is effective because this is the way

that English is read.

This contents page is unique in the sense that

it has no main image. Unlike other contents pages, this one has a

range of different shades and sizes of images that

relate to each of the different pages.

Because of this, it easily achieves the ‘Z’ eye line. I’m not too sure if this is

more effective than having a man image in

the contents page. Although I do like it, it

may not be as effective as a contents page with a

main image.

In terms of different issues, the layout is very similar (having no main image, but have a few smaller images). The main thing that would change would be the colour palette. Although they still use bright colours for the page and their

contents.For regular readers, this is a good thing because they can easily navigate the page because it’s similar to previous

issues. This is also good for occasional readers because it’s a simple, dynamic

layout that’s easy to navigate.

For contents pages in general, they usually aren’t as creative or

colourful as this. Although it does have pastel

colours, the bright colours make it more colourful than the usual contents

page. I really like the idea that it’s different to the usual contents page because it makes it more unique in the magazine industry.

Double Page - BillboardThe mast head of this double page reads ‘the gospel

according to Nicki Minaj’. This is the largest text

of the page. This mast head

uses two different fonts,

colours and size. All of these allow for there name is stand out much more. Her name

has a much sharper font that is bolder than the text above it. The different colours

draw the audience’s eyes to both texts - to

me the black stands out more against the pale pink background, but because her

name lays underneath her arm and she has black on, it might look odd and the effect wouldn’t

work as well as it. The size allows

there is be more of it, so it draws the audience's

attention.

The colour palette for this double page

consists of black, white and

different shades of pink.

Having a pastel pink background allows for all of

the other colours used to stand out because they are

much darker. Also, her black

and white clothing

contrasts the lightness of the

pink background, not just because

it’s a plain background but

because the black and white

are much brighter than the

pale pink. Although the

colour used the most is black,

the overall ‘feel’ of the pages isn’t dark because of

the pale pink background and the white for her

clothing.

The text on this page is laid on a different layer to the main image, underneath it. This allows for the main image to

stand out more and gives the page depth. Also, the way the text to the left is laid out is unique. The text is close enough to her to create a boarder. I really like this idea and find it to be really effective as it helps for the

main image to stand out even more. Although maybe it would have given a better boarder if the text to the bottom

left did a similar thing. In terms of the amount and how it’s placed around the pages, it’s feel dealt with because it’s an even amount

around her without the page feeling crowded. The text itself is split up by subtitles in bold with large

numbers in a dark shade of pink. This enables the text to be broken up rather than having all of the text as one huge chunk. It also allows the audience to find things they want

to read a lot easier. The main image is mid shot of Nicki Minaj. This allows for the audience to easily see who this article is about. Also, because of how much of her can be seen, especially her

clothing and stance, the audience is able to see her personality and attitude towards music. As this is a double page, her arm would be on a opposite page to the rest of her body, placing most of her on the right page. Although she is almost centre of birth pages, the use of her being

towards the right side makes her stand out as she is not in a usual place.

Also, because of the clothing that she is wearing, it contrasts with with plain pink background. The black and white contrasts the pink as they are both bright colours against a paler colour. Also, because of the zebra style

design, it makes the clothing stand out against the plain background as it’s more appealing to the eye.

This double page is unique in the sense that it has

a bold black boarder running

around both pages. Most

double pages don’t have a

boarder, at least not like this one. Due to the lack

of a busy background, a boarder seems

necessary otherwise the place would

seem incomplete and not a

connected as a whole page.

In terms of eye line, it is unclear

as to which approach was

chosen. Although there isn’t a clear eye line doesn’t mean that the page doesn’t

‘work’.

Double Page - BromideThe mast head of this double page reads ‘live it up!’. In terms of size in

relation to the size of the page, this mast head is

quite small. Although did

does stand out, the size of it is much smaller

than most other mast heads on double pages. It’s stands out because it’s

white on top of the shaded area of the flooring. It also stands out because of the sharp font that

has been used. It allows the lines

to be clearly seen, creating a

visible layer. Because of the

way it stands out, it grabs the

attention of the audiences’ eye .

The text on this page is laid on a different layer to the main image, on top of it, This gives the page depth. All of the

text on these pages is white. Although the overall page is very light with contrasts made by shadows, having the text

white lightens the page even more. The amount of writing on these double pages is very small when compared to other double pages. Although there isn’t

a lot of places to put the text due to the eight people spaced on the page.

The text near the top left corner is placed alongside the mast head in a unique way. It allows the two of them to be

connected with them actually touching. The placement of the text near the centre of the two pages

seems to be places randomly on a dark spot towards the bottom in the middle of the two pages. I don’t seem to

have any connection to the other bits of text or the figures - it’s just ‘there’. The main image is mainly a mid shot of the figures, an

aerial shot is used to create this. Because of this, the audience is able to clearly see the different figures, as well as their different personalities and attitudes towards music

because of their clothing and body language. Most the figures are looking into the lens, creating eye contact with

the audience. This eye contact makes the audience see more of their attitude to music. The intensity can also show

their attitudes, whether they are more relaxed or not.The image itself has a lot of contrast because of the high key lighting creating dark shadows around them. As most of them are wearing light colours, the shadows bring the

darkness back, creating a balance of light and dark. The way the main image is used is unique as the it is used as background too. This is uncommon with double pages,

this is often used for covers and contents. Although I really like the idea of using the main image as the background, it would have to be plain enough to be about to see text, but also with enough space for it. This doesn’t happen here. If the text was to be aid over the flooring, it would be hard to

see, especially if it was kept at a similar size.

The colour palette for this double page

consists of white and different

shades of brown and blue.

I think this colour palette is effective because

although most of the colours are pastel/pale, it

still seem bright because some of

the tops are brighter than

others.The different

shades of brown flooring contrasts

well with the different

coloured tops along with their

different hair colours. Also, because the

different shades are mostly created by

shadows, this creates depth for

the image and page as a whole.The white for the text works well

because it contrasts with

the darker colours of a few

tops and the shadows.

In terms of eye line, it is unclear

as to which approach was

chosen. However, there seems to be two lines of figures - the two males at the top with the female and the other five males

creating the other line.

Although there isn’t a clear eye

line doesn’t mean that the page doesn’t

‘work’.

Double Page - SinglesThe mast head of this double page is placed on a tile

in the opposite direction that English is read

(left to right and down).

This is placed in the top left

corner, this is the fist thing the

audience would see.

In relation to the size of the page, I’d say that this size of font is a little too small.

As this is a double page, the mast head should be a little bigger in order to seem like the correct

size to cover both pages.

The font used makes it stand out against the

plain background. The

font itself is sharp and

therefore is much crisper and

easier to see against the plain

background. The colour of the

mast head is white and yellow.

The yellow is used for

emphasis to make that part stand out more than the white, although the

white stands out a lot against the

dark green.

The main page line for this double page

reads ‘love, lust & etc.’, clearly

showing the topic that is covered in the magazine. This is placed in the very top left corner, possibly the second thing

the audience would see after the mast head.

This is effectively placed because English is read

from left to right, so it is our

instinct to look left first.

Although most main page lines

are a little bigger than this,

because of where is it placed, it

stands out enough to not need to be too

big to draw attention. The font is

different to the rest of page. This could be to draw attention - but it is a softer font.

But it could be to show the

delicacy of this topic.

Although it is there, it’s unique to have a main page line on a double page

because of the large amount of

text that is already on the

page.

The main image is a long shot of the six figures. This enables the audience to see the whole of the figures. Because of this, the audience are also able to see the

personalities of the figures because of this stance and their clothing. Their attitudes towards music are also shown

because of this. All six of the figures have different facial expressions to help emphasis their different attitudes to

music and their difference in personalities. The main image is also used as a background. This is a

unique way to present the main image. Even though it uses the main image as the background too, the way the image

was framed allows for the text to be placed above the figures on a plain background. Because of this, the text is

clear and easy to read. The main body is written in white. The idea of this is to look like it is written on a chalk board. Although I like the idea of

this, it in’t really pulled off very well because the font doesn’t seem handwritten or chalk-like.

The colour palette for this double page consists of white, green, black and yellow.

Most of these colours are dark shades, but the overall page seems quite light because all of the text is written in white

along with the the white details of the figures. I think this colour palette is effective because all of the

colours contrast each other. Also, because the background is a dark green, it allows the black and white to stand out,

especially the white. As the colours are stereotypically more male orientated,

this gives the overall page a masculine look.

The text on this double page seems to be behind the figures becuase of it being laid on the chalkboard. This gives the image and page some depth and connection to the text. Because of the deliberate placement and the use of the white, it makes it seem like it was written on the

chalk board. However, the effect isn’t fully pulled off because a font that resembled chalk a bit more could have been used instead to create the correct effect.

In terms of the amount of text for the main body, I’d say that the amount on this double page is just under the amount I’d want to write - maybe just one more paragraph.

The eye line for this double page seems to be two separate parallel lines - the text then the figures. This is because they have no connection - neither of

them are touching.