Contents Page Analysis #5

This contents page mixes the 'blocky look' and 'image dominated look' so that the benefits of both can be seen. Because the images are smaller there is more text and room for more than one image.

Contents Page Analysis #3

This contents page is more 'blocky' which means that instead of having one main dominating pictures there are lots of pictures in varying sizes. This layout also

Contents Page Analysis #2

This is also a very image dominated contents page. I like this contents page as the image is very unusual and intrigues the reader so they read the story. It also shows how quirky and unique Katy Perry is. This contents is from a magazine that I have already analysed the front cover of ('Blender' with Katy Perry. See 'Front Cover Analysis #1'). The colour scheme continues throughout the magazine: both pages use black and pink text with a white background. More colours have been introuduced however as Katy Perry is now wearing a red outfit which matches the mushroom. This is why there is less pink text on this page as pink and red clash. The change of outfit shows Katy Perry's versatility.

The "Contents" title is huge and fits right across the top in a sort of retro style font. Down the right hand side there are four headlines, but only the main stories have been included on this page. All of the stories are just the names of the artist and underneath is a small blurb. Beside the image is a quote from Katy Perry, which is unusual for a contents page, but gives the reader an insight in to the story.

Contents Page Analysis #1

This contents page is very image dominated making it feel less structured and more fun which appeals to a younger audience. The colour scheme is very minimal: the text is all written in grey or black which matches Shanell and Nicki Minaj's hair and dark clothes. "Contents" is the biggest and boldest text on the page. Situated in the top left-hand corner, the word is split up in to three seperate lines which gives it a more edgy feel. The text is sidelined to the left as the main focus is the image. The stories are split up in to different catergories: the headings for these use a more interesting font and are bigger so they stand out more. Under these are different stories with their page numbers which also include a small blurb sometimes. The blurbs are written in grey because they are less important.

This magazine is aiming at a similiar audience to mine (female teenagers) so looking at the stories included on the contents page will help me to decide my own. From this contents page I can see that fashion is important and teenagers want to know what their favourite musicians are wearing. One catergory is "V Style" and beside the image there is text telling the reader where the clothes Shanell and Nicki Minaj are wearing came from. A "Playlist" and "20 Questions" page is included in the magazine which continues with the idea that teenagers like lists to read as they are easier to digest. There is also a small caption beside the image describing who the artists are, who photographed them and where and when.

Diary Entry #2: Week Beginning 7th February

This week I started the market research for my media music magazine. Firstly I had to identify a target market for my magazine. I thought that the best way to do this would be to use my own music taste as this way I could make the magazine more believable as I would already know about the music. My music taste is mainly mainstream pop music: what the typical female teenager listens to. I then researched in to magazines aimed at teenagers (mainly female). I found that these were mostly American music magazines including 'Billboard', 'Blender' and 'Vibe' however I also thought that I could take inspiration from 'Q' as although it is not soley aimed at female teenagers, teenagers still read this magazine and 'Q' feature some of the mainstream pop artists that I would in my own magazine.

I plan to analyse these magazines to find codes and conventions throughout their front covers, contents pages and double page spreads so that my own magazine looks as professional and believable as possible. This week I started with analysing 5 front covers to see what I should include on my own front cover.

Front Cover Analysis #5

This is my favourite front cover out of all of the ones I have analysed. 'Billboard' is obviously targeting females with this cover by using a pink background and flowers in the image. As I am targeting mainly female teenagers when I come to create my magazine, I could use a pink background myself. The image is obviously very important on this cover as it takes up most of the space. The colours in the image relate to the colour scheme: the black in her dress and hair match the text and the pink in the flowers match the background. I'm not so keen on the yellow that is used on some text as it is hard to see and doesn't really fit in with the rest of the colours. Another criticism would be how all of the text is on the left handside. I think this looks too structured and I don't like how it seperates the cover in to two halves. In my front cover I would have the image in the centre. "Katy Perry" is again the biggest headline and it is also different to the rest of the text on the left which is all written in upper-case letters. This makes "Katy Perry" seem more feminine. There is a small variety in font: 'Billboard' use font to convey an image of what the story is about for example "Retro Sound, Modern Marketing Plan" is in a more retro font.

Front Cover Analysis #4

The colour scheme for this 'Blender' (blue, black and white) is different to the last one I analysed, however the black and white is kept the same throughout all of their magazines so that it is instantly recognisable. Unlike the other 'Blender' on my blog, Taylor Swift's black and white clothes match the colour scheme. The font is slightly different aswell, but still kept sans serif and simple. The font is kept the same throughout the whole cover but the title is cracked giving it an edgy feel. The artist's name is again in large font and numbers are used aswell. The language is very informal, obviously aiming for a young audience by mimicking the way they talk eg. "stoopidest music-biz blunders". It also says "teen special" which makes teenagers feel like this magazine is especially for them.

Although the rule of thirds does not seem to be applied to this front cover as much at first glance, it is still used on this cover. The figure is split up in to three sections: her head and one arm take up the top section, her upper body and other arm fit in to the middle section and her lower body fits in to the rest. The writing is kept to the outer sections and even that is split into sections. The rule of thirds makes it appealing to the eye.