Front cover
Colour scheme – The three main colours used for this front cover are black, white and red which are typical colours for a magazine in the music genre and especially for rock or alternative music magazines which is what Q is. Gold is also used for some of the main writing and this is because the connotations of the colour gold are wealth and luxury and so it is appealing to the target audience. Although there are only four colours used for the writing and the logo, there are a lot of album covers that are brightly coloured all over the front cover and this makes the cover look bright and interesting and will appeal to the target audience.
Photography – There are a lot of pictures on this front cover and this is appealing because it shows that there is a lot of content in the magazine. The central image is actually four separate pictures of famous music artists that are put next to each other to create one image. All the images are mid shots showing the torso and head of the artists and are studio shots where the artists are posing, not natural. I think this shows that the magazine is high quality, whereas other magazine in this genre tend to use live images of gigs and such, Q has decided to use posed shots and this makes it appear classy in comparison. Also the target audience are more young to middle aged adults and therefore posed pictures would appeal to them more than gig pictures.
There are also two secondary pictures of popular artists which are natural images and will grab the attention of the audience because they will want to know the story behind these pictures.
Finally there are over twenty famous album covers bordering the main part of the front cover and this makes it look very bright and busy and the use of all these famous albums will attract the audience because they are more likely to be familiar with these albums and they will buy a magazine if theyl know the artists that will be featured in it.
Writing style – There are quite a few examples of slang and colloquial language used in the front cover. They have even made a word up, ‘amazingness’. The use of slang words such as ‘f***ing cosmic’ and the colloquial language such as ‘airborne fiasco’ are appealing to the target audience because they show a level of informality and fun, making the audience aware that the magazine is not too serious and won’t be too hard to read. This also shows that the target audience are young adults because children and elderly people would not read a magazine with a swear word on the front page.
Overall look – The name of the magazine is very prominent and this is because it is a very well known and respected music magazine and therefore will immediately catch people attention. There are lots of pictures and lots of text which makes the magazine look busy and full but is also calmed down by the use of a simple font and only black, white and red text. The front page looks neat and high quality but also fun to read and is very attractive to people who are into music.
Text/picture ratio – I think there are an equal amount of pictures as there is text on the front cover. The top half is more text heavy whereas the bottom half is more picture heavy but overall neither of them are overly prominent. I think a lot of pictures would not be appealing to the target audience because they like to read about the artists not just see pictures of them and a lot of text would look boring to anyone so having an equal ratio is a good and appealing choice to the target audience.
Fonts – Most of the text on the front cover and all of the coverlines are in capitals and in a simple sans serif font which makes the cover look neat and is very easy to read. However the font for the main coverline ‘Perfect Playlists for every occasion’ is a serif font and is effective because it gives the impression of luxury and perfection which is obvioulsy appealing, especially in the music world where it indicates good quality music.
Publisher – Q is published in the UK by Bauer London Lifestyle Ltd which is a division of Bauer Consumer Media Ltd. They also have music channels, radio stations and publish many other magazines in different genres but also music magazines such as Kerrang! and MOJO which are of a similar genre to Q.
Contents page
Colour scheme – These two pages are very bright although the colour scheme remains simple. The three main colours are black, white and red which is keeping with the colour scheme of the front cover. The background of the contents pages is just white and this is because it helps to keep the page looking clean and fresh even though there is a lot going on on it, if they had used a colour it may look scruffy and complicated. A mixture of red, black and white has been used to the writing and this helps to separate each section of writing and makes the pages easier to read and navigate around.
Photography – There are lots of pictures on the contents pages and this makes them look exciting and busy and also makes it clear that the magazine is full of exciting stories. Most of the pictures are live and are natural shots from gigs and gatherings which are very common of rock and indie music magazines which this magazine is and this is because the target audience like to attend gigs and festivals and so these pictures will be appealing to them. There are a few posed studio shots but they are posed in a way which makes the artists look like they are messing around and having fun so they are not too serious. In all the pictures the focus is on the artists because that’s what the features are all about and that’s what the audience buy the magazine to read about.
Writing style – There are no large sections or paragraphs of writing on the contents pages, just small sections to briefly explain what some of the features are about. The language is colloquial but there are no offensive slang words used, this is because the target audience are more into quality and therefore do not want trashy language in the magazine, however they still want it to be colloquial so they feel they can connect with it and it is easy to read. A lot of puns and play on words have been used and this is attractive to the audience because they like to have fun and nobody wants to read a magazine that is serious and boring.
Overall look – The overall appearance of the contents page is busy and full, it indicates that this magazine has a lot of contents. However, I personally think it might not be organised enough for the audience to easily locate what they are looking for. The first page is good and appealing because it has large images of artists and then large text with each image saying the page number and what the feature is about. However, the second page is more of a list and none of the text really stands out so the page numbers and feature titles will not attract the readers attention. I think the contents pages are appropriate for the style of magazine that this is because they feature pictures of well known and loved artists and are not too brightly coloured or in your face.
Text/picture ratio – I would say that these two pages are very picture heavy and the text definitely does not appear as important as the pictures. The text is all quite small and unappealing whereas the pictures are large and bold and fairly colourful. I think this is because the main selling points of this magazine are that it features gossip and information on popular music artists and therefore having lots of pictures of them makes the audience aware that they are going to be reading a lot about them.
Fonts – There is a mixture of serif and sans serif fonts used over these two pages however the headings and titles are all sans serif and the little paragraphs underneath the titles are serif. Also a lot of the headings are in capitals letters and this gives the impression of importance and urgency to read the articles, it also makes them stand out and the audience imagine them being shouted. Sans serif is a more modern and fresh looking font and that is why it has been used for the titles, to give the impression of modernity and up to date information. The fonts are all plain and this shows a level of maturity and quality because if they had used lots of fancy and swirly fonts then it may look tacky and would not at all be appealing to the audience or appropriate for this genre of magazine.
Double page spread
Colour scheme – The colour scheme of this double page spread is very basic, it is mianly black and white will little splashed of red. This is the colour scheme for the whole magazine and is simple so works very well. The article looks classy and sophisticated.
Photography – There are two live but posed photographs from the past which are showing the subject back when he was at his peak. These are effective because they will attract readers and make them reminisce and engage with the article if they can remember him at that time. There is also one large studio shot that is obviously posed and this takes pride of place. It shows Danny Baker pulling a funny face and this shows that he is a funny guy and will attract the readers attention as he is looking directly at the camera and therefore they will feel as though he is looking personally at them and so will be likely to read the article.
Writing style – This article is very long and is set out in four columns on each page. It looks quite daunting to read however it is broken down into question and answer and so it is in small chunks and therefore easier to digest. The language itself is quite sophisticated which makes the audience believe everything that is being said. Much of the article is actually a transcript of an interview, however the language is still sophisticated. There are a few colloquilaisms within this article but that just makes it more entertaining and down to earth. There are also some swear words but this is not seen unusual or offensive by the target audience of this magazine, and it will in fact be appealing to them.
Overall look – This article appears very factual and sophisticated and has no bright colours which almost proves that it has enough quality content that it doesn’t need bold and bright colours. It may look boring to some people but I think it’s aimed at older teenagers and people who are very interested in music and all the people involved in music so it would in fact be very appealing to them.
Text/picture ratio – This double page spread is very text heavy and the emphasis is on what is in the text rather than the pictures. However the main picture of Danny Baker himself is very large and eye catching, so it takes pride of place and does distract away from the text a little bit. The fact that there aren’t many pictures makes the pictures that are there stand out.
Fonts – The fonts used over this article are very plain but this is because the writing is small and there is a lot of it so if they were fancy fonts then it would be very hard to read and the reader wouldn’t bother with it. The questions are in bold and there are a sans serif font whereas the answers are a serif font and this is just because the general rule is that headings are sans serif and body text is serif. It has been proven that sans serif text is easier to read in big paragraphs and this si why it has been used for the main body text of this double page spread. There is not real heading to this article, there is a quote which is in capitals and in serif font and then Danny Baker’s name which is also in capitals but in a sans serif font. The capitals have been used to be eye catching and look loud, as though they are being shouted and this is effective and will draw the reader in.
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