The first contents page im going to look at is from vibe magazine which is a magazine dedicated to urban music such as rnb. This page contains a features column which is to tell you about the inside of the magazine and what to expect. This is layed out down the right hand side of the page. The contents page also contains a picture of kanye west who has been printed in black and white to fit in with the colour scheme of this magazine. However a bright red rose, being squeezed, by an arm coming from behind him, is the only colour on this page. You could say that it represents the centre of the page as it is directly in the middle and catches the eye when this page is first viewed. The title of this page is 'contents'. It is at the top of the page in big bold letters but more to the right to show that it is not the most important part of this page although it is still eye catching. The text size used on this page ranges from very small to very large. The features columns infomation is quite small so that the titles such as 'features', which is slightly bigger, stand out more on the page.

This next contents page comes from Kerrang magazine which is aimed people who listen to rock music. We can interpret this from the images seen on the contents page to the left. This page contains alot more text and pictures than the first magazine because it is alot crazier than other magazines. The pictures in this magazine represent articles that are talked about and the text does the same but is not shown in picture form. The layout of this page is quite basic text is around the edge of the page and images are in the middle. Some images are bigger than others to show how important each of the images are. The colour scheme of this contents page is mostly black, yellow and white due to those being colours that I think represent rock the most. The text on this page is bold so it is easy to read and is eye catching. The headings on this page are bigger than the other text on this page because the headings are more important than the text as they catch the readers eye  better than a paragraph of words.

The final contents page I am going to look at is from NME (New Musical Express) magazine which looks more towards the punk and indie side of rock. In this magazine there is more text than images meaning that this magazine has alot to say and talk about. The big picture, that is set in the centre of the page, represents the main article of this issue as it is the main eye catcher. The layout is very simple one main image in the centre and lots of text around the edge of the page mostly set in columns. There are only three colours used on this page black, white and red. Bold and contrasting text is used in this magazine to make the text appeal to the readers and so they can easily find what they are looking for. The title of this page goes directly across the top of the page saying 'NME' to advertise the magazine and 'This Week' so the reader knows where to look if they want to find something in the magazine.

Ross Horner         How do magazine front covers use denotation and connotation to attract their intended audience?

For this assignment I have chosen to use the front cover of the Empire magazine because I think that it is an interesting magazine that I would like to read in the future.

The cover has many different lines on it, which help to advertise what the magazine contains. Lines such as ‘Bale: the first interview’ and ‘Onset for mankind’s new judgement day’ help to do this. The line that sells the magazine its self is ‘The worlds biggest movie magazine’.

The image on the front cover is Christian Bale who plays John Conner (the main character) in the film Terminator Salvation. Also in this image is a large robot that looks very dangerous and evil. Bale looks like he is a serious man who has seen a lot of action through out his life. The robot being on the front cover seems to me that it is what Bale must fight during this movie as the robot has been assigned to kill him. I can tell this from the robot grabbing Bale’s face in the image.

The text size of the magazine cover varies from both large and small. Words such as Empire are large because the editors would like to publish their magazine however phrases such as ‘two massive posters are smaller as they are slightly less important.

I believe that the font used by the magazine is Arial black due to the font being bold and straightforward. Choosing this font makes the writing clear so it is easier for the reader.

The main title of the page is large and bold at the top of the page because it gives the magazine a strong title for people to recognize. The sub heading (Terminator salvation) is in the bottom right hand corner as if it is a caption to the main image which covers most of the magazine. Going across the bottom of the page is a bar with three pictures of previous films and a small title saying ‘huge 25-year celebration!’

My questionnaire

Questionnaire                                                                                       

In this questionnaire you must Circle the one that applies to you.

      1.What is your gender?

Male                           Female

2. What age are you?

10 - 15               26 - 30

16 - 20               31 - 35

21 - 25               36 +

3. What music magazine do you prefer?

Kerrang              NME                     If other please list:

Q                        Mojo                                                   …………………………

Vibe                   Other

4.What genre of music do you prefer?

Indie                   Classical               If other please list:

Hip Hop              Jazz                                                 …………………………

RnB                    Other

5. What do you do during the week?

School/College       Work

University                Nothing

6. What is your favourite hobby?

Video Games                  Listening to music       Other

Reading                          Working                  If other please list:

Watching Television       Going out                     …………………………

    

      7. What is your favourite website?

Youtube              BBC iplayer                 If other please list:

Facebook            Sports website                            …………………………

Twitter                Other

Do you wish to remain anonymous: Yes/No

If no please fill in any of the spaces below

Name:………………………

Address :…………………………………………………………………………….

Phone number:………………….

Mobile number:………………..

E-mail address:………………..

Signature:…………………                          Date: …………………

My three magazine front covers