Analysis of Music Magazines

I have chosen to analyse the front cover, contents page and double page spread of various issues of Q magazine.

Analysis of Front Covers

- The masthead for Q magazine is simple, but striking and is always positioned at the top, left hand side of the page in the left third. The colours are always red and white (red background with white 'Q'). This is different from most other music magazines, enabling it to stand out amongst others whilst on the rack in the shop.

- Each cover has a different style of shot, depending on the artist or band. In the issue featuring Lady Gaga on the front cover, a medium long shot has been used, whereas the issue featuring Florence uses a close up shot.

- Each shot has been chosen to fit with the style of the artist. For example, in the shot of Lady Gaga, the outfit is the factor that is going to catch peoples eye. Therefore a medium long shot has been used as it allows the outfit to be shown off to it's full potential. The shot of Florence has been chosen as her make-up is the main attraction. A close up allows the image to focus upon this and her face, rather than her body or what she is wearing.

- The main colour scheme for the covers of Q tends to be red, white and black, in according with the masthead.

- On every issue there is a barcode with the price, date (month and year) and the Q website address: www.qthemusic.com.

- The main cover line tends to be white, however will sometimes be either black or red. It is always large and links to the main cover image.

- The coverlines are placed down the left third of the page with some also on the right side. These are also either red, white or black.

Analysis of Double Page Spreads

- Q magazine carries on the colour scheme of red, white and black throughout, as is shown in both of these double page spreads.

- It often fills one page of the double spread with an image, with the other page featuring the article linking to the image.

- The article is usually presented in columns in a simple font, allowing it to be easily read by all readers.

- It tends to have the name of the artist subtly on the page, using the image to grab people's attention.

- Drop quotes are sometimes included, although Q magazine does not use them in every article.

Analysis of Contents Pages

- Q magazine spreads it's contents across two pages. This may be over a double page spread, or a page back-to-back.

- The design and layout of the contents are easy to follow, with two sections; features and regulars.

- The titles of the articles are in capital letters, allowing them to stand out to the reader, with the information underneath in lower case.

- The page numbers are white, surrounded by a white box. The page numbers that link to the photographs on the contents page are larger than the ones listed in the features and regulars columns.

- There are approximately 4/5 images on each page, all of which relate to the content of the issue of magazine.

- As with the front cover and the double page spread, the contents page sticks to the colour scheme; red, white and black.