The first front cover analysis out of three

1. Target Audience and genre
The ta rget audience of this magazine is of the
older generation around the ages of 25 and
older. This is obvious by the typeface of the
mas thead as it is a serif sans which makes the
audience feel as if the magazine has more
mature and sophisticated articles that they
may enjoy. The genre of this magazine is music
and can vary in what type of music is current.
In thi s edition, rock music is the main genre of
mus ic shown. This is obvious by the guitar and
the black and white edit in the main image.
Main Image
The main image is of Mick Jagger to draw the
attention of potential readers. He takes over
the whole of the primary optical area and
s trong fallow area. Mick Jagger is also known
by a younger audience which may attract
them to buy the magazine.
Model credit
The model cre dit is placed behind Jagger’s
head and takes over the strong fallow area as
wel l to emphasise the spotlight being on
Jagger and The Rolling Stones.
Lead Article
The lead article is in a large font with Mick
Jagger written in black wri ting. This is to catch
the attention of the older readers. The lead
articl e is also the biggest coverline there as to
express the exclusiveness of the article.
Masthead
The Mas thead is in the primary optical area which means
i t wi ll be the first thing to be seen by the audience. It
s tands out as i t is the boldest colour there. The font used
suggests a degree of formality as it appeals to the target
audience which is quite a formal audience.
The Gutenberg Design Principle
The main image and model credit takes up all most of the
primary optical area and s trong fallow area. This would
only be allowed for ultimately famous bands such as The
Rol ling Stones. In the weak fallow area there is a small
piece of information with less known artists related to
what information i s said in the main article. Then in the
terminal optical area, there are snippets of information to
leave the reader want to read the magazine. The barcode
i s in the weak fallow area as it holds the price and the
cover i s to draw the readers in so the price may not do
that.
Colours/Typefaces/House style
The only colour that is always present on the front cover
of Q i s the red masthead in the primary optical area. The
colours can then change. However the typeface always
s tays the same throughout the issues of the magazine.
The house s tyle is also the same on different issues of
the magazine. The only time this is broken is for
subscription only magazines.
Coverlines
The coverlines are placed in the axis of orientation as the Rolling Stones
can get away with this type of advertisement because of how popular they
are. The coverlines all follow the same house s tyle excluding the small box
in the terminal area which follows a different house s tyle.
Banners/Flashes/badges
A badge is used under the lead article to give extra
information on the article. There are many different
badges which are mainly the cover lines. The Badges are
mainly used for the mostly known singers such as Mick
Jagger and Keith Richards.
Front Cover Analysis