A college magazine cover deconstruction

1. Content codes
Colours, lighting and fonts
The colours used on this magazine are yellow black and white using a college motif, black
connotes a sleek and expensive look used with the yellow also gives it a professional look to
the magazine giving the magazine an over all smart lifestyle design. White is a colour that
connotes pureness also adding a fresh look to the magazine, this magazine designed like a
lifestyle magazine uses these colours to appeal to the younger college audience.
The sans serif fonts used on the cover connote a casual fun design still appealing to the
young college student audience but keeping its professional lifestyle design
The cover also uses pink this is the only other colour on the cover, its used to draw in the
audiences attention
Cover image
The cover image is of a college student, the position of the student suggests a cool and fun
pose to connote that college is a fun environment. The clothes used are casual styled
clothes this is to connote the style of college, a fun place where you can be yourself. The
cover image is in the centre of the magazine because he is the main focus of the magazine
not using any other image
On the cover because he is the image to represent the magazine.
The overall design of the magazine follows the layout of another lifestyle magazine made
for a older audience however this magazine uses things like colour and the cover image to
appeal to a younger audience.

2. Technical codes
The shot used for this cover image is a medium shot, this is because the main focus of the
cover image is the clothing and the pose of the subject.
The camera angle is direct level camera angle. This type of camera angle is very
conventional for this genre of magazines I.e. lifestyle.
The lighting of the magazine is high key this is because it gives the magazine a bright
aspirational and youthful look appealing to an audience of young aspiring students
The fonts are all sans serif to connote a fun youthful look, the yellow and white fonts are
used to break up each different subject. The bold sections of text highlight specific
important subjects within the magazine to draw the reader in this is commonly used on
cover lines because this is the larges text on the cover other than the masthead and is on
of the first things the consumer’s eye will be drawn too.

3. Language codes
The puff on the image is in the shape of a paint splat, the puff also contains the word splat
this is onomatopoeia used on the cover to connote the sound of the splat on the
magazine this is done because it grabs the audiences attention.
The colour of the word bright is yellow, yellow is a bright colour that connotes excitement
and vibrancy when used with the word bright it connotes the emotions behind the word
and the colour. THANK GOD IT’S FRIDAYS is also in yellow to again connote excitement
and vibrancy. The phrase also represents and exciting activity linking Fridays with fun
activity's.
The use of the phrase WHY WE LOVE BLACKBERRYS is used as product placement and is
used to target an audience who uses that product. Appealing to a wealthy target audience
this all again links to the aspirational students is trying to target.