codes and conventions of a magazine front cover

2. MAST HEAD
The masthead is the title of the magazine and on this magazine its
Rolling Stone and runs from the left of the magazine to the right of
the magazine. The masthead is also usually placed on the top of the
page and is often bright and colourful which is useful when
connoting the magazine genre. The masthead is also very unique as
it is was defines it as its own original magazine as there's nothing
alike.

3. CENTRAL IMAGE
The central image of the
magazine is the main
image used on the front
cover and is used to attract
the audience to the
magazine. The central
image is also the image of
the person who is in the
main interview for that
issue. The central image
also often fills the page and
direct address is used to
further grab audience
attention.

4. MISE EN SCENE
Mise en scene is the use of
props and costumes. There
isn't must used in this
magazine article however the
colours chosen work well with
the black top that Amy is
wearing. Mise en scene is
used to signify the genre of the
magazine article and is also
useful in setting the tone of the
article.

5. BUZZWORDS
This edition of Rolling
Stone doesn't actually
contain any buzzwords,
however they're usually
used to entice the reader
and make them want to buy
the magazine as the words
jump out at them when they
look at the front cover.
Examples of buzzwords are
words such as Free, Plus
and Win. They are also
often bright and colourful to
further grab the audience
attention.

6. COVER LINES
The cover line is the piece of text which is the second biggest text after
the masthead. On this magazine the cover line is ‘Amy Winehouse’
because that is the main article in this edition. The cover line is usually
short and catchy to bring the readers attention to the front cover and
make them intrigued in finding out more about what the article will
contain. The cover line is also useful in just bringing enough information
about the magazine without having to write a huge boring paragraph. The
cover line also frames the image of the person who the interview is about
and is often very colourful and bold.

7. SUBHEADING
The subheading usually appears above the
main headline. The subheading grabs the
readers attention and is bold and colourful.
The subheading allows the reader to learn
more about what will be in the article and
makes their interest in the magazine grow. The
subheading in this magazine is red and really
stands out as a contrast of colours with the
main headline.

8. BARCODE
Although it is hard to see the barcode on this magazine,
the barcode allows the audience to see the price of the
magazine, the date it was put on shelves and also the
issue number for the magazine.

9. TYPOGRAPHY
Typography in a magazine
is very important for a
magazine front cover. The
way the words are
presented allows the
reader to understand the
genre of the magazine and
they usually have around
4-6 different styles. The
writing is also very
colourful and bold to grab
the audiences attention
when they are walking past
the shelf.

10. COLOUR SCHEME AND
GRAPHIC FEATURES
As previously mentioned the
colour scheme is very
important as humans are
naturally attracted to colour
over and object that is dull. If
the whole front cover was in
black and white then the
viewer would not stop to take
notice of the magazine.
However like this magazine, it
is very colourful and all the
colours work well together.
Graphic features also links in
with attracting the audience as
shapes used will help with this.