[1] The document analyzes the design elements of the magazine cover of Rollingstone, including the masthead title layout, grayscale model image, use of font styles and sizing in the coverlines, and placement of other text elements. [2] Key aspects noted are that the masthead title is obscured by the model, the model image stands out against the grayscale background, and coverlines are differentiated in size and boldness to denote importance and guide the reader. [3] The analysis also comments on the eye flow across elements, color scheme, and differences from another magazine cover examined.

1. Magazine Analysis

2. Masthead Kicker Explanatory text Cover line Model Credit The barcode is on the magazine Button Main cover line Date line Price line Website Main image

3. Masthead- This magazine is called ‘Rollingstone’ however again the title is missing half the words. Also by looking at most Rollingstone magazine the masthead seems to be covered by a model. This feature is found in most magazines and makes the model stand out more. In most magazines the title is covered by a model however the outline of the letters covered are shown a little so when reading the title you know what it says. But in this magazine you would not know what the magazine title is unless you know of it. The font of it is a serif font as it has ligatures, it also is a decorative font because of the style. These fonts are used for large headlines to stand out and to add emphasis on the heading to make it look special. I find the masthead attractive and the way the title follows the colour scheme of the cover. Image- The image stands out the most as the magazine has a greyscale effect and the model has colour on her making her stand out. Also her hair is blown making the cover not so blank as her hair covers most of the blank background. The clothing is black making it match with the colour scheme used. The camera shot used for this is a mid shot which is levelled. This shot works as it is of one person and not many and it is aimed to make the image look like it is in front of everything.

4. Coverline- The coverline clearly shows which one is the kicker and explanatory text as the kicker is given a bolder look and the size is bigger than the explanatory line. The coverline on the left shows us that this magazine has a variety of artist form different genres. The explanatory text is shown in italics which I think works really well as if wasn’t it would look dull and boring. The main coverline is shown in the colour white and is much larger than the rest. We see the importance of the white as it is only used on the masthead and the main coverline. The coverline uses a serif font to make it easier to read. Model credit- The model credit is presented much larger than the rest of the text in the sentence making it clear that Shakira is the model credit. The resizing in the coverline works really well and stands out more. Button- this is used in the magazine to advertise what is inside of the magazine. However the advertisement is not related to music which confuses the audience. I like the button effect and it would be good if it was linked to a music advertisement. The effect that it overlaps the title works well as you can still notice what the letters of the titles are as you can see the outline which they should have done for the rest of the title to make it clear.

5. Mode of address- The language of this magazine is all indirect language as it doesn’t directly speak to the audience The Register- The language of this magazine is formal as there are no slang at all and is inclusive as it appeals to everyone. This is because there are a lot of genres in the magazine by looking at the coverline such as ‘Vampire Rock’ and ‘Lady Gaga’. This magazine is breaking conventions by not having a selling line maybe because there is already a lot of text and more will make it over the top. The colour scheme is black white and grey which works really well and doesn’t look out of place and also by using these colours the model stands out more which I believe they were trying to do as there is a lot of text. I particularly liked the way they sectioned the kickers and explanatory texts apart form the others as it makes it clearer which explanatory text is for which kicker.

6. Eye Flow- The eye flows from the masthead to the coverline and to the model and back down to the main coverline. The reason why I chose this magazine is as it has a lot of differences to XXL which I have analysed as well. The image, text and layout are both completely different but are both really good. I could have a clear view on what two different magazines are like and put there ideas together.