Preliminary Number One

This is my first front cover for a school magazine and to be honest there is plenty of room for improvement. Using text and images, i tried to create a banner to border my main picture and i used red and black for the magazine masthead to blend in with the sixth forms colours and the tie that the student in the picture is wearing.

I placed the picture of the student looking at the masthead which works well in my opinion because it makes the magazine title seem important with the model looking at it.

Double Page Spread Research Five

This double page spread in my opinion works very well with its great layout. The quote written in bold font goes across both pages which supplies the link between both pages. They have used few and simple colours on the page to give the image that the magazine is simple and sophisticated. The magazine have made the page look dull around Lily Allen in a bright red top. This brings the attention to her and this suggests the magzine are proud to have such an established name in their magazine. They also highlight her name in red writing for the same effect.

The shot of Lily Allen is a medium close up to show what she is wearing but still be able to see her facial expressions. Overall i think that this double page spread is very good because the two pages link well and it would definately catch their target markets eye.

Double Page Spread Research Four

This double page spread from 'NME' is very colourful and bold, and it looks very professional. They've highlighted an important quote on the second page to make the text more noticeable. People are more likely to read an enlarged and colourful quote and 'NME' will be hoping that after the reader has read this, they will want to know what the rest of the small text says. It uses blue throughout the page to keep the simplicity and consistency of the page. The main picture represents the band's name (The teenagers), as its a mid-long shot of the band looking laid back in a typical teenagers bedroom. They have used posters on the wall in the background of the picture efficiently, as this is what teenagers have in their bedroom. The double page spread also has one page which is colourful and one which is white and plain, and these pages contrast well together.

Double page spread Research Three

This double page spread caught my attention straight away with all its bright pictures and bold text. It uses an interview feature down the left hand side and it also works well as a border to the main pictures. The main content of this double page spread is pictures so its more likely to attract atention than if it were mainly text. The main let down would be that the crease in the middle of the two pages would go through the head of a person in one onthe pictures. Although it is a very aesthetically pleasing spread with the bold text fonts and bright colours.

Double page spread Research Two

This magazine double page spread from 'NME' magazine is very traditional with one page including text and one with a large picture. They have picked out an important quote and enlarged it in the centre of the second page. They use this because they need something other than small text to grab peoples attention. It also looks aesthetically pleasing and very professional. This is a technique i may use when designing my magazine. They have used a camera shot of several people all spread out which is unconventional, yet interesting. Because the picture is so different to what other magazines have, it will drag people towards the picture because of curiosity.

Double page spread Research One

This magazine double page spread has a central picture of the Black Eyed Peas with the page split coming down through the middle of two people. They have made sure that this is like this so that they don't go through the head of one of the band members. If the page split does go through someones head it makes the magazine look rushed and unprofessional. When i come to the designing of my magazine i will make sure i know where the page split will be before deciding on where a picture will go. They have used a minimal amount of colours in there completed page spread and this makes it look simple and sophisticated. They have used arrows to start the text to give it a brighter and bolder look to the page. The picture used works very well and the lighting in the image is very good as you can see all the facial expressions on the peoples faces which is the most important thing in an image. I will make sure to take pictures for my magazine with the people in it, facing the light to get better views of their faces.

Contents Research Five

This contents page from 'Vibe' magazine is clearly out to grab the attention of men with a stunning picture of Ciara which is bordering the text on the page.

This contents page is very unconventional as you dont usually see an image like this whats on the page. Its also unusual because usually you see the celebritys head centrally and this time her bare legs are the main attention. This may be because the designers of the magazine think that this is the best way to attract the most attention to the page.

The word 'contents' is laid out over three seperate lines to give the impression to the reader that the magazine is different and unique. They also use and old style font on their headings to give the page a touch of class and style.

Contents Research Four

This contents page from 'Q' magazine is rather conventional and modern as they use similar techniques that other magazines use. This makes it conventional because this type of contents page is what we expect it to look like. It has a main picture of a band and it has writing at the bottom and down the left. It has the 'Q' logo at the top to make the reader know what their reading. The designer here is trying to make the reader think the magazine name is important. They use features down the left hand side and at the bottom to border the picture, and they also use a date at the top of the page to show that its a consistent magazine.

Contents Research Three

This is a contents page from 'Vibe' magazine which is considerably different to any other i have seen. This is an unconventional contents page because it has alot of things on there that you dont expect to see. There is a black and white picture which grabs your attention instantly because it is unusual to see black and white pictures in magazines of todays date. It is very simple with just the colours black and white along with a picture of a front cover in the corner. This makes it seem sophisticated and easy on the eye to the reader of the magazine.

The magazine designer has opted to use the word 'contents' at the top of the page on three seperate lines which makes the reader wonder why and make them ask the question. Its unconventional compared to other magazines but it works very well with the style of the contents page. This is a house style of 'Vibe' magazine and they want you to notice this and know that it is from their magzine. This is why they do it in all their magazines.

The headings on the page are in an old style, traditional font which adds style to the page,

Contents Research Two

This magazine contents from 'Clash' is different to all the other contents pages i have seen. This only uses two or three colours which makes it seem simple and sophisticated. The background of the page is a man and the top half of the page is focused on him as there is no writing at the top, only at the bottom. This would instantly grab your attention as it is different to other magazines and its irregular. Other magazines wouldn't use a house style like this one so it makes the pahe unique. This would bring readers in to read on because it looks so unique and different. In my opinion this the layout and colours together work really well and its a well thought up contents page.