Analysis Of Magazine Front Cover 1

 

Image denotation/connotation:

From this hip hop magazine cover you can straight away visualize the title of the magazine, the logo, the headlines of the magazine, a barcode and also a well known music artist “Drake” dressed in a black hat and shirt with a silver chain. The facial expressions of the music artist is fairly plain but saying this it also symbolizes the artist as being a relaxed and not acting trying hard to act powerful.  On the t-shirt of the hip hop artist it says “unstoppable”, this symbolizes that the music artist will be a successful artist and he would be the one who no one can come close to in terms of his songs.

 

Target audience:

The target audience is addressed by the effects used in the magazine cover. Judging from the magazine cover the target audience would be for those who follow the hip hop world and enjoy the songs of “Drake” who is a male Hip Hop artist in his mid 20`s.This is shown by the context used in the magazine by the media such as “unstoppable” this shows that the moral of the magazine would be to talk about the story of “Drake”. Through the use of the media in this magazine the target audience would also be based upon the headings of the magazine, as it says “exclusive Chris Brown Interview” and “fashion forward” this would be good for the target audience as it would be good for those who like to be up to date with the hip hop world and also those who like to keep up with fashion.

Colours:

The predominant colours that have been used in this magazine cover are white, black and yellow. This attracts target audience as these colours are strong and dominant in the way in which they are used, as the background colour is black with white and yellow writing on tip. This communicates a strong message as black symbolizes something powerful and scary, with yellow and white used on top makes the magazine stand out and look eye catching.

Mast Head:

The mast head of this magazine cover is “VIBE” which is written across the top centre of the magazine. “VIBE” is written in a white typeface and stands out due to the fact that the background colour is black. The master head is covered through the middle with the hat of the hip hop artist, this shows that “VIBE” is a strong magazine company that is well known and therefore can cover the master head. The “V” it has “new” written on the white “V” in yellow, this stands out and makes the magazine look more attractive.

Main cover line:

The main cover line is located on the right hand side of the hip hop artist. The main cover line is written in white and yellow which makes the main cover line stand out and look more attractive and appealing.  The reader knows the picture is associated with the cover line as the magazine picture is the most important factor on the magazine.  The main cover line is written in a larger font in comparison to other headings on the magazine (apart from the logo).

Skyline:

At the top of the magazine there has been the use of a skyline. In the skyline it shows all the music artists that would be involved in this magazine. The skyline has been used effectively in this magazine as it follows a pattern of white and then yellow. This is effective as it makes the magazine stand out and make the skyline more visible.

Use of symbols:

On this magazine cover, there is a logo on the bottom right hand side of the cover which has immediate effect. “Resurrection The Legacy Continues” if a highly effective line as it shows direct impact on the magazine. This may mean that the music would never end and the legacy will go on and it will have a rebirth stronger and better.

Costume:

The costume of the hip hop artist “Drake” is highly effective, as he is presented in this magazine as a bit of a gangster and intriguing character. The elements of the picture that make the hip hop artist look like a gangster is with the use of the hat as it has a direct impact on the image and also with the use of the facial hair, this represents “Drake” as a gangster. 

Lighting:

The lighting is used intelligently as the lighting is based on the hip hop artist on the magazine cover. The lighting is used well as the background and the hip hop artist used on the magazine connect well with each other as the background is black and he is wearing black, this stands out and makes the magazine cover look more attractive and appealing.

Conventions:

The convention on this magazine cover is the barcode which is placed on the bottom left hand side of the magazine cover. On top of the barcode is the website of the magazine company which is split into two rows.  This is a technique which is not seen often, but nonetheless it makes the magazine look more intriguing and effective.

Camera angle:

The camera angle used is a medium shot. Medium shots are good to use for covers like this one as it shows the facial expression of the character on the front cover as well as the body language.

Magazine layout:

This magazine cover is a Z conventional layout shape. This is shown in the way that it begins from the Mathead of the Hip Hop Magazine, and then goes down the image used, which then pushes out to the right with the use of “UNSTOPPABLE”.