Masthead / Typography Analysis
NME also uses the idea of letters to represent other words and make a shorter, more memorable masthead. White capitalized initials are used in an orange/red rectangular box in the corner of the page; the colours work well together because they are so dissimilar, which makes the masthead easier to read.
Q magazine have a very simple masthead with simply a single white letter, with a red square box behind it. The serif font is quite formal as is has no embellishment which other magazines may have, and there is a drop shadow to make it less of a flat image. The idea of using one letter makes it easy to remember, and doesn't take up a large space on the front page.
Vibe magazine has a masthead which changes in colour depending on the image used for the front cover. It is a simple sans serif font, which stretches across the page, rather than being positioned in one corner or the middle. The genre of music is reflected in the masthead because the font has smooth lines, and does not connote any elements of a roughed up, edgy variety of music, such as indie.
Kerrang's masthead is very different from Vibe,Q and NME's due its more thrown together, rough appearance. The font is white and has black lines through it to reflect both the strings of a guitar (an instrument frequently used by the artists in the rock genre), and smashed glass. The idea of smashed glass suits this genre as rock musicians are infamously impulsive, and often known to get into fights. The background of the masthead is black, a colour frequently associated with rock music due to bands wearing a lot of black, and the connotations with this colour mirror ideas raised by rock music.
How is house style established?
Definition:
House style is established by creating a fluent colour scheme, and typography throughout the magazine. This is important as it makes the magazine have a continuous feel, and ensures that each page is aesthetically connected to every other page. Having a house style makes the magazine more memorable, and achieves recognition simply through using a recurring visual theme.
Creating a clear, unified house style is important because it enables the reader to easily identify the magazine simply through a few constantly appearing features. NME use red as a main colour, but in other cases primary block colours, as a fill colour for the boxes around article text and titles. This is to pick up on the original design of the magazine masthead which has white writing and a red box around it. They also use the same font for feature titles throughout, this can be seen in my examples for the words 'repeat' and 'inside'. the typography has a stencil effect and thick black lines in order to create a 'scrapbook' or 'home made' feel, rather than the more formal fonts and layout seen in magazines such as Q or Mixmag.
Images:
As you can see magazines use images which are similar in colours and styles for the main image on the front page and the images used for the double page spreads of the feature. A variety of shots is used within the double page spread, but because of the similar looks, colours, and backgrounds, the reader is able to identify the main feature as the same article as on the front.
These images are all from Q magazine, but are from different issues. despite this, they all have a similar essence of simplicity and creativity, usually involving the colour red somehow to reflect the logo of the magazine.
Design features:
Using recurring design elements helps to unify the magazines style, and ensure that a magazine is easy to identify on every page: even if the articles are contrasting, it is visually easy to place them in the same magazine.
These are some common design features used within a proliferation of magazines, which help not only make it more aesthetically pleasing, but also helps connect the front page, contents and dps together, as there is a recurring theme throughout.
What is page furniture?
Examples:
A drops cap is a very commonly used design element within magazines due to its simplicity, yet ability to attract the eye. A drops cap is the deliberate enlargement and/or embellishment of the first letter of the opening word to a feature, and it is effective because it pulls the readers focus towards the text and encourages them to read.
Varying shapes and boarders around key words or mastheads also grab the attention of readers as it makes more significant words stand out. By using similar shapes or colours throughout the magazine, house style is unified, and the design of the page is easily identifiable to the specific magazine.
Other design elements such as watermarks and decorative pull quotes make a feature more visually pleasing and create a professional look. Too many items of page furniture would over crowd the page and draw attention away from the main body of test or main image, so it is important to research into what similar magazines have done in order to create a balance within my own work.
Design features I hope to include:
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