Contents Page Analysis

This is a contents page from an old Kerrang! Issue.

This contents page uses the 'Blocky' style for the contents page, which means it uses several images in a certain style. In this case, most of the images have been placed into a box that takes up most of the space of the page. There is no set colour scheme for all of the images, but they compliment each other well. The images are all linked to certain articles, giving the reader a look at the pictures of the article and see if it interests them.

The fonts are a lot more simplier compared to any of the front covers. They use one main font for the actual names of the articles, but make them look different by using bold for the titles of each sub-sections. The contents page uses the same font as the quote underneath it. These are also bigger than other fonts. The serif fonts are bigger than the sans serif to make them stand out more. Only 3 colours of texts are used, two of which are very commonly found on the page, and the very little use of the white colour text is found in the bottom right hand corner of the page. The usually codes and conventions found ona contents page that can be found on this page is the use of a letter from the editor, complete with a small picture of the front cover, the date of issue and captions.

The layout is the 'Blocky' style, which means it uses bold colours to highlight important parts of the page. The text is mainly around the outside of the box of images. But there is no particuar set place for where the text is found on the page. There is only one main column on the right band side, broken up my sub-sections of where each article belongs. No photoshop effects are very obviously used on the contents, but they would have arranged them using the hand tool.

I think this is a good contents page, but I wouldn't personally use this. This is because There isn't music description and the pictures are too big for my liking. It fits the target audience of people who are interested in certain articles which have been photographed.

  This is a Rock Sound contents page.

The image used is a full A4 page sized close up of one of the main feature articles. This controls the set up of the text on the page also. The colour scheme uses a plain background with the model in opposite colours, making him stand out against the background.

There is little font variation used on this page. Different text effects and colours give the page more variety and can help separate different aspects from each other. This technique is mainly used in the column containing all the main features. Each page number is in a different colour and the title of the article is in a bolder, bigger font compared to the description below it. The quote found in the bottom left hand corner is in a different font to show it isn't the same as the other block of text. This makes it stand out on it's own. Only using 2 colours gives the contents page unity, matching the tie the model is wearing. The main features are explained on the right hand side of the page, separated from other text on the page by the models body and arm. Having a description of the articles aren't a typical code or convention found with an image-dominated contents page.

The layout is controlled by the image in the middle. The way he is positioned constructs the layout of where the text is found on this page. The title found in the top right hand corner is separated from the main features by his arm acting like a barrier. The long column explaining each article is broken up by the title of each different article with different font style and different colour page number. The most noticeable Photoshop aspect used is using layers to have things layered on top of each other. This would be done by ordering the different layers.

My opinion of this is it is eye-catching, but I feel if I did a image-dominated contents, my magazine would be filled with too many big images, and would not show any other images from different articles. It is clear this is targeted for people who are fans of this particular artist. I would describe this as an image-dominated contents with a few codes and conventions altered.

This is a Kerrang! Contents page using their newest common style of contents page.

Nine images are used on this page, each different sizes and laid out according to the article. Bring Me The Horizon is the biggest image on the page, because it is one of the cover stories found on the front page. Three of the images found at the top half of the page each have captions stating which band it is and the page you would find them on. The image of the editor is used above her column to show what she looks like. A logo for the band 30 Seconds To Mars is used next to the article title. The main album review gets a picture next to it to show what the artwork looks like. The images in the bottom right hand corner overlap each other. Gustav Wood is with the article Famous Last Words. The image overlapping him is previous issues of Kerrang! with a push to subscribe to them.

The texts only use two different text fonts, but they use it in a way that makes particular pieces stand out from others. The articles are broken up into sections, shown by a sans-serif font in yellow with a black background just around the font. This makes each title stand out more and matches the words 'Contents' at the top of the page in the left hand side. Each article title is in bold, with a red page number, standing out above the descriptions found on some of the articles. To make some of the text look different, four different colours are used to create this effect. It also depended on the background to which colours are used.

The layout is made in a 'Blocky' style, which means it contains a lot more text and is set in a more clear organised way. Its used to create more of a 'Masculine' style contents. The text is set out in organised columns on the bottom half of the page. One column is used for the letter from the editor, the other four have all the article titles.

I like this design because you get the chance to explain different articles and use a variety of pictures. It also fits in more with the sub-genre of rock I am going for. It is clear this is for people who have taken an interest in the front cover stories.

  This is a Rock Sound contents page.

On this page, six different images are used, each labelled with a band name and page number to match the article. Each picture has a slight chunk taken out of it, surrounded by a white border to highlight it. This fits the theme of the magazine as the chunk is shaped as part of a star that you can find in the bottom left part of the page. Each picture overlaps another, similar to other effects found in magazines. Each picture uses different colours, not really having similarities.

This contents page follows the codes and conventions of using three different font colours and only two different font types. Making the subsections bold and in a different colour with a red box behind it makes it stand out and become more eye-catching for people who are simply intending on skimming to the article they want to read. It is more user friendly with the different colours because it makes the important things stand out.

This layout is known as a 'Blocky' layout. The page is broken up into two colours. The red side dominates the page more, making the images stand out more. Each side has a similar style, with the main background colour and complimented with the colour found on the other side of the page. It has an effective one long column on the left hand side of the page, broken up by the section titles. It is well organised and has a 'masculine' appeal to it. The whole page itself is very consistant, which isn't very common with rock magazines, as they tend to have a messy layout.

My opinion of this is it is very well organised but it doesn't contain the messy layout appeal the other contents had. This also doesn't contain the description of articles that is usually associated with the 'Blocky' layout. It is clear this is for more of the serious music reader, which stereotypically is an older generation. However, I am aiming for the younger generation. The photoshop effects are clear to see on the images. They used it to cut part of the picture off, and placed a border around. They also used the layers correctly to overlap the photos carefully on top of each other.

  This is a Kerrang! Contents page using one of their older layouts.

Kerrang! Use a organised way of displaying their images. They have nine images taking up most of the room on the page, each in a square shape, containing the name of the band/person and a description of the article they are in. Apart from the biggest one, they are all of the same size and are mostly posed (with the exception of 3, one being an album cover). Each image uses a very distint colour as the background, highlighting their outfits and the models themselves. Previous magazine front covers are found in the bottom right hand corner, a common convention found on most Kerrang! Contents pages.

The text used is only found in three different colours, one of which is only used in the advertisement on the bottom of the page. To make some of the text stand out more than before, the editor has used a box of colour around the sections and the main title, acting as a separate background colour to the rest of the page. Even though the same colour text is used for the article titles, applying that effect makes it stand out more. Also, using bold is effective for the page numbers, so you can see the numbers clearly. The fonts on this page are all sans-serif. The text is primarily found on the right side of the page, with the letter to the editor taking up the top of the page.

The layout is set in a 'Blocky' style. This is a very commonly used style of contents page for rock magazines. The images have been carefully set up so they are eye-catching and link into the text well. The column of texts are broken up my using titles of the section they belong in, making it easier to find a certain article you may be looking for. No major photoshop effects are obvious, apart from the use of layers and free transform tool.

My opinion of this is I like the use of the 'Blocky' style, but I feel the images are too small for my liking. If I were to change this, I would have experimented more with how the images are placed on the page and make it look a little different.