Image analysis

Cover page

This cover image is a conventional medium close up shot of one artist on a white background. This allows for the artist to stand out and also, putting the main image over the masthead allows for the image to stand out as well. There is a lot of use of special effects makeup on here, which show his skin flaking away to reveal robotic insides. This shows connotations to the main feature story which talks about how the band 'won't be killed' as he is a robot, and cannot die. The colour schemes are white and red which the main image sticks with as he has red coming out of the edges of his skin. Making this a medium close up shows that he is the most important part of his band, or can even show that he is the whole band on his own. On the right side of the image there is plenty room for other feature stories, but they haven't included any which shows that this one is of top interest. 

This cover image is also a conventional medium close up shot of the artist, however this image has been edited to be in black and white rather than in colour. The black and white colour can show remembrance of this late artist. This allows the text to be a different colour and to stand out against the cover image. They have used a yellow text to allow the colours to really stand out, and they have even changed the colour of the masthead to match the colour scheme opposed to its normal red colour. Similar to the image above, there is a lot of space around the subject of the image where they could have feature stories, yet they only have two, a plug, and a skyline. Even though they have added a skyline, they haven't cut out much of his head as they have tried to put the text above his head and hair. 

The shot used in this cover image is a medium shot. The subject is dressed in black jumpsuit, which reveals a lot of her skin, which can show off her sex appeal. She is in a certain position with her hands over her head, which can also have connotations to her sex appeal and can show how she is now grown up, which can link to the main feature story named 'Miley 2.0'. The costume that she is wearing is a very low v neck body suit which shows off her skin. This costume may appeal to women as they might see the way that she is dressed and how she looks, and might want to look like her. Men might also be attracted to this magazine because of the way she is holding herself, and how much skin she is showing off. The background is a light green, which allows the artist to stand out against it. The main feature story is written across her body in white spaced out font, which stands out against the green background and the black of her costume. The colour scheme is black, white, and green and the other feature stories are in black font which go along with the main image and the colour scheme. 

The shot use in this cover is high angled. They may have done this so that all of the members of the band could fit into the frame. The high angle makes them appear smaller than they are, which could be used to show off the fact that they are a new band. They are all wearing similar costumes: all wearing black and gold shirts, black jeans, and black shoes. This might have been chosen to be worn as they are all a group and the same clothing shows this. Even though this picture was taken at a high angle, all of the subjects in the picture are looking at the camera as if they are addressing the reader themselves. The facial expressions that they are pulling are more laid back, which can portray what type of a band they are to the audience. This will attract people who are in lower social classes as they will be looking to read articles which are a bit more laid back compared to the ones that are made for a higher social class. 

The photo used in this picture is a conventional mid shot. All of the members of the band are visible, yet the female appears larger than the rest of the band. This may have been done to show that she is the main part of the band, so they have made her appear larger by standing closer to the camera to portray this. All of the people in the image are wearing black (maybe to show that they are of the rock genre), including the female, yet her hair makes her stand out, which can also portray the reader that she is a big part of the band. Her hands are up in a fashion that makes it look as if she is directing the other band members, which helps to show that she is the leader of the band. All of the members are staring at the camera, addressing the audience, yet the female is staring very intently at the camera. This can give off the feeling that she is 'leading' you to buy this magazine. The magazine might have even chosen to put the female at the front of the other members (males) as they thought it might catch the readers attention more. 

From these images used in music magazine covers, I am thinking about mostly using a medium close up or a medium shots for the main cover image. Most of the images used in the above covers use these shot types as it is conventional. I will also make sure that the subjects in my images are looking at the camera, so it looks as if they are addressing the reader. Most of the artists that are in the cover images are dressed to fit their genre, so I will take this into consideration when I am producing my images. 

Contents page

This is a contents page from Q magazine. In this contents page, they use four pictures. There is a larger image which is a close up shot of an artist. The fact that this picture is larger shows that this is related to the main feature story, and the close up shot also shows this. The two smaller images below it are most likely related to other feature stories. You can see what page all of them are on by a large red square that includes the page number. There is another image in the left hand corner which related to another article within the magazine, yet as it is in the column on the left, it can be said that it maybe isn't another feature story. 

This is a contents page, again from Q magazine, yet this contents page spans over two pages. This contents page includes a total of 10 images. Some of the pictures aren't completely visible as they are slightly rotated so that the edges of the picture aren't in the page. There is an image on the left page which most likely relates to the main feature story as the image is larger than the others. There is also larger text next to the larger image. 

This contents page is different from the others. This contents page include one image which takes up the whole page. This is good because this can very easily be known by the reader that the main feature story is about that artist, however this is unconventional. As there is only one image on the page, it makes it seem like there isn't much else within this magazine other than the article on the one artist. There is text written on the right side, yet there isn't that much text anyways. The costume used in this image represents the pop genre as she is wearing red and bright colours which stand out. The costume is also related to the prop (mushroom) that she is holding. The short skirt may appeal to the audience as they might be younger, and may want to dress in a similar way to her. 

Double Page Spread

In this double page spread there is one main image which takes over one whole page. The image is a medium shot. Normally these shots don't have parts of their body or hair sticking outside of the frame, but in this photo some of her hair, and her body is cut out. In this photo, they have chosen the subject to be naked, wearing only chain necklaces yet they have chosen her to have her hands over her breasts. This shows that she is being provocative, yet the fact that she is covering herself shows that she is still refined. This may attract a male audience as they might find the way she is dressed sexy, and would want to buy the magazine to see the images. This also attracts a higher social class audience as the images used are in black and white, and there aren't many colours in the picture or the double page spread. We can see this because the artist (Lady Gaga) is a pop artist and is known for her crazy costumes, yet in this one she isn't dressed in such a way. She is in neutral colours, and such so she can appeal to this higher social class audience.

This double page spread is a medium shot image, which spans over the two pages. The costume that is worn in this image portrays the genre of the artist: pop. This can be seen by animal print costume she is wearing, and bright colours of jewellery she is wearing. These bright colours connotate to the genre as the genre is normally up beat, happy, and bright. She is holding her hand up in a way that shows off the ring that she is wearing which states 'icon' which can mean that she might be trying to portray that she is an icon, or a big pop star. The background of the image is pink, which is also bright and happy which can have connotations to the pop genre. The costume that she is wearing also helps her to stand out from the background. 

The image used in this double page spread is a very edited image. They have given this photo the 'bokeh lights' effect, and this covers the left part of her face. This gives the image the ability to portray the emotion of sadness through it. Also, the help of her facial expression and the placement of her hands portray the emotion that she is feeling. The placement of her hands looks as if she is 'clawing for life'. This can show the genre of the artist's music as the image is quite dark, and can show that she is of the emo pop, or indie pop which is the artists real genre. As the image doesn't have many bright colours, this can be said to be for a higher social class audience as there is more to the article than just the picture. This is also supported by the way the double page spread only has one image which is on one page.