Product Analysis: Q Magazine

                                                                Cover:

Undoubtedly what stands out most about the Q cover is the colour scheme: almost exclusively red, white and black, it is bold, eye catching and makes this one of the most recognisable music magazines on the market. The plain white background means that the images stand out, particularly as each of the artists is wearing black to ensure high contrast. The image itself is positioned slightly off centre, but features all three artists in a full body shot and looking directly into the camera so that the photograph has an almost menacing feeling to it and causing the reader to be in awe of these people. The text on the cover is written entirely in capital letters, almost as though the reader is being shouted at, and the very crowded page gives the impression that the magazine is full and therefore worth the customer’s money. Emphasising this is the box in the right hand corner which, like NME, features a “+” sign rather than the word “plus” for individuality and to appear modern. No information is given in this box apart from very high-profile artists’ names, having the effect of almost teasing the reader so they are forced to buy the magazine and look inside. Similarly, quotes from the three “headline” acts are given underneath their names, to intrigue the reader and catch their attention. Key facts that the creators want to get across to the reader are circled, for example “42 Pages of Reviews!” and “Exciting People” – this use of shape adds variety to the page, along with linking to the distinctive circular of the title of the magazine itself: Q.

Contents Page:

Unlike the other magazines I have analysed, the contents page in Q magazine is spread across two pages, allowing more room for both images and text to be in equal measures. For my final product I will produce just one page for the contents, however it is easy to see this magazine’s motivation for doubling up: It has the ability to be both image and text-dominated due to the extra space, with a blocky format ensuring a simple but effective layout. The images used in the bottom left are screenshots of the articles themselves, so that the reader knows what to look for, while the large-print page numbers also ensure it is easy to navigate and understand the order of the magazine. The dividers between sections of text also contribute to this. Although very organized, there is still a variation in size both in the images themselves and the page numbers, and this prevents the contents page from being dull and uninteresting to look at; there is a big variety. The colour scheme is once again red, white and black as it is on the cover, and this is a running theme throughout the magazine which links the different sections and adds professionalism. The text itself is laid out in columns as is the convention, and below the article headings there is a small taster of what each contains, but gives little enough away that the reader is still desperate to read on, for example: “Brandon Flowers – Pasta and beard chat with the freed Killer.” This indicates that there is an interview, but the small amount of content given is random and intriguing to ensure the customer’s maintained attention.

                                                                                    Double Page Spread:

One of the most common conventions of double page spreads, I have noticed, is one full page being taken up by an image and the other being text-dominated, and this is perfectly adhered to in this case. Once again, the red, white and black colour scheme applies, so that immediately the reader could identify this as a Q feature – the red is very eye-catching when against the white background which is the magazine’s in-house style. The first thing that catches the eye, in fact, is the large red capital “A” that spans an entire text, and draws attention to the article indicating that above all else, this is what we should be concerned with. The simple layout here is very effective, with the headline relatively small but positioned centrally and seeming to epitomise the down-to-earth character we are reading about. The text is laid out simply in columns; however it is still kept bright with the oversized drop-capital. The image in contrast, uses quite muted colours, but still manages to be effective in the cleverness of the shot. The figure of Brandon Flowers is positioned centrally, and is looking straight down the camera in a very relaxed pose as if to indicate that the interview is as frank and honest as he can be and that the reader will get an impression of the real him. The background is slightly out-of-focus and seems quite desolate and run-down, further adding to his vulnerability while indicating that he alone is what we should be focused on. The article itself describes Flowers’ hometown of Las Vegas and his experiences there, depicting it as a bleak and somewhat desolate place – and once the article has been read, the image seems to take on a whole new meaning, evoking sympathy within the reader and giving the artist a likeable, vulnerable edge.