Research into contents pages and double page spread

I have conducted some research into the types of contents pages music magazines have. Well known and successful magazines such as 'Q' and 'MOJO' and i have noticed that these magazines all follow the same house-style and follow convention. A common theme among these music magazines is that they all feature the standard elements of a magazine. These include a title, use of images, sub-headings, advertisements and page numbers. I will ensure that my contents page features all these key elements and has given me some ideas about the type of contents page and layout that i want my contents page to have. The use of columns is a very good layout to have when listed the contents of the magazine and with the use of guide lines i will ensure my contents page also follows this convention. There is also a distinctive colour scheme, the contents page in the bottom right hand corner shows the title 'Contents' in bold red lettering, and throughout the page, the colour red is shown alternately in contrast with the white lettering, showing a common theme. This theme of red and white colours is maintained across the page and also uses the same fonts, showing consistency, this is something i will aim to do in my contents page. The MOJO contents page uses a very simple and proffessional colour scheme and layout, which can be percieved as reflective of the genre of music it portrays and represents that type of audience. This is something to consider for my music magazine, and it represents my genre of modern pop and the culture it portrays. The most significant features that are clearly identified is the Contents title, which is most likely always located at the top of the page, followed by the way in which the contents of the magazine are listed, although the use of columns is conventional, perhaps a more effective display could be the use of blocks or scattered about, as it is something different.

Common Features:
Title
Headings
Sub-headings
Main images/lots of little images
Column Structure
Page numbers
House-Style
Colours, Fonts and Captions
Advertisements/Consumer interactions

Double page spread content

Final Magazine

Third draft

Second draft

Front cover- First Draft

Leading & Kerning using fireworks.

Leading is a piece of terminology often used in media. It is the amount of space between letters. It is important because different distances between letters can indiate different meanings to the text, and can make a piece of text or a title more visually appealing.

Kerning is the process of adjusting the amount of space between letters to create different effects and to make the text stand out more. Kerning allows you to increases or decrease the distance between letters, in order to make the work fit all on one line, or to seperate the piece of text or title to cover more background space. It is important to use this took when creating a music magazine, as the emphasise on the masthead, in comparison to anchourge text is vital in visuallt attracting an audience to partucular parts of the magazine.