rolling stone front cover

Typography

The font size of the mast head is very large and takes up the complete width of the magazine, making it the first thing you will see. It has a very bold style and has a certain ‘whip’ to it, relating the style to the word, ‘Rolling’. At the bottom of the front cover are all the cover lines. Each cover line has a different font style. This creates a collage of words effect which catches the eye of the audience and draws them to read it.

Layout

The layout has been arranged so that the central image isn’t covered by any components. This  allows the central image to have more of an impact towards the audience and show them that this is the main attraction of the magazine. This point is alliterated by the fact that there is no other images to attract the audience.  The cover lines haven’t been placed in an mundane place because of the focus on the central image. This unusualness will also fascinate the audience.

Mise en Scene

The clothing worn in the central image is very dark which connotes to the audience a signification of mysteriousness and mischief. This may relate to their personality. This point is backed up by the sunglasses hiding the eyes of the man on the left. Another type of mise en scene used in the central image is the lighting. The lighting has been adapted so that the background of the image is completely black, causing the two men to be enhanced by the bright light giving contrast on their faces.

Colour

The purple mast head vividly stands out amongst the dark background, allowing it to be clearly seen by the audience. The cover lines  have a variety of colours like they have a variety of font styles. Overall there isn’t a clear repetitive colour pattern on the magazine, like you would see on most other music magazines.

Language

The way the front cover has addressed the audience is in a straight to the point way. This point is back by the fact that throughout the cover lines there isn’t any phrases more than four words. This technique is done to make the audience want to know more about the cover line. The overall language of the magazine is very informal, just like it usually is in most music magazines. So it follows the language type you would expect from a stereotypical music magazine.

Camerawork

The type of shot used in the central image is a close up; showing the men from the shoulders up. They have probably chosen this  type of  shot to get a clear picture of the expression shown on the two men's face. The close-up shot works well with the lighting because it conveys a higher level of contrast when they are used together.

Mode of Address

The way the front cover has addressed the audience is in a straight to the point way. This point is back by the fact that throughout the cover lines there isn’t any phrases more than four words. This technique is done to make the audience want to know more about the cover line. The tone of the front cover changes with each cover line depending of the font style used. The different font styles make you read the cover line in a different tone or manner.

Summary

The overall content and design on this front cover has met its objective in trying to gain the attention of the audience. The objective has mainly been met by the unusually placed cover lines and the different font styles which have been used to entice the audience to read into the magazine.