Conventions & LIIAR Analysis: Front Page, Contents and Double Page Spread

This is an example of a front cover from Billboard magazine. I think that this cover is quite different to other music magazines I have looked at. The main image is a close-up and is of Beyoncé, a pop star, who is the feature of the issue. The thing that I find to be quite different is that the cover doesn't have much on it, there are no cover or sell lines. It is very focused on one story which links to the cover image. Having the main image be of a famous pop star would attract her fans as they would be interested in seeing what is being said about her in the magazine.
However the magazine does include some conventions such as a bar code which allows the customer to buy the product and the company collect information about sales of the product. And a skyline is also on the product which gives the reader some more information about what else is going to be in the magazine. The masthead is placed clearly at the top of the page enabling the reader to clearly see what magazine it is they are buying.
L: Beyonce is the main feature on the cover as there are no thumbnails or other pictures, her eyes are staring down the camera drawing the reader in. The image is close-up, therefore portraying strong emotion.
I: Billboard Magazine, 'Billboard': gives the impression of big news, showing something to the world.
I: Beyonce and her new album that are being publicized are personal, this is shown through the use of a close-up shot and eye contact with the reader.
A: I think that this magazine is aimed at people who are fans of pop music, and that are fairly young. I think this because I believe that many young people who enjoy pop music would know who Beyonce is and would enjoy listening to her music.
R: I believe that Beyoncé is being represented as quite intimate and personal as she has been presented in close-up shot on the cover.

The contents page of this issue includes conventions such as overall subjects that allow the reader to get an idea of what each group of articles is about. Some of the articles are presented in bold font which makes these articles stand out to the reader. These articles may be feature articles or may be exclusive to the magazine and are therefore being pointed out to the reader.
The word 'contents' is clearly printed at the top of the page this helps the reader to distinguish what is going to be on the page.
Images are located on the page that relate to stories on the page, these give the reader a visual interpretation of what will be included in the article. These images also have page numbers placed over them so the reader can find the article they relate to.
A music chart has been included on the contents page, I believe this to be a specific attribute of Billboard magazine as I have seen this repeated throughout all of the issues I have looked at.
Page numbers are located next to the articles, this makes it easy for the reader to find the page which has the article they would like to read on. There is a clear colour scheme running throughout the page this helps to show continuation.

The headline of the article is placed at the top of the page in large font, this can give the reader a quick interpretation of what the article is going to be about. Next to the headline is the by line, telling us who wrote the article.
The main image is clearly displayed on one side of the spread along with the name of the artist telling us about who she is if you were not familiar. A small paragraph is placed over this image giving us information about the artist and the article.
The spread has a clear colour scheme running throughout, yellow, orange and black. The article is written in black, easily readable against the white background. I think that the orange colour is in relation to the image of Janet Jackson on the right side of the spread.
Page numbers are also included this allows the reader to locate the page through using the contents page. A drop cap is also used on the right side of the page to easily display to the audience where to start reading.
A pull quote is located on the right side of the page, it stands out as it has been placed in a brightly coloured box. As it stands out the reader will be attracted to it. Pull quotes are usually interesting quotes from the article, so if the reader sees these first they will be more intrigued as to what is included in the whole story.
A caption is located underneath the headline, this short sentence gives the reader a quick overview of what the article is about.
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