Denotative and Connotative Analysis - Q cover page

Q music magazine cover page

Denotative

·         There are 3 people taking up a 3^rd of the page. Jay Z is at the fount of the group with Lady Gaga on the left side of him and Dave Grohl to the right. Jay Z is taking from a low angle shot. Lady Gaga and Dave Grohl are captured in a long shot.

·         Jay Z had a large bling necklace on, baggy jeans and a plain black t-shirt.

·         Lady Gaga has skimpy black shiny material shorts and bra on. A black glove in the same material. And a Cossack hat with many gold chains hanging down from it. She is in a solutes position.

·         Dave Grohl is holding a guitar in his left hand which is half covered. He is wearing a black shirt and skinny jeans. With a small chocker necklace with a cross on it.

·         Taking up the left top corner is a white Q in a red square. 9cm width by 8cm height.  Is in a sans serif font.

·         Underneath it is red writing saying “10 exclusive Interviews” the 10 is bigger and exclusive and interviews are parallel, however the exclusive is slightly bigger than the interviews.  Serif font.

·         Then is bright orange writing “Jay Z” then there is a quote underneath in a smaller black font. This carried on parallel to each other for Lady Gaga and Dave Grohl.  All serif fonts.

·         Under this are the bar code, date, price and website all in one small box. 4cm width by 2.1 cm height.  Bottom left corner. Date and price in a sans serif font. Website in a serif font.

·         On the right side of the page on the edge, in the centre is a red circle with a thin white ring around. In the red circle is a white font “42 pages of reviews!” the 42 is bigger than the other writing, which is parallel.  4.5 cm diameter. Under this circle over lapping over the top is a smaller black spiky circle with a small with font “& Robert plant live special”. All this is in a sans serif font. 

·         In the bottom right corner is a flash across the page.  This flash has a black tip and the rest of the rectangle is in the same bright orange as the Jay Z, lady gaga text. In the black tip is a white plus sign, in the orange box the writing is alternate black and white.  Serif font.

·         At the very top of the page is a banner, it is black with white font in it

 “THE 10 MOST ........ IN MUSIC NOW.” In the centre of the banner is a bright orange semi-circle with a spiky edge. In it says “EXCITING PEOPLE”. All of this is in a sans serif font.

Connotative

·         The images of the 3 people taking up most the page shows that they are the most important thing on the page.

·          As Jay z is at the front it shows he is the most respected and important. Being taking from a low angle shot makes him look bigger and in power which tells the audience that he is important in the music work.  His big chain shows he has money. His baggy jeans shows he is a more hip hop star as it what they tend to wear, but his simple black top contradicts this.

·         Lady Gaga’s outfit and stand has an element of sexiness to it. Dave Grohl looks the most rock out of the 3. His long hair is covering his face and the guitar determines that it is his style.  As they are both taking from long shots and stood behind Jay Z is shows they are to as important as him, but they are still taking up most of the page.

·         The Q is in the top left corner, this would because of the “Z” reading rule.  The white on red really makes it stand out.  It takes up most of the most of the top left quarter which shows it is important.

·         The “10 exclusive interviews” stands out as it is red next to the red square. The 10 and exclusive are bigger as they are the key words and the ones the reader will be most interested in.

·         The bright orange writing of the artist’s names is the most striking part of the magazine. These 3 artists are the ones the magazine wants to sell; they are also the thing the reader will read to see if they are interested in the stars features in the magazine that month. The quotations from the artists from the interview also draw in the reader as it gives them a taste of what there is to read.

·         The box with the barcode and price box is smaller as it is the least important information on the magazine but is a legal requirement. The magazine also doesn’t want the price to be the first thing the customer sees at it might put them off before seeing the contents.

·         The circle to the right side if another important sales point the magazine are trying to sell.  The 42 really stands out on the red background, and it is the biggest thing in that section. The Robert Plant bit is less important as it has a black background so it stands out less. 

·         The flash at the bottom of that page stands out as it is the bright orange again. The + lets the audience there is much more inside. The black and white font stands out but there is the most amount of block text there so the reader probably won’t read it all.

·         The banner at the top of the page is in black, the bright orange semi-circle stands out boldly, as does the big black writing in it. The white font on the black banner also stands out but not as much as the key selling point of this part, “Exciting people”

·         The magazine editors have only used 4 main colours ; red, white, black and the bright orange. This keeps the magazine easy on the eye and simple, but also makes certain parts and key points stand out.