I find it difficult to design my layout in only one format. Therefore as I decide upon a plan that works best, I am going to outline several different alternatives that I can use.
1) My first plan is a very conventional front cover. In many ways it conforms to the style that I adopted for my music magazine. The price, dateline and issue number have been positioned in smallprint around the masthead to keep them from imposing on the main image.
For the moment I have tried to keep the picture central, but this will depend on the photograph I choose to feature on the front page. Additionally it should be noticed how I have placed the cover lines down one side, and this is to give it a sense of organisation and structure. From the examples I have seen, magazine covers work best when the text isn't distributed but restricted to a certain area, because then the reader doesn't feel overwhelmed with information.
2) As you can see, I have rotated the barcode because I do not want it to stand out if everything else on the page is chronologically structured.
Another change is the distribution of the cover lines. While it is important to keep the main cover line on the left since this will be the first thing that readers see, I think that if the image is central then it wouldn't be too intrusive to allocate some text to the other side. Bearing in mind what I said earlier about grouping the text into one organised column, I just wanted to visualise how it could look if I needed to fill up some space. However it will largely be dependent on the photograph I choose to feature on the front cover.
The image itself has been brought to the foreground. I have drawn it to give the cover depth and sharpness. The implication is that by distorting the masthead you are adding focus to the feature in front.
Also worthy of note is that the selling line has been positioned with the cover lines. I felt that my first plan may have appeared too much like a poster with the central design. The issue that may present itself is whether the impact of the selling line will be diminished by the amount of text that follows in the cover lines, whereas if it stood alone it's importance will increase.
3) This keeps to many of the aforementioned techniques, but this time I have grouped the statistical information into one place. Whereas before I positioned the price tag in a more distinguished location, this time I have given it an association with the dateline and issue number in order to give it a collective impression on the reader. Simply put, when they see the cover they will be able to find out how current it is and how much they will have to pay for it.
Furthermore I have returned to the first cover line layout. I think that by placing textual information either side of the image it can reduce the focus on the photograph itself, but putting it to one side could lead to suggest that it has almost been sidelined by the imposing picture.
4) Finally, I have collectively designed this plan in order to represent and reflect the ideas proposed by the first 3.
The cover lines are all on one definitive side. I have chosen to give the price tag it's own distinction because although it relates to the other statistics, it is the most relevant to the consumer in a market place. For this reason if it isn't obvious where to find it you could lose the buyer's trust, whereas if you present it to them blatantly, then you don't seem afraid of how much it costs. Of course it can be noted that concealing the price tag in a less distinct position is equally effective, because that way the reader can skim over the content and be influenced by the quality of the information they see before they decide on whether the magazine is worth the buy.
The size of the main image has been sufficiently enhanced. This is because on the front cover most magazines use an established celebrity in the genre they are representing, and this idol is often shown in a mid/close up situation to maintain direct address and look imposing. To increase this effect, I have kept the masthead in the background in order to give the image a vivid prominence.
Conclusively, placing the selling line above the masthead enables the audience to read a hyperbolic slogan before continuing onto the content, and so acts as an introduction.
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