Double page spread 2 (Vibe magazine)- format research

I have chosen to do Vibe double page spread as i have also analysed Vibe's contents page and so i can link all this information together.

Image:

On this double page spread of ‘vibe magazine’ there are a variety of images bannering across the top of the pages and one image which is enlarged  on the right hand page in the left third. All of the images feature the same woman, just in a different standing position and different position on the page. The images along the top of the page are featured in black and white with the one large image in colour. The use of the one large image in colour helps to emphasises the importance of this woman in the music industry and the genre of music in which this magazine focuses on. It also shows the reader that she is the main focus of the article they are about to read.

   The use of many images of the same woman in different positions shows that this woman is quite glamorous and confident within her image. The use of the black and white images bannering across the top of the page is effective as it helps link to the rest of the double page spread by sticking to the colour theme as the text in the article itself is also black/grey colour with a white background. The white background helps to bring out the main image of the artist in colour and also gives off a calm and sophisticated atmosphere as the double page spread is not too busy and is relaxed with little going on at once.

   The layout of the images defies convention of a typical magazine double page spread layout  as usually you would find one of the pages contains the main image and the other a small amount of text describing the article. However on this magazine you have a number of images bannered across the top of the double page spread with a large image on the right hand side of the page but to the left of the page in colour. Although this goes against the typical layout of a magazine for music, it is effective as it gives off an older target audience, with a more formal and sophisticated look to the double page spread and also a large amount of text. This is effective for its target audience as the smaller images allow more text to be conveyed and a more formal look to the magazine attracting older readers as they are more likely to be attracted to a magazine which looks more professional and with more text.

Font/colour:

The reader is immediately drawn in to the magazine through the use of distinctive colours. The colours of grey, black, white and blue are presented as the house style in this double page spread as the colours are repeated and shown throughout the article.  The use of the grey text over the white background makes the text stand out more and easy for the reader to read. The use of blue text helps to highlight certain important words that the article heading contains and this helps these to stand out to the reader and help them to take in the most important information easier. The use of blue also adds colour to the double page spread as the colours used could be seen as quite dull as they aren't very bright at all. The use of red used for the main image also gives the magazine colour but also helps the artist to stand out in the image as the brightly colours used In her dress contrast with the rest of the colours on the magazine and help her to show importance easier, The use of red also shows a sign of sexiness in the artist as red is associated with sexy clothing and the way she is positioned in the image  gives off a seductive look. The use of red links with the position she has been put in and makes her look seductive and sexy for the article.

Drop caps:

 Unlike the typical double page spread of a magazine, this magazine does not have a drop cap for the beginning letter of the article. This defies convention and goes against the norms of a typical magazine. However, although the drop cap is not used, the article and double page spread show that a drop cap is not needed as the first line of the magazine does not need to be emphasised. The article title helps to emphasise what the article is going to be about and so there is no need for the emphasization through drop cap.

Article title:

The article title of vibe magazine is placed underneath the banner of images gong along the top of the page, on the left hand page and on the left of the page. This goes against the norms of the placing of an article title on a double page spread as they are usually placed at the top of the page above the pictures on either the left or right hand page. Although this goes against the norms, it is effective as it the images above draw the reader in more and also the article title is quite long. The article title being long means that if it was printed across the top of the page, then the whole title wouldn't be able to fit in. They have placed the article title in this position on the page so that they can fit all of the title in on the page. The use of the grey and the blue font used in the article title is effective as the grey writing helps to link with the rest of the article as the text in the rest of the article is also in grey. The use of blue text helps to bring put the most important information in the text and this makes it easier for the reader to view instantly what the article is mainly about. It draws the reader in immediately as the bright blue text gives the article title dramatic effect.

   The short sentence in the article title followed by the longer sentence emphasises the short sentence. The short sentence 'Forget her sister' emphasises and makes the reader wonder what the 'sister' has done so wrong for the article to be saying to forget her. The powerful word forget emphasises the wrong that the sister may have done and means that someone is better than her as people are wanting her to be forgotten. The article title explains two siblings in rivalry in the music industry and through the use of chosen language of 'Outspoken, forget and The years best' shows that one sibling is better than the other and this can create tension as the reader feels the build in rivalry.

Layout:

The layout of this double page spread is different to the normal set up of a double page spread, and Vibe seems to go against convention by doing this. The set up consist of a banner of images across the top of the page in black and white. The images contain the same woman standing in different positions. Underneath the banner of images there are 5 black lines with spaces in between them. This separates the images from the text and this is effective as it shows a clear separation and formality about the magazine. On the left hand page, there is the article title followed by the article and a lot of text describing what the article is about. Moving on to the right hand page there is a large image of the woman to the left of the page. This time she is presented in colour. To the right of the girl at the bottom of the page there is a pull quote and then to the right of the image there is more text which is from the article. 

  On a typical magazine the layout would be different on the double page spread. The typical magazine would consist of the article title being at the top of the page above the images, showing importance and advertising the article immediately with the headline standing out and catching the readers eye. Although this set up has not been used for this magazines double page spread, the use of images at the top of the page is also effective as it draws the reader in immediately with the different use of images and the different use of the same person standing in different positions. 

Captions:

The caption used to the left, in the corner of the main image does not explain what the image is of, like a typical caption would do. This caption give information about the clothing that the woman is wearing, designers of the clothing and the brand that the clothing may come from. This helps to advertise clothing in this double page spread, as well as give information about music and so has a multi-purpose. It uses the image and the clothing that she is wearing as an advantage and helps to advertise as well as give off other information.

Eye flow:

The eye flow of this magazine goes from the top of the page, to the large image and then to the article headline and the article itself. The eye flow goes this way as the images stand out immediately as they are large and in unusual places than for a typical magazine. The use of the lines for to separate the images from the article itself help the images to stand out more and attract the readers eyes to the images first because of the contrasting colours, black and white used for the lines of separation. The lines of separation emphasise the split between image and article and also emphasise where the eye line starts. 

 

Pull quote:

Unlike the typical layout of a magazine with pull quotes and them being in a circle and projected within the middle of the text to emphasise them, this magazine sets their pull quote out differently and has a different layout to the typical magazine set up. The pull quote is placed at the bottom of the right hand page in the corner, next to the image of the girl and to side of the last piece of text. It is in the middle third of the page. The pull quote enlarges s piece of text which is dialect and this emphasises the words being said by the person. Usually it is a famous person, or an important quote in what they are saying. In this quote one of the young girls describes their feelings about the  music and how she doesn't want to feel like she has to  audition for everyone and she just wants people to fall back and enjoy the music. Her words are quite passionate and emotional and this could be the reason for the pull quote as it emphasises the emotion that the girl is feeling and the passion in her words. She explains how she doesn't do things for attention in the industry and doesn't try to be different, she just wants people to enjoy her music and not to judge her by the way she looks. The reason for the pull quote comes across as an overemphasis for how she feels within the industry and it emphasises the stereotypical views of artists in the music industry today, as people are always judging others and assuming that artists do things for attention and to be different. This links with society today and the pull quote helps to bring across lots of different views not just within music but emotions themselves that you don't usually hear from music artists.

Article:
The article itself is mainly positioned on the left hand page with part of it continuing onto the right hand page. The text takes up quite a lot of the space on the page and only it it on the right hand page that it allows space for a larger image to be seen. The use of the large amount of text can link with the target audience as it is aimed at a higher age group and one of which is engages by a larger amount of text on the page. This is effective as it carries its target audience throughout the magazine and is constantly considering what may attract the target audience in the double page spread to keep them interested in what they are reading.