Main Task: Front Cover Textual Analysis

The magazine cover denotes a medium close up of Calvin Harris holding a detonator in his hands. The background of the photograph is what looks likes an explosion which created big flames. The image of Calvin Harris with a the explosion and the detonator denotes he has just blown something up, but the connotation is music, so he is perhaps blowing up the music scene.

Calvin Harris is wearing a black zipped leather jacket. His costume suits the theme of the photograph really well, the leather jacket makes him look very cool and quite bad to a certain extent.

I think the prop used in this photograph is really interesting, as you don’t normally see someone triggering a detonator on the front of magazines covers, so it is very unique and original. On the detonator there is a plaque which says ‘blasting machine’ which may symbolise speakers.

The lighting used in this photo is low key, it is very shadowy. I think this is because it’s a dance magazine, so to make it look quite underground and club like, they made sure the face was very dark and shadowy, which makes Calvin Harris seem more mysterious. The flames are not bright flames, they look very smokey instead which is very realistic for an explosion.

The medium close up allows us to see Calvin Harris’ non-verbal communication, he looks extremely serious and looks like he is not messing about and means business. The flames in the background connotes his power and fearlessness.

The masthead is a really bright yellow colour which stands out, it’s is an almost floresent yellow, which anchors the genre of the magazine. As it is a club, dance magazine, florecent colours really makes sense to use.

The price, dateline and website link are in small white font to the right hand side, right next to the barcode which is in the corner in the bottom right. I think they have kept it in the right hand corner so that it doesn’t distracted the reader from the main content on the front cover.

The main coverline is about Calvin Harris who is the main image, Calvin Harris’ name is written in two font colours, ‘Calvin’ is written in white, and ‘Harris’ is written in the same yellow used for the masthead. It’s positioned just underneath the masthead in a smaller font size, and also a different font, there are also shadows behind his name to create a 3d effect. ‘Calvin Harris and how music blew up the pop charts’. This anchors what the main image is about, and uses the picture as a metaphor.

All coverlines are written in white and florescent yelllow, the colour scheme really works and dosent look messy or clattered but stands out at the same time. The coverlines varies from competitions, free give aways, quotes from intervies, retorical question, special extras to entice the reader. This all really engages the reader and makes them want to read on.

I think the target age for Mixmag would range from age 18- 26 both male and female. It is targeted at the this age group as this is the age group who go clubbing the most.