3rd Cover Analysis: Tilllate 17/2/16

Tilllate Magazine is a dance music, club culture and lifestyle magazine. Established in Scotland in 1988, it has a demographic of 18-25 year olds and includes fashion stories and artist interviews, club or technology reviews, and coverage of current and predicted trends. It has relationships with brands, labels and clubs worldwide, and many of its staff are established club DJs making it a successful magazine which has recently found itself as an on-line format.

The main image is a mid-shot of Laid Back Luke who takes up almost all of the cover. He has a very playful and cheeky facial expression which gives the magazine a fun and light hearted vibe. Additionally, his hand gestures excite the reader as they reflect the dance and clubbing lifestyle. His colourful T-shirt also stands out and draws in the reader with its yellow to pink ombré pattern.

Luke is represented as a very cool and original artist through his unique and rather unusual styling and actions. Moreover, the headline 'Superstylin' you & me' suggests he is young and edgy as the 'g' dropping is a rather youthful thing to do. The words 'you' and 'me' are examples of personal pronouns and help to draw in the reader and make them feel included. He comes across very confident which is necessary for DJ's as this is how they express their individuality and are able to perform to thousands. The magazine is represented as very up-to-date and  stylish as it doesn't follow traditional conventions and will be appealing to the younger generation due to the bright colours and crazy image.

The banner (Tilllate) is very eye catching in its bold non-serif font and striking black to red gradient colour. Although the majority of the writing is being covered by the main image (we can only see 'tilll'), it will still be recognisable to regular readers as the font stands out on the page. Additionally, if the readers aren't aware of the name of the magazine from looking at the banner, the name is repeated at the bottom of the cover page in a bold yellow font. The main colour theme is red/pink, yellow, black and white with a splash of blue. These colours have been chosen as they stand out individually but still compliment one another. The majority of the text is written in black or white colour as they are most prominent on the background image.

With regards to lay out, the cover is pleasing to the eye and the positioning of the image and text is effective. Luke is the focal point of the cover even though he isn't positioned exactly in the centre of the page- he is slightly to  the right of the cover. The majority of the text overlaps his body as it is a relatively large image and his actions make him even more prominent on the page. The use of a logo helps with the branding side of the magazine as although we can't see the complete banner, the logo should help on a visual level as it is easily recognisable and stands out on the page. There is a small image used in the bottom left corner of the cover which adds extra incitement but doesn't distract you from the main image, it is in a bright blue colour.

For my music magazine, I wish to incorporate some of the conventions this cover follows. Firstly, I would like to include a logo for my magazine as I believe this will help with branding and will be a recognisable feature for my magazine. Additionally, I will make the name of my cover artist the largest piece of text on the front cover as this will draw immediate attention. I also won't be afraid to cover some of my banner with the main  image as it still looks effective but I shall ensure that it is still easily readable as I believe too much of the banner is covered on this particular cover.