Mock Contents Page

Anaylsis of Contents Pages - NME

This is a picture of the contents page for 'NME', a music magazine. The contents list is aligned t the right-hand side of the page. Also there are subheadings being used. This is a good thing because if a reader or readers is wanting to find a particular article, it will be a lot quicker for them, so therefore it saves time.

To the left-hand side of the page there is a 'Band Index'. The 'Band Index' is a good bit of information because it tells the reader what artists and bands are featured in the magazine, so if you were in a shop and you were just browsing through the magazines you could see if any of your favourite artists or bands were in the magazine and this would perhaps make your more eager to buy it. Beside the contents list there are small red arrows pointing to various parts of the list, this shows us what articles featured on the front cover of 'New Musical Express'. Again, like the subheadings, this would be a time saving aspect.

Colours being used are mainly red, white and black. These colours all link in with the 'NME' logo. Colour is not only being used to make certain text stand out, it is being used to just generally make the page look nicer and become more pleasant to the eye. I like how the editors of 'New Musical Express' have put the pages numbers in the colour red. This looks affective and it also makes it easy to see them.

As you can see on 'NME's contents page there is an article that is named: 'The moment that... Oasis kicked off their world tour.' A small article on the contents page could be a good aspect to have as it gives your reader an idea of what is going to be inside the magazine. Also it could show what music genre they are aiming at, by using an artist or band with the same genre in the article. With the article there are two pictures. Both seem to be taken from an 'Oasis' gig, this could suggest that there is going to be more gig reviews inside the magazine.

Finally, 'NME' have a small advert at the bottom of their page trying to persuade people to subscribe to their magazine, with a discount offer of 33%. Like the other devices used on the contents page, this is a good factor as the reader sees it straight away, it is eye catching because of the colours being used and it is something promoting 'NME' and could consequently make their sales figures rise.

Overall, I like how 'New Musical Express' used subheadings in their contents list as it makes it easier for the reader to locate a particular article. I also like the use of pictures on the contents page because it then makes the page nicer to look at and eye catching. However, there is a lot of things crammed onto 'NME's  contents page and when I am coming to make and design my contents page I do not think that I will have so much things on it, as I think it looks a bit over crowded.

Anaylsis of Contents Pages - Fused

This contents page is from 'Fused' magazine. 'Fused' focuses on music, style and art from the forefront of youth culture and I think you can tell this from how their contents page is set out and looks like. Their contents list is over to the top right-hand corner and there are two columns. The columns are not in a straight lines down the page, they sort of drift to the left-hand side. I think this gives the reader or on looker the feel of unformality, fun and youth. I do not think this magazine is aimed at an adult audience.

There are loads of different fonts being used throughout the page and this gives it a lively and quirky feel which I like. There are even two titles for the contents which gives 'Fused' magazine it's own individual style.

Green, pink and grey are the three main colours being used, but there is also a hint of white. This colour scheme, I think, looks really good and effective as it makes the brighter, bolder colours stick out on the page. Also it gives it a funky, retro vibe.

It is fair to say that imageary is the main part of 'Fused' magazines contents page. The images on the page do link in with what the magazine is about: 'music, art and style from the youth culture.' Music is portrayed by the indie/grunge looking band on the contents page, art is quite obvious as the whole of the contents pages is extremely arty, creative and imagainative and finally, the style is put across in the clothes that the 'indie/grunge band' are wearing and also some of the other images on the page could link in with the style concept.

Overall, I really like the look of the magazine as it is has quirky, individual feel too it. I also like the colours used and how some stnad out more from the rest. When thinking of what I want my contents page to look like I think that there will need to more more text on the page where as 'Fused' magazine has very little text. I am also considering cartoon imagery on my contents page as I love how it looks and it could go well with my magazines genre.

Analysis of Contents Pages - Mixmag

This contents pages is taken from Mixmag, a British dance music and clubbing magazine. It styles itself as 'the world's biggest selling dance music magazine'. The contents list is aligned to the left-hand side of the page. Also there are subheadings being used. An example of one of the subheadings is: 'Regulars'. This is a very good thing to have on a contents page because it saves the reader time and helps them find what they are looking for quickly and easily. 'Regulars' is a good subheading to have as this means that these are the things that are features in 'Mixmag' every time it is published. So, regular readers will be wary of these articles.

The layout on the page looks and seems very modern. There are three images used on 'Mixmag's contents page and they are all three different size which adds to the magazine's modern edginess. Also, 'Mixmag' have linked the pictures that they have used on their contents page with the articles that are further inside the magazine. I know this because at the bottom of every picture there is a number and this must correspond to a page number. This acts in a similar way to the subheadings on the contents page: it saves the reader time and helps them find what they are looking for quickly and easily.

The main colours being used are black, white and a reddish purple (with the exception of yellow, which is used in the title). The background is white which is good because then the text, images and any other items on the page stand out and become clearer. By the title having a different colour this also makes it become more noticeable, which is a good thing because a title is a key item you need on your contents page when you are considering making a magazine.

Various fonts are used on this particular magazine cover and I think that they all tie in with the magazines genre, dance music, which is another good thing. The numbers for pages that have pictures with them on the contents pages look very retro and they remind me of the 'Top of the Pops' font they used. The title and the subheadings have the same font, so there is a certain style and particular layout through out the page. Also bold is being used for the titles of the pages in the contents list, this is good because they are now clearer.

Overall, I like how the images look on the page and how there is one side for the pictures and another side for text, it makes it look modern and neat. Also, font and boldness would be a good thing to have on a contents page to make the text that has the most important status apparent. I would have to pick a font that links in with my particular genre though. Finally, I like the use of a white background, because as I have said before it makes everything on the page now become visible. However, I think more colour could be used on this page as it looks rather plain and the contents page is the first page inside the magazine you see, so it need to grasp the readers attention.