Notes On The Conventions Of Magazine Front Covers

Through researching magazine front covers we have discovered many conventions that we should include in our own front cover.

Each magazine cover had a masthead, which is the title of the magazine, which is usually placed at the top of the page. This is usually the largest font size on the page to show the audience the magazines individual identity against its competition. The font style, colouring and appearance becomes almost like a brand, which is important to get right as this is what will make your magazine recognisable to the audience.

There is a selling line/tagline, which is usually a couple of words long that gives a brief description of the magazine. This is important to give a unique selling point and show why the consumers should buy your magazine. This is usually in a small font placed near the title to show its about the magazine and not a story.

There is also a main cover line, which is the main story that the magazine is covering. This is shown in a big font that is different to the masthead. It is often linked with the main image and is noticeably different from the rest of the text.

The main image is the biggest image on the magazine cover, which is often a star such as Megan Fox. This is often linked with the main cove line, which helps to instantly tell the audience what the magazine is about.

The cover lines are text on the front cover that aren't the main story but still describes what is in the rest of the magazine.

There is also a barcode on the cover along with a price and a date. There is also often a website to the magazine.