Textual Analysis of Q magazine.

Denotation:

This magazine cover consists of a medium long shot image of a man kneeling over his guitar. It looks like the picture has gone through post production after the shoot and the background has been cut off, leaving the plain white of a sheet and other images and cover lines filling the page. There is a masthead behind the mans right hand shoulder and multiple cover lines just below the masthead. There is also a text box visible on the left side of the man and a bar code too.

Masthead:

Q magazine has always used a Georgia font 'Q' as their masthead, it is always written in white above a red square on the top left and corner of the page. It is very simple and only one letter so it's easy for the audience to remember. Also in the music industry the letter q reminds me of the band queen which may suggest that the magazine is targeted at rock lovers.

Character:

The model on the front cover is famous late American electric guitarist Jimi Hendrix.

Composition:

He has been directed to kneel and pull on the guitar strings. He is also pulling a face which shows that he is pulling the strings with force. This is stereotypical of ho violent and rebellious rock stars are.

Costume:

He is wearing a navy blue with gold stitching high ranking sailor type blazer which has been customised and has fur added to it, he is also wearing a lot of gold jewellery and brown pinstriped trousers. This shows his wealth.

NVC:

He looks very aggressive in this image, and he looks forceful on the guitar. Almost like he is pulling with passion on the strings. This gives the audience the idea that he both loves and hates his career or the fame it has brought him.

Lighting:

Like all other magazine covers I have looked at this cover also uses high key lighting to give warmth and a sense of security to the audience. 

Setting:

We are unaware of the setting but because the image has been cut out I think it was originally shot in front of a green screen in a photographic studio. 

Cover lines:

The main cover line just like in the 'Billboard' magazine is bolder than the rest. It is placed directly under the masthead and is written in black and in Arial Black font. All the text on this cover is written in black but it is the font that changes. Under the main cover line that reads 'Wild Thing' there is a brief written in Arial. There are two smaller cover lines and an image which isn't of the main model under the main cover line, This allows the readers to relate to the other musicians featured in the issue. The smaller cover lines also suggest that there is gossip and entertaining articles the audience would be interested in. 

Text Box:

The text box which is usually used on the contents page appears on the cover of the magazine. It gives readers information on what reviews the magazine has inside.

Target audience:

Having analysed all of this,it seems like the target audience for this magazine would be males aged between 16-35 as it focuses on the dark side of rock stars.