Here i have analysed and annotated around a couple of contents pages so i can become familiar with the codes and conventions and apply them to my school magazine contents. Moreover, i have analysed some more front covers but this time i looked at some real magazine covers, so i know the real codes and conventions of magazines and how a institution would target and appeal to audiences so they can sell their product.

Codes and Conventions of Magazines

In order to produce my magazine i must follow the main codes and conventions of magazines.

All magazines have a masthead; this is the largest and boldest title and is located at the top of the page. It usually relates to the genre of the magazine, appeals to the target audience and connects to the content (e.g. 'Slam' indicates some sort of sport and relates to the basketball interviews inside)

All magazines have a house style; this is a certain on-going theme of colours, fonts and images that run through the magazine and in future editions that apply to the genre of the magazine. A relevant house style is an important feature in a magazine to appeal to different ages, social classes and genders. For instance if the magazine wants to attract a male audience the fonts would be modern and creative, the images would be masculine as well as feminine and the colours would be blues, blacks, greens and greys.

Magazines have articles they all have different styles, topics and info, magazines have columns or articles of writing, sometimes they have more than one page (double page article), sometimes called a spread.

Magazines also have a contents page, this lists what the magazine includes and further lures the reader into the magazine. The contents page is complemented by surrounding pictures with numbers to make it clear which stories are on what page so the reader can navigate throughout the magazine.

The Central image is located on the front cover and is in the centre of the page, the image would relate to the genre of the magazine and appeal to the target audience. It would be the most distinct feature on the page, the central image would target the audience of the magazine; for example an image of a seductive lady would target both genders but for different reasons, this is where the psycho-dynamic audiences come into play, it would target aspirers and followers, female audiences would aspire to be like her, whereas males would be attracted to her.


The issue number, date and barcode are always located on the front page. The issue number and date both provide information which informs the reader to know that the magazine is the most recent issue. These three features are placed together because they are the only features that don't relate with the inside information.

Interactive features are common in magazines to interest the reader further and they allow them to become more involved ( doing something physical - e.g. a football magazine may ask if you wanted to record yourself doing a fun activity in order to win prizes), these interactive features are fun and enjoyable for the reader.

School Magazine Annotations

School Magazine Annotations

I have annotated and analysed some good examples of school magazines to create ideas about how to plan and produce my school magazine. The reason I chose the music genre was to get myself thinking about what teenagers enjoy and how different genres target different audiences, moreover I chose it to see what teenagers would like to read about and what would make them buy the magazine. I also chose the sport genre to think of one main target audience (males) and how the magazine targets this audience.

School Magazine

I will be researching and planning a School magazine, I will be researching the codes and conventions, defining the target audience, analyzing the mise-en-scene (picture, including the setting, lighting), house style (font, colours and the on-going theme of the magazine) of other school magazines.

Premilinary Task

To Research, Plan and Produce a School Magazine

My school magazine must include a front cover and a contents page, i will be using original images and i will be following the codes and conventions of magazines in order to make mine look realistic and professional.