Contents Page Research

Q Magazine

This contents page is very simple and somewhat abstract. The simplistic colour scheme of red and black and ties in well with the colours used in the main image on the contents page.

I’m a massive fan of using one image on the contents page and writing the text around the picture. This makes the page much more artistic and appealing to the eye. It’s something I would seriously consider using in my contents page design.

There is a clear distinction between the each of the headings for individual pages, which makes it more inviting to the reader, as they can see clearly what is inside the magazine.

The image used portrays a sense of mischief and immaturity about the character. This would appeal to a younger audience of a rebellious nature – particularly teenagers. The representation of young people in this contents page is stereotypical, due to the large headphones being on Billie Joe Armstrong's head, with his tongue poking out, dressed in stylish male alternative attire. 

Kerrang! Magazine

This contents page differs greatly from the one I’ve previously analysed. There is a wide variety of images that have contrasting messages; studio shots in comparison to on stage shots for example. This style of layout is attractive to the eye, due to the fact that opening this page would give an effect that is similar to opening a gift. There is a lot to get stuck in to and makes the reader excited of what is ahead.

The use of captions on the pictures gives life to the images and also welcomes the reader in to the magazine, making the contents appealing, rather than something people skip past when they pick up a magazine.

The contents list on the right side of the page uses subheadings to simplify the contents, which is useful if somebody is reading the magazine for a specific purpose or if there is a special feature in the magazine that would have encouraged them to pick up the magazine.

The page would appeal to a wide range of audiences, due to the diversity within the images being used. There is a mixture of contemporary studio images along with the more juvenile band pictures.

The font used is bold and is even more striking to the eye, due to every word being in capital letters. I don’t necessarily believe that this method of typography is appealing; it makes the magazine look amateur and can have a negative effect on younger readers and also those who are very pernickety over grammar and language etc.

I would definitely consider using elements of this contents page. The images used are more effective than the text, but that doesn’t necessarily make it an unappealing contents page.

NME Magazine

NME magazine’s contents pages are known for standing out from the crowd. There is a lot of text in the contents page; there was a lot of text in Kerrang! Magazine’s contents page but it was much more appealing and a less daunting task to read through. To me, this is more of a ‘first page’ as opposed to a contents page. It seems to me like there is far too much text here for it to be considered a ‘model’ contents page.

There is also minimal use of images in this contents page. There are two pictures which seem to merge in to each other; they also act as an image that would reflect a particular article.

I can see this contents page appealing to a more mature audience, due to the amount of text that is one the page and the more sophisticated fonts that are used. Other than a mature audience, it would appeal to young people who consider themselves to be 'indie' or 'contemporary' due to the attire of the musicians being very 'hip' and somewhat vintage. This represents a lot of NME readers and the stereotype of how an NME reader would dress.

I like the use of shapes in this contents page. It is a good way of differentiating between the separate headlines and fonts being used. I’d seriously consider using these shapes in correlation with the bold fonts.

Rocksound Magazine

This contents page is again unique. The split in the page is something that isn’t featured in the contents page I have mentioned; it gives a clear definition between text and images.

The headings of the article types and the ‘category’ they are under are neat and defined, giving the reader a clear definition of where things are located in the magazine. The text used also blends in very well with the description of each article; they’re both in the same font and are both in lower case. The use of lower case makes the magazine look fancy and alternative, e.g. many upmarket bistros and cafes tend to use lower case as a branding technique.

The ‘stencil’ effect used with the numbers, heading and stars contrasts with the artistic use of lower case lettering and is something I would consider using in my magazine. The main body writing is easy to read, but the stencil effect gives the magazine an alternative edge.


Both the images and the text represent very alternative styles and along with the text and typography, it furthers the idea that this is for the alternative rock market. The way in which the subjects in the photos are dressed and how they are posing would appeal mostly to teenagers, as they look to be posing in an unapproachable manner, looking like possible outcasts or less sophisticated members of society.


The split between text and images is very definite but is very appealing. I wouldn't necessarily split the page in two, but I would consider using images in one concentrated area of the page.


Metal Hammer


Metal Hammer's contents pages are renowned for being unique. There is a lot of text in the contents page; as was the case in Kerrang!'s contents page but it was much more appealing and much less of a task to read through. 

There is also a lot of images in this contents page. There are images to go hand in hand with text and to describe what will be the subject of the article will be and to give the reader a taste of what to expect when they open the magazine fully.

I can see this contents page appealing to a younger audience, due to the use of 'sharp' and 'aggressive' fonts. I could also see it appealing to a mature audience though, due to the amount of informative text that is used for a contents page; it's not entirely conventional. Also, the genre of music that is Metal appeals to a various age groups and it is entirely possible that a mature audience would find the use of 'alternative' fonts very appealing; it's very much down to social groups rather than a particular age group when it comes to Metal Hammer.

I like the use of shapes in this contents page. It is a good way of differentiating between the separate headlines and fonts being used. I’d seriously consider using these shapes in correlation with the bold fonts.