Double Page Spread Analysis #1 - Research

This double page spread focuses on David Bowie, the image of Bowie is a black and white image and is a medium close up angle. Of the two pages the image takes up one of the pages, leaving a large space for text and a title for the article. On the second page there has been a large amount of white space left, significantly between the second and third column and around the title. Having a whole page from the first two of a double page spread as an image of the artist is conventional of magazines, by having such a large image of the artist, it allows the reader to see who the article about and draws their attention in, making them want to read it.

The image used is an older image of David Bowie, when he was a younger man, this could be because the article is about him "revisiting his Berlin period", this is a time in the 1970's when he recorded and released 3 albums. The older image suggest that the article will be focusing on his current music plans and career alongside looking back to his past career. This would is a good way to attract a wider audience as the fan base Bowie has already created will gladly read this article, and his fan base will be large seen as how he has been in the music industry, this is an effective way for the magazine to make their audience larger and gain more money in sales.

David Bowie has a wide range of styles but one genre he produced a large amount of music from is rock music, in the image, he is dressed in dark clothing, including leather, and his hair is messed up, this suggests connotations and indexical links to the rock genre, it also suggests a carefree attitude, which again is commonly associated with a rock lifestyle. Bowie can be seen looking directly into the camera, and working alongside the black and white photo, this creates a dramatic tension and a synthetic personalisation with the reader as it seems as though Bowie is looking directly at you, this direct address works with the sense of nostalgia attached to the old image, as fans of his may feel as though they know him.

Usually David Bowie was represented in the media as a bright, pop/pop-rock style character, and so to choose the image above for the first page of the double page spread is unusual, and so is agreeing with Dyer when he says that "a star is an image", because in this instance, the way Bowie has been portrayed is different to his usual media image. However it could also be said that the bright hair and makeup he usually would have been seen with was also an image, and that like Lady Gaga, he prefers to hide his real identity and live behind a facade. Or it could also represent the fact that now Bowie has matured as an artist and a person and plans to leave behind his brighter pop self and focus on having a more serious career in music, either way, this will draw in the reader and make them want to read the article, especially long term fans of Bowie's, to discover why the representation of him is now so different to his past.

For the title of the article, a pull quote has been used over something that summaries the article or even includes Bowie's name. The font is a sans serif font and is bold, slim and large on the page. It grabs the audiences attention and the white space around the quote emphasises the mystery in the language. "It" is used vaguely, in the context of the article, it would be easy to tell what "It" was referring to, but in the title, out of context as a stand alone sentence, it adds mystery just by being non-specific in alluding to give more information, which adds another need for the customer to read the article, and make a purchase if the magazine has just been picked up from the shelf. The quote ends in an ellipsis, this builds more on the mystery of the article and makes the reader want to find out what the rest of the quote is, this builds on the synergy of mystery throughout the article working alongside the image and the black and white colours.

Reads: "I don't live anywhere. I must have complete freedom from bases. If I ever had anything that resembled a base, like a flat on a long lease or anything, I felt so incredibly trapped. Even if I go away I know that it's waiting for me, it's like it has me on a string, and it's dragging me back".

In the centre of the second column, there is another pull quote, it is from another NME interview David Bowie did in November 1977, from his Berlin era, and at the end of this section is the quote from the title, this allows further synergy through language as the mystery from the title has been resolved by reading the article and it ties the piece together in terms of language. The pull quote has been separated from the rest of the text through the use of the black lines above and below the text. Also the text has been written in a bold font to make it stand out from the main body of text, therefore emphasising the importance of the quotation. On all sides of the pull quote there is a large amount of white space, and therefore this allows all attention to be drawn to the pull quote and it's importance to the article and the title.

The use of drop capitals allows attention to be drawn to the start of the article, this is a convention of magazines and is a traditional code for all magazine layouts. This portrays NME as a conventional music magazine that stands to code, and allows them to attract an audience and show how established the magazine is with their fan base and audience.

A stand first is used underneath the headline to give more information on the contents of the article and what is included in the feature. This allows the reader to be lead into the article with a slight background and idea on the contents, rather than starting it with no idea what is happening throughout. There are six words in a bold font, "David Bowie" to clarify who the article is about if the reader did not recognise the image, and then the names of the writer and photographer. It is unconventional to include the names of the writer and photographer in the stand first instead of in a by-line under the image or at the end of the article. The typography of the stand first is very different to the title and the main body of text, and therefore it stands out against it and will not be confused for the rest of the article.

How this research has influenced my ideas and creativity:

The large image is very conventional of a usual double page spread and allows me to see the difference between sticking to convention and branching out to being unconventional. It has shown me that the best places to break convention would be in the cover and the contents pages rather than on the double page spread. It has shown me it is best to stay simple with the colour and complexity of the layout and to make it look effective, before focusing on the content of the article. One feature I did like about this very much was the unconventional title, using a pull quote as the title really woks well with the theme of this piece of writing and adds well to the mystery and connotations behind the image.