Contents Page Analysis

This contents page is from "Q" magazine, and at the top of the page it shows the magazines logo, and states that it is the content page, also saying the issue of the magazine. There is then several subtitled sections naming different parts of the magazine, such as "features", "Every Month" and "Q Review". There is also a large picture, relevant to a large feature, with information about the article over the top of the image. Under the name of each article there is a brief description, detailing what the article contains. The colour scheme is mainly white/gray/black/red.

In my opinion, it is a fairly good contents page as it informs the reader well, whilst also looking okay visually, if a little cluttered.

This contents page is from VIBE mag, and is a lot more stylised, if a bit less informative, with more focus on the picture instead of the text. There is still a title, declaring that it's the contents page, however it is staggered over three lines, and slightly rotated. Like the other magazine the page is divided in to subtitled areas, in this case "Features" and "Fashion". The colour scheme is mainly grey/black/white.

 I much prefer the aesthetic of this page to the last one, however it is less functional as a contents page so in my own magazine I'd like to strike a balance between the two.

My final contents page is from Mojo magazine, which lies somewhere between the first two, in terms of functionality and visuality. Mojo has a much cleaner look, with everything being straight on the horizontal axis, with clear lines dividing each section. Throughout all three contents pages there are sub-sections, one of which is always features. This contents page is my favourite out of three, it just has a stylish look, without being oversimplified or too cluttered.

From my research I have learnt that you can't cram too much into a contents page, or it doesn't look as good, but at the same time you can't have too little. On a similar note, it also helps to have a colour scheme of no more than about 4 main colours and no less then 3. I aim to include this in my contents page when it come to making it.