CD cover analysis

textual analysis CD covers


death- guns, rams head, black
yellow- warning sign, desert

this cover relies mostly on symbolism and connotation to draw attention to the cover, the symbolism involved in this cover depicts a rams skull created form a mirrored image of a pistol and bullets of different calibre; this is a clear representation of death and/or evil as a rams skull can also be associated with evil, both the image and the elements creating the image fit the title of 'devils gun' perfectly. the colours used also fit the title and image as the yellow gives the effects of a dry desert environment while also combining with the black to match the colours of a caution sign this fits the theme of death and guns, the edges of the cover also darkened to draw attention to the centre focus (guns skull). finally the effect of blood spatter is used to enforce the theme of death and caution. because of the connotations and colours used as well as the title it is safe to assume that this CD is aimed at the male audience as men have more of an affinity for guns and skulls than women. like most CD covers the band name and album/song title are located at the top of the cover, this is so the album title can stand out even in a rack filled with other CDs, the title is written in a thin, angular black font to draw attention of the male target audience as angular lines are more associated with men than women while CDs that aimed at women often use swirling writing to draw their attention.



purple and blue, mellow colours
isolated, dominant character
bold font



this is also a relatively simple CD cover that uses its simplify to draw its audience by using digital tools to create the effects of the cover. to begin the main focus is on the boy in the centre, he is viewed from a very far shot, emphasising the unnatural pentagonal columns that gradually rise as they reach the centre, this gives an almost heavenly effect in terms of the columns that rise to the heavens without any land in sight, another thing to notice is that the lighting is high key and the boy is facing it enforcing the heavenly, dream like impression. as the angle of the camera is level with the boy he does not show any dominance in terms of angle, also as the boy is paying no attention to the viewer, however this does show that the viewer is merely a spectator of the events before them making them the least dominant in that sense, the columns are another confirmation of the dominance of the boy as the highest column is the one the boy is stood on. the colours of the surroundings and clothing all fall into the blue/purple colours, even the stone columns are a grey/purple colour, using colours that are similar is not uncommon in art and media as they work well together while allowing things that are not part of the colour scheme to stand out E.G: the title and shirt of the boy, purple and blue are also quite mysterious colours with connotations to magic and illusion that enforce the album name of night visions that are closely related. the white title stands out form the rest of the cover but also has a wide and strong semi-angular font that makes the image feel more masculine suggesting the genre is aimed toward a mostly male audience.

 

 

chaotic
eyes along rule of thirds
haunted house ride
pathway leading to other world.
king and queen figure
use of symmetry

unlike the above this album cover uses a chaotic and colourful image to draw the audience, the image consists of many other images with different connotations for each image included, because of the chaotic nature of the cover the artist eyes are set along the top horizontal third and stretches across the middle vertical third of the cover to ensure they are noticed, the outline around the gap that allow the eyes to be viewed also draws attention due to the upward curving of the fair light and the white background that differs from the pale blue below, this gives a mask like appearance suggesting that Michael is either behind the scene displayed beyond the gates in the centre or is hiding something else. furthermore because of the bright and colourful nature of the cover it would be reasonable to assume that is somewhat representing a fair/circus/zoo that appears fun and appealing until what is inside the gate is viewed, the inside appears to be a gloomy steampunk city that does not seem like a good place to be; this together can be summed up by the saying 'all that glitters is not gold', meaning that often things are not a good as they seem. to begin the list of connotations the 'king and queen' figures are represented by an afghan hound and a humming bird, the afghan hound is an aloof and proud breed of dog that is also a sight hound (used for chasing down prey while hunting because of excellent speed and sight) that combined with the age of the breed make it a suitable king figure of a dog, but it is still a dog and will obey its master making it unsuitable as a king and leader, he represents people who only lead when given instructions from a superior so a false leader, the humming bird however is a resilient wild bird despite its delicate look and affinity for sweet nectar, however she is no more that a machine hat supports the life of humans, this could possibly have links to gender inequality showing that her purpose is to care for the humans trapped inside.

analyse two magazines

• who are the audience

1. age 
2. gender
3. socio economic group 

• what elements suggest this is the audience?

Horse and hound is a high class magazine aimed at mainly the owners of horses more than the owners of dogs, but does feature articles regarding canine care and sports. this magazine is aimed mainly at people in the socio economic grouping of B-C2 based on that people below that range would not be able to afford a horse or care much for the olympics and equestrian sport from the articles mentioning dressage and an image of the olympic rings. though this magazine is considered higher class it appears to be aimed at people who may have recently bought a horse or may be inexperienced in caring for a horse from the sub article 'can you prove you own your horse' providing a rhetorical question and enigma code that may be important to new horse owners to entice them to buy the magazine and find out; it also provides another enigma code as a news exclusive of 'how this wired winter has been affecting horses' making the audience curiuos weather or not it is important of just trivial entertainment. in regards to gender i believe that this is a unisex magazine that may have been initially intended to male audiences based mainly of the tile 'Horse and hound' suggesting that it has links to hunting sports that are primarily male dominated, the reason it appears more unisex is the use of a female model dressed in appropriate riding apparel and also the bottom article of 'the fence made of cupcakes' which would clearly have mostly female interest.    

15-40
mostly male
c1 downwards

Imagine FX is an art magazine featuring artists from around the world and techniques regarding digital, mixed and traditional media though is mainly digital. the gender group of this magazine is mainly unisex but does often appeal more to a male audience due to the sexualisation of female characters and si-fi themes, though mainly appealing ti males this Imagine FX  volume does also appeal to female audiences mainly due to the purple text that often has connotations to magic  and the swirling text that supports this.though the fact that s magazine is both a fantasy/si-fi and a primarily digital art magazine does mean the socio economic grouping might not go above C1.

analyse two film posters

• who are the audience

1. age 
2. gender
3. socio economic group 
4. what elements suggest this is the audience?

• what is the narrative/genre of the film? why do you think this is

Van Helsing 

Van Helsing is a film aimed at people who are around the age of 15-30, this is suggested form many of the aspects of the poster, the most obvious hint is the sexualised female character standing next to but also behind Van Helsing (Hugh Jackman), she is wearing heels and corset, which is very impractical if she intends to fight but vey appealing to the male audience, the way she stands and  her possession of a sword suggest that she is a strong female character and more likely to be a love interest and finally being in the second vertical line of thirds also draws attention to her. Van Helsing himself also   gives an understanding of the age range mainly due to the weapons he is carrying and his dark clothing suggesting that he would kill anyone/anything his way which is mainly popular among the younger audiences, he is also aligned with the first vertical line, while he's face aligns with the first horizontal and weapons with the second horizontal. the thing giving away the age range is the genre itself that displays itself via the background which displays a werewolf, frankenstine's monster and vampires, but also shows an old castle clearly showing this is a medieval based fantasy movie appealing to male audiences of C and below socio-economic viewing.

as visible from the dark colours illuminated by burning buildings Godzilla is a disaster movie featuring giant monsters that can crumble cities with ease, movies like these usually appeal to people between the age of 18-35 that still love to see things that get destroyed and blown up. this film is also a classic remake so may appeal to people outside of the target audience such as people over 35 who may have been fans of the older movies. for the same reasons stated above, Godzilla mainly appeals to a male audience because of the dark colours and fire, though the colour of the title and the fires also suggest that the audience is male because of the connotations of the red title and the fires suggests death and destruction. Despite Godzilla being a classic it is a mainstream film meaning that it would not go above a C audience in terms of social economic viewing.

analysis of Gamechangers

from the very beginning non diegetic sound is used that is played through certain scenes in the form of piano that is mixed with digital music to give a sense of mystery and realism, with this music a time lapse is shown of the city from an establishing shot from a birds eye angle from dawn to day. the music plays then merges into a backing track against a radio report of how GTA has been greatly anticipated and that this is the day of release, this report combined with the time laps has been used to demonstrate the waiting of the gamers hoping to buy this highly anticipated game.

the scene then changes form the city to the reporters whom are shown from a mid shot wearing professional but dull clothes to draw more attention to the background which shows scenes of war possibly foreshadowing a horrific or confrontational event that is yet to come but also

demonstrating the importance of the game as it is taking priority over wars and international crisis and how the channel is not just some local news channels. the reporters are only shown for a short time as gameplay is shown with the female reporter explaining the game allows you to be a gangster in your own home.

a mid shot of what presumably is the main character is shown as he eats cereal suggesting that it is morning , his surroundings are dull but softly lighted, the only bright thing is the yellow mug, so the main character probably runs on coffee. the camera angle then switches to behind the character and zooms form the mid zoom shot focusing on the tv form which the male presenter asks 'can Sam Housers rockstar games pull off making the most successful games twice in the space of one year' though just before he says this there is another shot of the characters face from a close angle and with stronger lighting to show his focus on the article before it quickly switched to a close up of the male characters face.

directly after this the character puts on a grey coat form a medium long shot and walk towards his wall mounted bike (the fact that the bike is wall mounted inside suggest that he lives in a flat or apartment) by walking out just after the news report ends suggests that he is linked to the game somehow, the background music then becomes more dominant.

after this the character then leaves the house with his bicycle in arm as he carries it down a flight of stairs, shown in the form of a long tracking shot from the side as he descends. the characters hood is up giving a sense of mystery. as he walks down the steps a new non-diegetic sound enters as a radio station continuing the report on grand theft auto, it states that is a New York radio station giving the location of the character. the lighting outside is sunny but overshadowed by tall buildings.

then, for dramatic effect the following scene is of a mid-small white text stating 'this is based off a true story' while playing the first piece of music shown in the film, giving the audience a desire to understand this story.

after this the character is shown from a mid shot but form the waist down with the camera tracking him until he turns away from which point he moves away into a long and then extreme long shot of the main character, as this is happening the static cars to the left of the character become grey and blue digital models, this links the character to the game which is further reinforced by the radio station continuing to talk about the game.

 the shot then changes to the legs of the character as he continues to cycle as he does so his surroundings continue to change into digital models. his gives a sense of distance travelled and to show the passing of time.

once again the same white text on a black background shows while playing the non-diegetic piano music, this time it reads some scenes have been altered for dramatic effect. this does not help set the scene but does avoid legal matters.

a mid shot of the upper half of the character is shown from behind the character, he is cycling up to Brooklyn bridge giving emphasis on his location , the building in the distance then become 3D models, the continuation of objects becoming models builds curiosity and tension in the audience as they will be hoping to find an explanation to the connection between the character, the models and the game grand theft auto.

Audience (unfinished)

• gender target
• social economic class
• age range

vogue
a fashion magazine aimed at women with strong sense in fashion and a large income, but does also attract people who simply have an interest in fashion or seek some form of entertainment, however this type of magazine would no appeal at all to a man with no interest in fashion. vogue was first released in 1892 with about 13,000 having been released since then and has always maintained its reputation as a high class fashion magazine, history always helps with popularity as it can be linked with reliability and often quality so need only to maintain an already built up reputation; though this isn't always easily as each issue need to present something new and interesting otherwise readers will become bored resulting in reduced sales.

• women
• a-c1 
• 20-40

Dr Who
a widely popular TV-series that has been running for just over 50 years allowing its audience to be wider than shows of a similar genre as people who have watched the show since it came out are also likely to watch the show now, though it mainly attracts younger audiences such as secondary school students and college students because of its popular si-fi genre and originality among other TV shows. Dr Who is mainly a form of entertainment in the form of escapism,  social integration because of its Saturday night family TV time and popularity resulting in most people being able to watch it and discuss the show later. the show is aimed mainly at young people but also occasionally at people who have been watching the show for many years by referring to past doctors. the oppositional audience for this sort of show would be an oppositional viewing for people who are easily sacred such as small children or people who do not enjoy science fiction so mainly people in their 50+s.

 Dr Who season 9 trailer

• male and female 
• 15-50
• b-e

darksiders 2

a less popular video game with a strong fantasy genre and violence throughout with a preferred audience of students as a form of entertainment and somewhat for social integration, this is game based on death (death is the main characters name) of the four horsemen who must travel across different realms in order to save his brother war. an oppositional audience for this type of game would be mainly people who are too young, against violence or do not enjoy fantasy genres, so this would mainly consist of children and women.

• male
• c1-e
• 16-30