House Style
Billboard maintain their brand image in all of their magazines with their colours red, yellow and blue, by including these colours within their masthead this enables their customers to recorgnise their magazine from just a short/ distant gaze in the magazine section, and their masterhead always remains at the top of the page either behind the main image or infront of the main image. The font size is always the same, however the font colour is usually either black or white. in all their issues Billboard places their barcode in the bottom left of the page. Their content page follows throught with the house style throught the consistency of their colour scheme, and layout.
The masthead of Vibe magazine varies on the colour as displayed on the examples above. however the positioning is always the same; placed behind the head of the main image. Customers are able to identify Vibe magazine from a distance due to the consistancy of their font; all the letters are displayed in block capitals, and the masthead in always at the top of the cover. Vibe also tends to include stickers on their front cover to alert the customers of a special feature of the magazine (such as something free). Below their content page displays a strong house style as they maintain the same layout on every issue, with the word 'Contents' divided into 3 rows. Vibe magazine are one of the few magazines that go against typical conventions of having 3 or more columns.
NME is consistent with the positioning of their masthead on the left side of the page, and also with their font type for the masthead. Similarly their contents page is always the same structure and colour scheme, and the type of images included. and sections such as 'band index' are included in every issue.
Q magazine is consistent with their masthead, this is seen in the issues of their magazine above. In all their issues the masthead remains the same, as opposed to other magazines where they adjust the colour usually to suit the theme of the issue. They have also maintained the positioning of their masthead (top left corner). Also their content page's layout is always the same, with one large image and one to three images at the bottum, also their headings are always the same.
House style is a set of guidelines used to instruct how documets from an organisation should be set out. The guidlines will take into consideration the colours that should be used, the justification of text (right, left or centre), where the masthead should appear and in what position, the font style and size and where other text (such as contact details or coverlines) should appear on the page. A successful house style is one in which allows someone to have a solid image or association which allows them to think of that specific magazine. Below are some examples of successful house styles:
Throughout the magazine we see that a theme of colour is presented on all the pages or sections that feature Coldplay. The band are presented the same on the front cover as they are within the magazine. there is a contestant theme of happiness, thus linking to the vibrant range of colour associated with the artists. Q maintain their house style by making sure the letter 'Q' is on every page (usually near the page numbers), this is to ensure the consistency and to allow customers to constantly...
be reminded that they're reading Q magazine, and also to establish their brand.
Throughout the magazine we see that a theme of colour is presented on all the pages or sections that feature Coldplay. The band are presented the same on the front cover as they are within the magazine. there is a contestant theme of happiness, thus linking to the vibrant range of colour associated with the artists. Q maintain their house style by making sure the letter 'Q' is on every page (usually near the page numbers), this is to ensure the consistency and to allow customers to constantly...
Example of house style within one issue (click to enlarge)
