LANGUAGE.
The main image is a close up shot of a young woman. This shows that it appeals to young travelling women; she is also an attractive person who attracts men as well, and looks around the age of travelling people. The way she is hiding her face suggests mystery and reflects the title of something being hidden. E.g. Hawaii being a secret paradise. The mast head follows the simple code and conventions of regular magazines, with the text located at the top of the page with it spreading out across the width of the page. The way the image is behind the masthead says to the audience that the traveler edition of the national geographic franchise is not that recognizable or well known; this also adds to the illusion of hidden Hawaii. The colour of the masthead is white this could be because that it is associated with light, goodness and innocence, this is contrast with the dark hair of the young woman connotes elegance and mystery. This image is a posed image instead of a candid image, this is a direct mode of address to the reader, and it is a positive thing as the audience feels intrigued by the hidden aspect. The use of the yellow flowers in her hair coincides with the colour of the national geographic logo. This could be used because yellow is a symbol of sunshine, it is associated with joy and happiness. The yellow flowers in her hair are similar to that of the welcoming Lei flower necklaces. The thick yellow boarder represents the national geographic logo; it could also represent a picture frame as to give recognition or credit to the photographer. The colour scheme: Yellow, Green, Orange and White; this connotes a spring theme. It could also give the impression that the best time to visit Hawaii is in the spring. These colours also give the audience a calming feel, as the colours aren’t harsh and in the readers face, they are more soft pastel colours. The colour green is the colour of peace and nature; it symbolizes growth, harmony, freshness and fertility. This could connote the impression of the health benefits of Hawaii, as all the stresses of the real world are lifted as you rejuvenate in Hawaii. The inclusion of orange for one of article headings; combines the energy of red and the happiness of yellow. This gives the representation of enthusiasm, fascination, creativity encouragement and stimulation. The combination of the article title and the colour orange shows harmony. The anchorage text gives the audience an insight into the image and inside stories. This offers the audience an incentive to read the rest of the magazine. This use of structure to the front cover gives the audience a sort of guide for reading the whole magazine in an order to receive all the information. The layout of the magazine front cover meets the codes and conventions of a magazine. The sell-lines on the cover of the magazine are used to attract people to buy this magazine. The use of the title ‘4 great literary cities’ with the contrast of ‘Los Angeles with kids’ gives this magazine a wider audience. The front used is bold for the main stories and it stand out against the merged colour background. The use of different font sizes shows the importance of particular stories. The language used such as the adjectives make the sell lines better as they make the appeal of the magazine more interesting.
AUDIENCE.
The wide range of travel destinations means that the magazine appeals to a wider audience; such as families. This is because there is an article advertised on the front for travelling to Los Angeles (LA) with kids. This is also achieved by having the website link for the online version; this shows that the magazine is available for an audience that prefers to use technology. The demographic audience is late teenagers through to mid to late thirties. This is because of the prime age of travelling is university gap years and the audience may not have the responsibility of a job, house or a family to restrict them. National geographic also caters to a more family orientated unit as there are articles for safe travel for children. The psychographic audience is definitely the Aspirer and the Explorer and maybe the Succeeder. This is because, the editor is reaching towards the people who live outside the stereotypical comfort bubble, and want to explore the hidden aspects of countries and places that are off the beaten/tourist tracks so to speak. The audience theory that the magazine meets is the uses and gratification model. This magazine conforms to this theory because it relates to the four sub headings: diversion, personal relationship, personal identity and surveillance. Because so many people conform to the tranquility of a beach paradise and Hawaii, the audience will be attracted to buy the magazine as a means of escape and a cheap holiday. The personal relationship and personal identity relate very well to this magazine because, the main image is of a young attractive woman. This would encourage both men and women to buy the magazine as a relationship is formed just on the looks of the model. This is because in today’s society people are judged purely on looks alone. The subheadings on the front cover relate well to the traveler edition of the national geographic franchise because of the sell line the audience knows what the magazine is going to be about. Surveillance is letting the audience know about different travel destinations around the world, and the highlights of those countries. The sell lines make the magazine appealing to a wider audience because it is giving them information on what’s inside the magazine. The audience reading for this magazine is a dominant one, because the audience understand the morals and messages and agree with them.
VALUES AND IDEOLOGY.
The messages that the editor of National Geographic Traveller Magazine is trying to convey to the audience are, that it is important to go travelling with your children, but to do it safety and to be well informed. This shows the importance of family values. The front cover gives a juxtaposed messaged as it is just a young women. the message that it received by the audience is that women can and should be independent when travelling. On the other hand, because the women is facing down with her face not in focus it could give the opposing message women being too shy to travel. Another message that the front cover conveys to an audience is that to never forget the places you have been to, and not to leave places out. This is done through one of the articles that references the forgotten towns and cities of Italy. In addition, a important message that the front cover forwards on to the audience is that even last minute trips to places is okay to do, and can be completed. The final message that the National Geographic Traveller magazine conveys to the audience is that every day is a new day that holds a new adventure. This shown through the story title 'Egypt's New Day'.
REPRESENTATION.
The process of which this magazine represents the real world is through the genre of the magazine. This is because the audience is attracted to what the magazine stands for. The people that are being represented in this magazine are young people, who enjoy indulging themselves and splashing out on nice exotic holidays. It represents students who are travelling and exploring the world in a gap year. The preferred audience for this representation is primarily men as the model on the front cover is an attractive young women, it also represents women as she doesn’t have lots of makeup and hasn’t been surgically ‘fixed’. In the picture the model is looking down and hiding her face. This activity is not typical and is posed to a certain degree. I believe that the model and the layout conforms to the expectations and conventions of the travel genre.
In this instance the model represents the typical travelling age. It also represents Hawaii through the front cover, this is because it gives the audience a calming feeling and there isn’t a lot going on. This represents the more remote places of Hawaii, as if you wanted a relaxing holiday in paradise you wouldn’t go to the main busy cities. This is because like most countries Hawaii’s capital is busy and crowded.
INSITUTIONS.
The barcode is placed in the bottom right hand corner as not to distract the reader from the main image and story. This is also a convention of magazines. National geographic Magazine is the official magazine of the National Geographic society, which is composed of a hard copy magazine, online magazine, an informative website, YouTube and TV channel, Facebook page, travel tours and guided trips. All of these aspects primarily contain articles or information about geography, history and world culture. The magazine in particular is known for its thick square-bound glossy format with a yellow rectangular boarder and its extensive use of dramatic photography. The magazine was formerly known as ‘The National Geographic Magazine’ however, was shortened to ‘National Geographic’. It has been published monthly, continuously since its first issue in 1888, nine months after the society itself was founded. The magazine has an additional map supplements that are also included with subscriptions. These supplements are available through the traditional printed editions and through the interactive online version. Occasionally special editions are published.
NARRITIVE.
For this magazine cover I have chosen, the theory of binary opposites by Levi-Strauss,
The story of this magazine is shown through the main image on the front cover. This is because the young woman shows a narrative of an audience that enjoys travelling to hidden paradises. The narrative is driven forward by the placement of the model, as her face is hidden, the effect of this is that the audience is intrigued and wants to find out more.
GENRE.
The typical genre of a National Geographic magazine is history, geographic and world culture. However, they have magazines such as this one that are just focused one topic or genre. This particular magazine has the genre of a travelling magazine. This means that the articles on the inside will be about different countries, which the target audience can travel to.
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