Conventions of a Double Page Spread

The main image on the double page spread should take up the equivalent of one page because then the reader can quickly see that it is their article and that they are from the front cover. I will aim to have the main image around about a page in size but I might have it a little smaller depending on the amount of writing in the article. My main image of the artist will be bigger than 50% of a page but maybe not the full 100%. Sometimes the image goes over both pages, for example, having the main image in the middle of the double page spread with text on both sides around it.

Double page spreads also have the masthead at the top and it is often the biggest text on the page. This is so that the reader can be drawn in by the title of the article and often it can attract more people to read it. I think I will stick to having it on the left page because then the rest of the article will flow better on to the right page. I will definitely have it as the biggest text on the page because then it makes it very clear to the reader.

The artist/bands name is the second biggest text on the page so that for anybody who still doesn't recognise them instantly, they will be able to see who it is. I think this is a convention that I will stick to because the article is all about that artist/band so they should be shouted about. Also the typography is conventionally sans serif to connote informality, which I think I will do to give my magazine a constant theme.

The double page spreads conventionally have pull quotes in a different colour and usually bigger and bolder. I will do this because it highlights important quotes from the artist/band which might draw in more readers who are apprehensive about reading their article. The rest of the text is usually black to stand out against the colour palette. It is conventional to have the colour palette of the double page spread the same as the cover page, which makes the editions flow more and often connotes something about the artist/band.

It is conventional for Q and A articles to have the interviewers questions in a different colour and in bold so that there is a distinct difference between the different speakers. If I decide to do a Q and A article, this is something that I will definitely do because it will stop any confusion.