In this blogpost, I will be doing a reverse engineer project of a modern magazine article where we will discuss the different typefaces and photography decisions the designer made. This two-page layout was taken from the December 2020, T5 Data Center issue, titled “The Complete Data Center Solutions Company.” The issue was found on Issuu.com at the link: https://issuu.com/businessreviewusa/docs/bro_t5datacenter_dec2020. This two-page layout was selected because of its visual appeal. We will attempt to dissect this selection from the inside-out to see why, exactly, it is appealing.
Category of Typefaces Used
On the very top left, the text that starts with “continuing”, we see a very clear example of Sans Serif. The name Sans Serif is a great descriptor, as sans means without. In this case, sans is referring to the lack of serifs on the end of each stroke. In addition to not having serifs, there also isn’t any variation in the thickness of the stroke, also known as mono-weight (further identifying it as a Sans Serif typeface). The second box down from the top is also Sans Serif, for the same reasons, but a different font than the one above it. Lastly, the biggest box on the bottom is a great example of the Old Style typeface category. This type is Old Style because of its subtle diagonal stress and moderate thick/thin transition in the strokes.
Typeface Contrast
There is a prominent contrast between the two fonts used in the heading of this magazine bifold. We can see that the first font uses very thick letters without much curvature in the strokes. When we look at the second font used, we find that the typeface is still Sans Serif, but it is a much thinner stroke with lots of curvature at the ends of the letters. If we look specifically at the letter t, we find this is a prominent difference between the two fonts. This a great example of contrast, which allows us to sense more visual appeal when looking at the spread out.
Photography
The two-page layout gives a great image to dissect. This photo depicts two great photography rules: Leading Lines and The Rule of Thirds. Leading Lines is used to draw the viewer eyes to a certain place on the image. The Rule of Thirds is used to organize the image and make it more visually appealing. I also would like to point out the repetition that the artist uses, which makes it more simplified and attractive.
Alternate Images for Layout
I tried three different settings for the images I chose to produce. In order to recreate and use the original rules observed in the magazine layout, I looked for places that leading lines and the rule of thirds could be used. I worked my eye and tried hard to discover different ways in which these rules could be applied. I had a lot of fun with it, and ended up with a variety of different images in completely different settings. These images could be used in the magazine if they are looking for photos following the same rules/ were covering various different topics.
Summary
It has been quite an experiment reverse-engineering this magazine layout, but I am happy to conclude that the process has taught us all quite a bit. Overall, the most influential design attributes have been the contrast the designer chose in the typefaces and the crisp image that is in accordance with The Rule of Thirds and Leading Lines. In addition to the previously mentioned attributes we have discussed, I love the repetition in the image and feel it play a great role in the final design of the layout.
Victoria Ewell 