1. Question 7 Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

2. Compare Looking at a copy of both my primary (practice) magazine (right) and my main second magazine (left), you can see many differences in layout, style and technique. The first magazine is more amateur looking with angled texts and jagged strap lines.

3. Too much text is angled which makes it look amateurish. Price at the top. A more professional looking photo to suit the genre. Too many tacky fonts. Yet they blend in with the magazine. A neater looking screamer. Text is more spaced out. Too much text which makes it look to busy. A grey scale image was used to allow the colour to stand out. Bulky barcode. Due to research and planning the fonts were more carefully considered. Slim barcode, taking up a small amount of room.

4. Planning and Preparation This was a great help to give me some initial ideas and a overview of my magazine. This was an easy way of drawing down my ideas, planning out the layouts and different styles and it was easy to get comments from my target audience face-to-face. I was able to draw down my ideas straight of the top of my head and create more original ideas with the use of some existing products. I looked into professional magazines front covers to get a rough idea of photo angles, lighting and styles (how the models are positioned and posed). The planning and preparation was vital as it gives you a wider range of ideas which help with a more professional looking magazine.

5. Photography For my preliminary magazine I didn't use a dslr camera which gave the aspect of the photo not looking professional without the use of Photoshop. After using Photoshop to edit the main image due to colours being dull and unbalanced etc. the difference for the main task was that the main image was taken using a dslr camera which required less Photoshop editing to be applied, which makes it look more realistic and professional. Both photos had to be shot different due to the number of models used and the feeling I wanted to send across to the target audience. With the use of techniques I learnt from the preliminary task I was able to get a more professional look for the photo on the main task. I realised that with a busy background like trees (primary magazine) the photo looked amateurish, so learning this i decided to go for a more plain background which added a slight sense of movement for my main magazine.

6. Layout and Style For both tasks style and layout had to be kept in mind to attract the target audience. I felt that it was easier to add style and layout to the main task as I knew what the genre was and how if could address them. Looking at both layouts you can see that there has been an improvement which makes it look more professional and tidy in the editing prospective. The fonts used work better together and it has been kept reasonably simple without adding to much angles etc. Which I know makes a magazine look amateurish due to the preliminary task.

7. Programmes I learnt that out of the two main programmes I used (Photoshop and quark express), Photoshop produced a more professional outcome and the style of the product is overall better. I learnt that using the correct programmes gives a better finish and final outcome. Photoshop was a great help to get a top clear image, whether it was to clear up the skins of models or enhance the colours and toning.

8. After practicing and learning new skills on the primary task (student magazine) I was able to enhance these skills on the main magazine. Due to the rough idea of some techniques and tools on Photoshop and quark express I was able to keep on top of my time plan and have a good organisation of time. The main things I learnt throughout this project were: how to use Photoshop in more depth with different techniques how to create a professional looking photograph and analyse and meet target audiences needs