5. Since my preliminary task, I feel like I have progressed in many technical ways,
improving my skills with the knowledge I have gained over the duration of this
course. At the start, I had little to no knowledge of how to use Photoshop,
whereas over time I’ve been able to develop my skills.
The images used for both my front page and contents page I felt were
disappointing due to the fact there is little lighting used, other than the
natural lighting in the room. I barely spent any time on the image itself, and
instead tested out all sorts of fonts. I also felt I could’ve added more features
to the front page so that readers knew what to be expected instead. I also
would’ve liked the second image to be set somewhere else, using other tools
instead of just art products; otherwise it gives off the impression that that’s
the only thing it focuses on, instead of other subjects too.
6. My final production shows a variety of coloured lighting, and I definitely spent
more time on the photo editing features. I looked at different contrasts and
brightness settings to see what looked the best. I definitely progressed in font
choosing. I felt the fonts on my preliminary task were more childlike,
appealing more to a younger audience – even though the main attraction was
supposed to be sixth formers. My final task has a similar audience, but with a
wider range of ages that stretched to women in their mid-twenties. I needed
a more professional look that appealed to a wider audience. It also made it
look more formal.
7. My Photoshop skills have improved immensely, as I began the course with
very little knowledge on it and now have taught myself to be familiar with a
majority of the tools they have.
I now know of adding layers, and how to position each one so all the others I
want people to see are visible through the others. I also know how to edit the
contrast and brightness of the colours, as well as sharpening the image. This
was helpful for my main task as it darkened my photo and made the reds and
blues stand out more. It made it more eye catching and vibrant, whereas
before it was plainer and didn’t look as appealing.
8. My layout/design has become increasingly complex; when before, in the
preliminary task, there was no proper structure to the contents page. It is
obviously shaped around the image itself, but I believe that my final task
looks so much better due to proper columns and a variety of fonts to separate
each section. It’s lack of structure and limited amount of features on the
contents makes it look plain and boring; this might discourage readers to
continue reading due to lack of interest.
With my music magazine, it’s variation in font and layout made it look more
interesting. I also learned how to use the line tool, layers, and used all the
fonts to differentiate each section from the other. This structure made it look
more appealing and more professional looking; like one you’d see in a
magazine such as CLASH. My research was very useful and helped a lot when
it came to my final production, whereas with my preliminary, I did little to no
research on it and therefore simply added things without much thought put
into it.
9. Continuing from fonts, I learnt how important mastheads are when it came to
popular magazines. The masthead, besides the photograph/model, is one of
the initial things that attract the attention of the audience. My masthead for
the preliminary task was vibrant and childlike to attract a younger audience,
and as it was a leaflet for school, I felt that if it was bold, it would make it
seem more interesting and less formal, and therefore attract the attention of
the students. However, I felt it was inappropriate for a music magazine with
such a wider target audience. My final production’s has a more professional
and older look, the thin capital letters making it stand out against the black
behind it. The colour scheme looks more adult and professional.
10. Through much research and planning, as well as using all the information I
now knew from both my final production front cover and contents pages, I
managed to construct my double page spread – which is my personal
favourite of the three. I like the colour that’s lit up behind the model, as it
makes the magazine look extremely professional. I also like the fade from pink
to black, which was originally caused by shadows from the shot I took, but as I
made the canvas wider, I filled in the empty space with a black fill as well as
burning around the pink so it looked like the image naturally faded into black.
I found this looked so much
better than if I filled the blank
space with the same pink
colour as it would look
unnatural.
11. CONCLUSION
In conclusion, the change from my preliminary task to my final production
was a very positive thing and definitely shows that I became increasingly
familiar with the program to create both tasks. I acquired new skills, as well as
improving on older ones. The skills I learned would then help me to construct
a professional looking magazine, as well as using my time to research and
plan. The research and planning made my magazine look like one you’d see
on the market, as I followed many codes and conventions to make it look
professional. The variation of fonts, shots and layout of my magazine were
necessities that I used to successfully complete my final production. Lastly,
my progression in Photoshop was extremely useful. If it wasn’t for this
program, I wouldn’t have been able to successfully make my magazine.
