The student was asked to create a school magazine front cover and contents page for a preliminary task. They conducted research by analyzing other school magazine covers and doing a questionnaire. They then created rough copies of the magazine front cover and contents page. For the front cover, they used Photoshop to remove the background of a photo of a student, add the school logo and masthead, and include additional images and text. For the contents page, they positioned photos and added shadows to give the images more interest. Through this process, the student learned how to edit photos in Photoshop and clean them up.

1. A brief
I was asked to create a school magazine
front cover, and a school magazine
contents page for my preliminary task.
• I did my own research by analysing other school magazine front covers
• I did a quick questionnaire asking what people expected to be in a school magazine, and also a proposal form to
give me ideas on what I was going to include on my magazine and who m audience was going to be.
• I then did rough copies of my magazine

2. School logo attract
the attention of
pupils/parents who
may want to read the
magazine.
The white text
goes over the
white shirt so it is
hard for people
to read.
Good use of pictures to
show to demonstrate what
the magazine is going to
be talking about.
Short secondary
stories to show what
else is inside the
The date of when the
magazine was published, so
people will know if it’s a new
or old edition.
The masthead is the biggest
font and matches the colour
scheme of the magazine, also it
is a pun on the word “Sixth
Form”, will make the readers
laugh and want to read what is
inside.
Not a very appealing
background so people might
not want to read on as its not
eye catching. Also, it doesn’t
show the school, when it is a
school magazine.
There is no school
website or contact details
so people can’t find out
more information.

3. The school logo is
so faded that it is
really hard to see.
Shows the price of
the magazine, cheap
so people would want
to buy it.
The lighting on the
school building makes
it look very appealing
and eye catching.
The word “new” appeals
to the readers because
they would want to
know what it is
They have space to write
the school details such as
the website, or phone
number but they have left it
blank.
Giving readers to
input in the school
community.
Teaser story – shows what will
be inside but in a snappy
sentence so the audience know
whether they would want to read
inside if it appeals to them.
All the font on the
magazine is
different so it lacks
consistency.

4. What do you
look for in a
school
magazine?
Tally
Reviews on books
Top tips for
homework
How to beat bullies
How to balance
school and social
life
How to stay healthy
(25 people asked)

5. AS Media Studies Preliminary Task – School Magazine Front Page Proposal Form
Target audience:
(age range, interests)
Although it is a school newsletter you still have to think about
your audience and how to appeal to them.
Possible title ideas:
(masthead / title block)
What is your magazine going to be called?
Main image:
What will be the focal point of your front page, remember, your
work “must include a photograph of a student in a medium
close-up”
Main cover line:
What will be the main story?
The age would range from 11- 18 (Year 7 to sixth form)
Preston manor press
Preston press
press
A picture of a student in a working background, or a picture of them in front of an
appealing part of the school.
Head girl wants to make big changes to the school
Additional key images:
What other images will be on your front cover?
Remember, it is a school magazine.
Pictures of the sixth form, head teacher, school logo, housing logos
Additional cover lines:
Other features, stories or selling points which will be inside the
magazine, these need to be audience appropriate.
Network issues, student ID cards, do the sixth formers like the new study area,
Typography:
(style, size, colour of copy)
Think about the writing and the style of the writing on your front
page.
Big, bold masthead in the colour black.
Highlighted points in the colour purple
Background colour/image:
What will be in the background, remember you don’t want to take
the focus away from the main image.
School colours – navy and red with grey to match it OR purple to match the website.
Technical considerations:
(equipment, setting, props, costume, lighting)
Be realistic and creative, think about what you have access to and
how you could use it.
DSLR Camera, green screen, box lighting/natural lighting, school background, classroom
background, photoshop

8. The first thing I had to do was get rid of the background
I used the Magnetic
Lasso Tool and roughly
went around my model.
I started to build up my magazine by
adding a masthead, the edition and
school logo, and eventually added my
secondary stories.

9. To feather out the image, I selected the part of the image I wanted
and changed the feathering to 100 as it was at 0. I then dragged
the image onto a new page and positioned it where I wanted. I
also did this for the other photos I added onto the contents.

10. I clicked ‘fx’ and then Drop
Shadow.
This page then came up and I started to
play around with the different levels of
opacity, distance, spread and size, until I
got it how I wanted.

11. What have I learnt?
I learnt how to edit photos in different ways to give them a more interesting look, and I will use the techniques
I have learnt in my music magazine when I come to it.
I have also learnt how to clean up a photo whether its been cut slightly wrong or if it needs touch ups. There
are many tools on photoshop that helps me to achieve this.