The student created a front page for a magazine, a double page article spread, and a website for the magazine. In reflecting on the projects, the student believes the designs came out well with balanced colors, fonts, and images. The student also learned new skills using InDesign and website design software in the process. Comparing the projects to professional examples, the student found similarities like large celebrity images and article previews, but also differences like use of space and image incorporation. The student feels the projects were successful overall considering it was their first time using the design software.

1. Evaluation
Ayrton Starkey

2. Product Reflection – Front Page
This is the final product of my front page and I believe that it has come out well as many
of the different aspects that I was trying to incorporate are working well with the rest of
the cover. I think that the colours of the magazine work well together as they are all
rather dark/pastel like colours which blend in with the background and not make it hard
for the reader to read. I also think the colours of the header work well with the main
image as they are both in black/white/grey and they don’t pull attention from each
other. When it comes to fonts, I tried to choose fonts that look alike and also fonts that
work well together on a page. I think I got the balance right since each bit of text does
not stand out more than another due to the font. I also picked the font for my title to be
grainy and damaged. I chose this because I thought that it went well with the theme of
the magazine and it also worked well with the image and background. The image that I
got was from google but I had to remove the background and smoke coming from the
cigarette so that I could add it on to my front cover. Most of the background was easy to
remove but when it came to removing the background around the hair, it was more
difficult. This is why you can see some of the title through the hair of the person. I think
the image works well with the rest of the things on the page as it doesn’t drag attention
from the rest of the page too much but also catches the eye of a reader which could
potentially convince someone to buy the magazine due to the star power. Overall I think
that my front cover turned out well and looks quite good. This is mainly due to how the
colours on the page work well together and don’t clash against each other.

3. Product Reflection – Double Page Spread
This is the final product of my double page spread. I wanted to make
my double page spread quite simplistic whilst also making it look
professional. I took many different photos so that I could get the right
one for the main image. I decided to use the one where the artist is
looking down at the camera as it gave a good view of their whole body
and the guitar. The image that is placed in the bottom right corner of
the page is an image that I photoshopped of the artist playing at a live
concert. I used the photos that I took in the studio of the person and
then got a photo of another band playing live. I cut them out of the
photo and placed Alex in it so that it looked like he was playing for the
crowd. I decided to keep the background colour of the double page
spread as white as it would match the image on the left page and also
so that the text could stand out against it. I made this double page
spread in InDesign and I have never used that program before. By using
this program to make my double page spread, I have got better at using
the program and it will help me if I ever use it again. I also think that
the page came out quite well considering I had never used that
software before. I also like how the masthead stands out against the
rest of the page and also how the subheading works well with the
masthead. The subheading is a good font size so that it links well with
the masthead whilst also not taking the attention from it. Overall I think
that my double page spread looks quite good.

4. Product Reflection - Website
This is the final product of my website. I made several different pages
on the website which contained information and content about
different things on each one. On my home page I wrote a few different
articles so that I could put a preview of them under the images and
titles so that it could entice a reader into reading the articles. I decided
to use the same colour scheme on the website as I had used on the
front cover of the magazine. This was to keep consistency between my
magazine and the website. I also kept to these colours as I think it suits
the font and the topic that is being talked about. For my videos section
I got inspiration from the Kerrang! Website and made my video section
similar as I liked the design and layout of their page. Since I had never
used this program it took me a while to figure out what I was doing and
how I was going to do it. Due to this, as I progressed through making
my website, I began to get better at using the program and I feel like
my website started to look better due to this. By getting familiar with
this program, this will help me if I choose to make another website for
another project or even for my final major project when I come round
to making it. I wanted to keep the design of my website simple yet also
make it look professional. This was so that the design mirrored my
double page spread in a way and also so its easy to navigate. I did this
by not using any complex colour schemes and wacky effects, but
keeping to a straight forward and professional looking colour scheme.
Overall I think that my website came out well as it is easy to navigate
and is also aesthetically pleasing to the reader.

5. Product Comparison – Front Page
Similarities – One of the
similarities between these two front
covers is the large main image in the
middle of the page. Both magazines
have a large image of a person which
takes up a large amount of space on
the page. By having a celebrity on
the front cover, the star power can
convince a passer-by to purchase the
magazine.
Another similarity would be the text
placed around the page. Both front
covers have pieces of text scattered
around the page which tell the
reader what they can expect to see
inside the magazine and what topics
will be covered.
Another similarity between the two
front covers is the parts which are
advertising a free item. My front
cover is advertising a competition
whilst the other magazine is
advertising a free album. Whilst the
topics are not the same, the concept
is. By seeing one of these
advertisements, it could persuade a
reader to purchase the magazine.
Differences – One of the differences
between the two front covers would be
the range of colours. My magazine has
more dark colours to fit in with the
background and the image whilst this
other magazine uses a range of vibrant
colours to catch the eye of the reader.
Although my magazine does not catch
the eye of a reader as easily, I still think
that it looks good and I am happy with
it.
Another difference between the two
magazines would be the size of the
main image and how much space it
takes on page. Whilst my main image
on my front cover takes up a lot of
space on the page, it leaves a lot of
space for other things to be placed on
the screen. The other magazine has its
main image taking up the majority of
the screen, leaving less space other
things to be placed on the page without
the main image obstructing it.

6. Product Comparison - Double Page Spread
Similarities – One of the similarities
between my double page spread and
this professional one is the colour
scheme. Both spreads stick to a black
and white colour scheme which helps
bring out the text and make the image
and masthead stand out against the
background and article. The black and
white colour scheme also keeps the
page quite simple whilst also making
the page look nice as there are not
clashing colours.
Another similarity between the two
double page spreads would be a large
image taking the majority of the left
page. By having a large image of the
artist on the page, you are showing the
reader who the artist is and who the
article is talking about. By having a large
image also helps keep the reader
interested as the background of the
page is purely white and there is
nothing interesting happing on it which
can end up boring a reader.
Differences – One of the differences between
the two double page spreads would be the way
the image of the artist is incorporated in to the
double page spread. On my spread I have added
a large separate image of the artist which takes
up the entirety of the left page whilst on the
other double page spread the image does not
take up the entire page and also blends in with
the masthead and the rest of the spread. By
having the image blend in with the page it can
help make the spread feel more fluid and also
more professional. If I could go back I would
probably try and find a way to incorporate that
idea in to my double page spread.
Another difference between the two double
page spreads would be the amount of space the
article takes up. The article that I have used on
my double page spread takes up the majority of
the right page with the only spaces being filled
with an image and the masthead. However on
the other double page spread the article is
compressed and takes up less space. This
makes the page look cleaner and contributes to
making every aspect of the page work together.
By having the article take up less space it also
gives room for more images or other things that
can be added to the double page spread to
make it look more interesting or more detailed.

7. Product Comparison - WebsiteSimilarities – One of the
similarities between my website
and the kerrang website would be
the tabs which switch the page. On
both websites the tabs stand out
from the background so that you
can easily see them. They are also
very close to the title on both
websites. This helps the reader
find tabs a lot easier when they
scroll down the page as they will
know where to find them.
Another similarity between the
two websites would be the articles
being shown on the home screen.
By showing the main articles on
the home screen of the website, it
will pull more viewers as it is the
first thing that you see when you
enter the site. If people end up
reading these articles it can also
boost your magazine sales as they
could become interested in
purchasing the magazine so that
they can read more about the
topic that is being discussed on the
website.
Differences – One of the differences
between the two websites would be the
vibrant colours. On the kerrang website they
use vibrant colours which grab your
attention immediately when you enter the
site. Although my website does not contain
many vibrant colours, it is much easier to
look at as the vibrant colours of the kerrang
website begin to hurt your eyes and it
begins to lose its aesthetic appeal.
Another difference between the two
websites is the menu button in the top right
of the kerrang website. This button gives
you a selection of the different areas of the
website that you can visit. This saves the
user time as they don’t have to scroll up and
find the tabs to navigate the website when
they can just press the menu button which
follows the page as it is scrolled down. Since
my website does not have this feature,
when the user scrolls down, the tabs follow
the user just like the menu button does on
the kerrang website. I think this works just
as well as the menu although it may not
have the same aesthetic appeal and it also
takes up quite a lot of space on the page.