The document summarizes what the author learned from completing a preliminary task of designing the front cover of a college magazine and then a main task of designing a full music magazine. Some key lessons included learning new software like InDesign and Photoshop, improving design elements like reducing clutter on the contents page, and better planning photo shoots by considering location and timing. The preliminary task also helped the author become less critical of their own work and more able to evaluate others' work and provide feedback.

1. Overall, I learnt quite a lot from my preliminary task. I was very pleased with the front cover of my college magazine, because I found that Microsoft Word was easier software to use. I was already a person who read a lot of magazines, especially in the automotive section so I already had some knowledge. <br />On the other hand, I also think that now I could have made that cover even better because now I know a lot more about the exact detail and conventions that you need to include in magazines in order to make them successful. My preliminary research helped me to a certain extent, but I felt that I learnt the most about other magazines when I had to analyse the full 10 contents pages, double page spreads and front covers for the main task.<br />I did share some concepts that were the same in both my preliminary cover and my actual front cover. For example: I used a bold blue masthead for both the pages, and for my cell lines I also continued to use bullet points to separate the topics in the magazine because I thought it made it clearer to read. I also used lures on both of my covers. <br /> I think that my two contents pages are quite different. My preliminary contents is quite cluttered and messy, but when you look at my actual contents page you see that there are a lot less images and more focus on the text. This is where my research helped me because I read other magazines and was able to establish that contents pages still need to attract readers, and should be as clear as possible so that members of the public can easily decide whether the magazine is right for them. Readers want too see the type of content that is in the magazine. <br />The software I used for the front cover of my preliminary task (Microsoft Word) didn’t help me when I had to create my actual front cover. I had to use the adobe Indesign and photoshop software instead and it was a real learning curve for me. Indesign/Photoshop was completely different to the Word program, but over time I learnt new effects such as how to magnetic lasso around an object and then change it to black and white. Another thing that I learnt was how to add lens flair to a picture, which I used for the metal ring on Alvin’s finger! I also added other effects, which I will certainly remember for the future if I ever create a music magazine again. <br />One of the most useful things I learnt from my preliminary task was how to organize the mise en scene and location of my photo shoots. For my college magazine I had to ask my model what time and date she could make the photo shoot, and had to also consider a suitable location which had good levels of light and not too many shadows. I choose the court yard at Henley College for this reason. It taught me that I had to do the same for Alvin’s shoot, and that was important because the location was in Birmingham!<br />I learnt a bit more about myself throughout this coursework. I think that I am over critical about my own work, and don’t offer good enough criticism of my peers work. My preliminary task helped me to begin to evaluate my own work more, and the main task helped me to evaluate other peoples, and even offer them guidance. I liked the fact that this coursework gave us the creative freedom to create our own designs of a music magazine, and I’m interesting in working in the magazine industry in the future!<br />