The document describes the process of designing a school magazine, including its front cover and contents page. Key points: - The student interviewed fellow students to understand what they want in a school magazine, such as school information, photos, and events. - Sketches were created for the front cover and contents page layout before taking photos of students and creating the final designs in Photoshop. - The front cover features a close-up student photo, main story, and additional stories/images. Typography, background color, and technical considerations were also planned. - The contents page uses a colorful student photo with page numbers and story listings overlaid. Background, photos, and colors were adjusted to look

1. I was asked to design a school magazine. That would include its front
cover and a contents page.
I intended to:
• Search up images of other school magazines and look into their
designs and the key things they add
• Take pictures of fellow students in Preston Manor
• Create a masthead for my magazine
• Fill the front cover with stories that would interest students and
perhaps their parents

2. 26.09.13
masthead
A price
A splash with a
teaser story
A date
A school name
Secondary stories
A splash with a
teaser story

3. 26.09.13
This magazine uses colours red and
green.
•
Red is a colour of the Chenderit
school. It works well, because people
will look at it and will be more likely
to buy it if they associate with it.
•
The colour red also looks very lovely,
making it a magazine which many
girls of the school would buy

4. 26.09.13
Any possible fans of the
magazine will buy it
A price is relatively
small, more people will
buy it
Attracts fans of art
People featured
in these photos
(or their friends)
may buy this
magazine
A date is there to show if
it’s old or new
Mentioning a school name
gives this magazine a higher
chance to be bought by
students from the school
People interested in
music and technically
everyone who buys
school food would buy
the magazine

5. a date
masthead
teaser
story

6. •
This magazine uses blue as a main colour.
•
It is a very calming colour.
•
It is also associated with IT, which greatly links in with the topic this
main magazine will be discussing

7. •
It is a free magazine, meaning a lot of people will potentially be
reading it.
•
A focus on IT - both teachers and students, also "nerds" would be
reading this for its teaser story
•
‘satips’ - anyone interested in this particular tablet could be reading
this magazine
•
Young children could be reading this magazine, because there are
young children in the photo featured on the cover, which could
connect to the reader
•
Parents could be reading this magazine to know what ways PREP
SCHOOL chooses to teach their children, therefore it interests them.

8. MY RESEARCH
I interviewed 20 students from Preston Manor School to find out what they expect a magazine to be like.
What do you expect to see in a school magazine?
8 – information about the school
4 – gossip
3 – clubs
2 – photos
2 – events
1 – modern art
How much do you expect a school magazine to cost?
10 – nothing
4 – 50p
1 – £5
1 – £2.50
1 – £2
1 – 40p
1 – 25p
1 – 20p
How often should a school magazine be published?
13 – every two weeks
12 – every week
3 – every term
1 – every month
1 – every 5 weeks

9. 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.
Students in Preston Manor School, teenagers.
Their interests may be music, modern art, extra-curriculum activities, sports, upcoming events and information about
our school.
Possible title ideas:
(masthead / title block)
What is your magazine going to be called?
PMS and YOU
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 image will be a photograph of a happy student in Preston Manor High School, preferably a girl. She will be
smiling
Main cover line:
What will be the main story?
A Level subjects and grades that get you into your dream job
Additional key images:
What other images will be on your front cover?
Remember, it is a school magazine.
MAYBE a picture of a head of a sixth form who would be telling them about the grades they need to get into further
education OR a picture of a head boy/girl
Additional cover lines:
Other features, stories or selling points which will be inside the
magazine, these need to be audience appropriate.
Upcoming school events this term
Afterschool clubs that get you going!
Typography:
(style, size, colour of copy)
Think about the writing and the style of the writing on your front
page.
Style: Easy to read; either white or purple, just like PMS; medium size in order not to overshadow a person but easy
to read as well.
Background colour/image:
What will be in the background, remember you don’t want to take
the focus away from the main image.
Light background, maybe one of the school’s buildings far away in the picture
Technical considerations:
(equipment, setting, props, costume, lighting)
Be realistic and creative, think about what you have access to and
how you could use it.
I can take a picture of a student on the field or somewhere inside the building, so a blank wall would work as a
background. I would use a high quality camera and lighting in the art department to make sure my picture is as HQ as
it can get. The person I will be photographing will be dressed in casual, preferably light clothes, so she/he does not
look too concealed (this then will decrease the quality of the magazine, as the cover person will not connect with the
audience to make them take a magazine and read it).

10. Extreme Close-Up (ECU)
Medium Long Shot (MLS)
Interviewee looks into space in the frame
Big Close-Up (BCU)
Long Shot (LS)
Moving Subject Walks into Space
Close-Up (CU)
Very Long Shot (VLS)
High Angle Shot (looking down)
Medium Close-Up (MCU)
Two Shot (any shot with two characters or objects equally framed)
Low Angle Shot (looking up)
Medium Shot (MS)
‘Over the Shoulder Shot’
Tilted Frame (Canted/Dutch Angle)

11. Front cover sketch
I do not think I will be using the same layout, as this is my first
try. I may follow some of its details.

12. Contents page sketch
I do not think I will be using the same layout, as this is my
first try. I may follow some of its details.

13. • I used the pictures I took to create the cover of a school
magazine. First, I set the clear background.
• Cropped another picture of a student
• Added a title
• Added a main story
• Improved the writing in terms of size and colour after trying out
purple and seeing it not work

14. • I improved the colour of the picture, making it slightly brighter
• Then I added other stories
• Added a splash with more info about the A Level topic and a
head boy’s picture to make it more interesting
• Then I added few other stories
• Added pictures that could link with the afterschool clubs

15. • Finally, I added the issue number. I chose to put it there because
it isn’t very important and many other magazines do not
emphasize it. They put it near the barcode, but since this
magazine is free, there is no need for a barcode.
• I decided this is my final magazine cover, because it is decent, it
has enough information on it and it looks as professional as it
could with not too much and not too little. It has to catch the
readers’ eyes and I think it does that.

16. • My contents page main colour is light
grey. I decided not to use white, as it
would be too bright.
• Added a picture I took of a student
who looks very happy as it may
increase the mood of the other
students who are reading this
magazine.
• I wrote ‘contents’ on top of the photo
as this saves space and connects the
blank page with the photo.

17. • Then I used a photo that was taken
of me and photoshopped it. I took
away the yellows, making it much
more interesting, because the main
colours are red and blue.

18. • I took away the corners of the photo to give it a
softer look.
• I added the page numbers and started adding the
stories that featured on the cover and others that did
not.

19. What have I learned?
I learned how to make a magazine look as professional as possible and I learned how important the
use of colours can be. Also, it really makes a difference what is the background and how close a
person is to the camera.
I learned it matters what your audience is interested in and what they would like to see.