I have learned significant technical skills in programs like Photoshop, InDesign, and Excel. My analysis of existing media products helped me understand how magazines attract audiences through intentional design conventions. Comparing my preliminary and final covers shows advances in using genre-appropriate fonts, high contrast colors, character framing, lighting techniques, puffs, plugs, barcodes, datelines, page thirds, bottom lines, issue numbers, and attention-grabbing words.

1. 7) Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have
learnt in the progression from it to the full product?
I think the most dramatic development between the preliminary task and
final product is the advancements in my technical knowledge. The details
of which can be seen in Question 6, but include my adoption of programs
such as Photoshop, InDesign, Bridge, Word, Powerpoint and Excel, as well
as learning how to properly use a camera in order to create magazine-
appropriate images.
Most interesting for me was the analysis of existing media products,
because I didn’t realise how much thought went into catching the eye of a
magazine’s audience and I now understand that there is a certain science
to how it is carried out. The fact that the same conventions are present
across so many different examples of the products really goes to show
that they work, and I had no knowledge of this at the time of the
preliminary task.
A side by side comparison of my two front covers shows how I have learnt about
the use of:
- Genre appropriate fonts
- Eyecatching, high contrast colour schemes
- Character framing (longer shot)
- Lighting
- Puffs and plugs
- Barcodes
- Datelines
- The three thirds of the page
- Bottom Lines
- Issue Numbers
- Eyecatching words such as “Exclusive” and the use of direct address in
writing