College Magazine evaluation

College Magazine Evaluation

We were given a preliminary task to create a college magazine which consisted of a cover page and a contents page. I used a software called photoshop to create my front cover and a different software to create my contents page. In the previous lessons I used both softwares to get an understanding of how to use them.

Front Cover:

I feel the photography of my front cover could have gone slightly better. Firstly the picture of my front cover is of good quality as it is not blurry and you can clearly see what the cover is doing. The picture of the cover star is a medium close up because you can only see above his waist but it is not just his face that is being shown but his upper torso. The picture is relevant to the magazine issue as my cover star is reading a book which clearly suggests that the theme is revision and help with school subjects. The fact that the student is reading in a library shows that he is committed to learning and encourages others students to learn too. The picture was taken on a smartphone which is still a good quality picture, although having a dslr camera would improve the image quality. I kept the picture as it is without adding any effects, primarily to keep it simple so it won’t overload the reader’s eyes. For the actual music magazine I will add more effects to the picture.

The cover page was done on photoshop so I could manipulate and arrange the layout of the picture and the text. On photoshop I enlarged the image to fit the whole front cover. I used the font called stencil for my masthead. I used this font because it is a large font in capitals making stand out and attracting the reader. The font also looks serious making it look professional to the reader. I moved the masthead to the top of the page as this is where the reader normally starts reading and so will see it first. I also used photoshop to add the college logo and I resized to a much smaller size so it would fit in the corner. In the far bottom left of the cover I added issue date and price. I used photoshop to make the size small and place it in the corner. I then added an ISBN code below the price to make like a true magazine also decreasing the size and placing it in the corner.

The text on the front cover of the page is in different colours and different font. I tried to create a three colour scheme yellow, blue, and white. Firstly the masthead is font size 68 and stencil font. I made it this large as it is the first text that the reader will see when they first look at magazine. The skyline which as the top of the masthead is the font Segoe print and the font size is 19. I used this font because it isn’t too formal which attracts the target audience’s attention age (16-25). The size of font is 19 so it would fit perfectly on top of the masthead making the layout look better. The next text that the reader would see would be all the pull quotes around the whole magazine cover. The font for all of the pull caps is terminal and the font size is 16. I used this font as it is clear to see and stands out from the main picture (the cover star). I made the size 16 to make it smaller than the masthead but still a significant size to make it clear. Lastly the last piece of text the reader would see is the text on the bottom left corner. This consists of the price, issue number and date. The font is TW cen mt condensed extra bold and size 12. I used this font as it is an eye catching font which reader can see even with the small size. I used size 12 font because they don’t sell the magazine as much as the other text and they are not as important as the rest. However the information is still a little significant as it tells the reader if they are on track with their magazines and if it’s the right price for them.

The layout in general is clean and simple. I kept the layout this way because I did not want to overwhelm the reader as this would potentially put them off from buying the magazine. I focused mainly on the image which shows the cover star reading a book. I used this as a centrepiece so I could work around it for the layout. The masthead is at the top of the page with only the skyline above it. I placed it at the top because it would be one of the first things the reader would see when they read it. I added a skyline to the top because this is a typical feature of a magazine. The rest of text is around the cover star. Additionally, the text is not clumped up all in one place this makes it much easier for the reader to read. I made the text a clear but simple font. This again makes it easier for the reader to see.

There was not too much journalism in this task although there were still aspects that included journalism. My target audience was from the ages 16 – 18 which in other words means a young adult. The language that I used was quite formal so I kept the magazine quite professional. Even though the language was mostly formal it would still appeal to my target audience and even their parents and or guardians. This meant the magazine would reach a wider audience promoting the magazine.

Contents:

The contents page was created on InDesign because the software enabled me to use the features to create a skilled contents page. There were many tools on InDesign which enabled to create a columns, image boxes and text boxes. I had used InDesign recently before and this previous experience help me use the different tools available. I created three columns which included all my text apart from the masthead and picture text. The first column had the heading “Regulars”. This had mostly the information from the front cover. I left a small gap between each text so the contents page won’t be too cluttered. I did this to make it clearer. The next column was towards the right of the contents page and had the heading “Features”, this included special features that excluded the regulars but things like “map of the college”. The last column is below the second on and this has the heading “Reviews” and two subheadings “Books” and “Films and T.V”. I kept the colour scheme black and white as these colours contrast well make it stand out. At the bottom right of the page I placed the same college logo that was in the cover, additionally next to the logo I placed the twitter and Facebook logo but at a smaller size. I used these logos so I could promote the college more.

I included two images in my contents page. The first image is on the top right of the contents page. I reduced the six so it would fit in the top so it won’t take too much space. The image is of me in the library reading a book. This image is relevant to the issue which is about a fresh start with revision. The image is a medium shot as you can see the background, book and my face. I also added text to the image as part of the contents page which says library. I used an image to show this text as it is an important aspect of this issue of the magazine. The next picture is towards the bottom left of the contents page. This image is a long shot which is also an action shot. The image is of me shooting a basketball in an outdoor basketball court. This is relevant to the text on the image as the text is sport. I used an image for this text again as this is a significant part of the contents and context of the magazine. Overall I feel the images that I included were of a very good standard as they are appropriate for this issue and captivate the reader.

In this part of the task there was a larger journalism aspect of the task. The language in the contents page is similar to the cover page, as it is aimed at the same target audience. There’s very few informal aspects e.g. an exclamation mark in the text “Win a new Samsung galaxy tablet”. In general the language appeals to all audiences and so promotes the magazine to a wider audience.

 Comments people made on my work:

Sulman Muhammed

I like your front cover as it seem real due to the events going on and the background.
You have used a 3 colour scheme white blue and black and like the layout of the header and skyline. You could improve the cover lines by making them bigger and laying them a bit better.
I like the aspects you have used such as the college logo twitter and Facebook to make the magazine to a younger audience. You have a good layout for a contents page making it seem professional. You have also used sub-headers which separated topics making it easier to find topics 
you could improve it by adding a backgrounds instead of white.

Abul Hasnath Al-Azad

Your front cover is good, you could add some colour to it and the background is kind of messy but it shows what college life is really about, your text could be bigger and you could add some pull quotes. Your contents page is good but is plain you could add some colour but the layout overall is really good

What I need to improve on:

I need to improve on the quality of my images.
I need to take a wide variety of images not just of (people reading)
I need to use a proper three colour scheme to make it look like professional magazines.
The text size can be increased to make it stand out from the cover star more.
To make the cover tidier I can arrange the cover lines in columns.
I need to add pull quotes to give a different dimension to the context and language.

The contents page can use some more colour; I could add a background image or change the         colour from white to a brighter colour so it attracts the reader more.
I could have created a three coloured scheme in the contents page to make like a true magazine.
The text; “Follow us on Facebook and twitter” can be included in the column to make the contents page look more clean.

Key Development Points:

My first key development point is to use a variety of different images for my whole magazine. I generally used the picture of someone reading a book in my contents and cover page image. This can make the reader uninterested as I am repeating the images too often. The images of people reading in a library are quite boring and so I need to use an assortment of images to intrigue the reader.

My second development point is that I need to have a background image or change the colour of my contents page background. The image now is white and plain. This doesn’t make the contents page look that interesting and so it would look much better with an image in the background.

My last key development point is to have a true three colour scheme for my whole magazine. This will make my magazine look more professional and it will look more sophisticated. Also the three colour scheme will make it look more dynamic and will attract the reader.