We were given a preliminary task to create a college magazine which consisted of a cover page and a contents page. We learnt how to use Photoshop and InDesign and we used our knowledge to create the front cover and contents page on those specific software's. I used Photoshop to create my front cover, and used InDesign for my contents page which I will evaluate separately.
"The magazine looks very personable due the model smiling and holding a folder. This allows the college students to identify with the magazine and more likely to pick it up." - Samira Ismail
"Well done Fatma!! The picture is very well thought about in terms of the mid shot and how the model is posing portraying the good college life." - Anieska
"the photography on this is bomb! she looks naturally happy" - Eleanor
BEFORE AFTER
There are things I like about my front cover and there are things I could have improved on. One thing I like about my front cover is the cover star's photo. I made sure she was smiling with her teeth and also holding folders on her hand because it shows that she is happy to be attending the college and that she is a hard-working and intelligent student. It also makes the college seem like a welcoming and lively place because when I was taking the photo, I captured the image when she was laughing. It looks natural and not forced which also adds to the happy, welcoming theme. I took the photo outside because natural lighting is the best lighting especially for a college magazine as an effortless magazine would catch many students attention making them feel no different than the cover star. However, the image I was planning to use for my cover image was not the one I used on my final magazine. The reason I changed it was because when I originally took my front cover photo, I took a long-shot image because I wanted to show the environment of the college. When I used the image, I was instructed to make it a mid-shot because that was the ideal college magazine my teachers wanted. However, after zooming in on the same image, the photo became pixalleted and blurry which decreased the quality of the image. This meant that I had to use a different image because having a pixalleted front cover would not attract the audience and it would have made my magazine look unprofessional. My new image I used is not as pixalleted as the original photo I was planning to use which is a good thing however one thing I could have done better is take an actual medium shot image so I wouldn't have had to zoom in and reduce the quality of the image.
" The front cover looks very clean as a front cover as the brightness makes the cover star stand out with the bright background and the dark clothing worn by the cover star makes the cover star stand out from the background. "- Joshua Michael
To edit my image, I used Photoshop to brighten the image and also increase the contrast. I brightened the image because the place I took the photo was outside however there was no sunlight as the weather was cloudy. The bright image has made my photo look as if it was taken in a sunny area. Also, the fact that the background is very bright was an advantage because the model was wearing dark clothes as Joshua has pointed out, and this made her the focal point as the dark clothing was contrasting with the light background.
The masthead being wrapped around the main image makes the cover star stand out." - Joshua Michael
Another thing I liked about my front cover is the masthead. I erased part of the masthead (on Photoshop) so It could look like it is behind the model. This method is used in many magazines and it made my front cover look professional. I also like the font I used for the masthead because it is bold, yet the 'Style' part is italic and is in a different font which makes the magazine look more fashionable as it is a lifestyle magazine.
"You could have added another colour to create a 3 colour scheme." - Ismail Parlakbudak
The colour scheme on my magazine matched the traditional 3 colour scheme where I used three colours. The colours I used were 2 different shades of blue and an orangey colour on the puff. I counted the orangey colour on the puff as part of the 3 colour scheme however someone commented saying I should have used a 3rd colour. This means maybe I should have included text in an orangey colour because the colour on the puff may have not counted as a 3rd colour. However, I do believe that my colour scheme was effective because I did not choose very bright and unappealing colours as it would have been pointless because my model was wearing dark clothes. The touch of the light blue was the bright colour which added a touch of colour but still kept the magazine looking mature and not colourful.
"You're Mag layout and the way you have made it is good and appealing to consumers and its also attractive with the coverlines and the gift giveway. " - Ismail Parlakbudak
" The cover lines are brief and precise to the information in the magazine. The skyline having to be linked with Leyton adds regulations to creativity but, you handled it to a point in which it is student friendly." - Joshua Michael
Also, I thought of my cover lines very effectively because the activity we done about the pages in our college magazine allowed me to pick out the most eye-catching cover lines which would attract more audience. I used the most useful and interesting three cover lines which I thought would attract more students because if people are affected by the cover lines, they would want to buy and view my magazine. My main cover star's story was my first cover line because her story was the main news in my magazine. My second cover line was about easy tips and tricks for staying healthy. I chose to use this because I know from many of my friends, that staying healthy is a real struggle so having easy tips would increase the audience's curiosity and make them want to buy my magazine. My third cover line was about clothes and the 10 outfit ideas. I think the number 10 added more quantity to the magazine as having 10 ideas would inspire the audience to build up on them and create even more outfits. This however would attract more female buyers rather then male buyers as the audience would automatically think the clothing ideas were for females only because the cover star is a female. I should have made it clear that the outfit ideas would be for both boys and girls however as the magazine had a feminine vibe I did not change anything.
"The coverlines used are very good, and the colour scheme contrasts nicely with the image.The use of a puff is good as it brings another splash of colour to the page (other than navy blue and light blue). I like that you have included a price and date above the barcode, making it look conventional." - Melissa Hunt
I added a puff/flash to my magazine cover because majority of the real magazines have them which meant it would make my magazine look more professional. I wanted to achieve a professional looking college magazine which meant I had to use many typical magazine features. The colour I used on my puff/flash was an orangey colour which linked with the model's lanyard card. I did not use the colour green for my flash/puff because when I tried the colour, it did not look bright and it did not suit with the blue I used on my cover lines. I added the writing 'WIN a FREE IPAD" because the capitals would make the writing stand out and it would be more visible for the audience to see. I used this text because everyone likes to win things and if they can join the competition for free, they would be more likely to try as they would have nothing to loose but instead they could win an Ipad.
Furthermore, I added typical features in my front cover like the skyline,barcode, issue number, date and the price. My skyline was " Success at a caring college" which is Leyton's slogan, and as this magazine is a college magazine, having the college's name as a masthead and their slogan as the sky line was a good idea. I included the barcode, price and issue number/date at the bottom right of my magazine as many typical magazines have it at the bottom in small writing so the price does not distract the audience from the useful info on the cover. The price for my magazine was £1.50 which I thought was a reasonable price as it included discount codes and many exclusive information.
"The magazine looks very personable due the model smiling and holding a folder. This allows the college students to identify with the magazine and more likely to pick it up." - Samira Ismail
"Well done Fatma!! The picture is very well thought about in terms of the mid shot and how the model is posing portraying the good college life." - Anieska
"the photography on this is bomb! she looks naturally happy" - Eleanor
BEFORE AFTER
There are things I like about my front cover and there are things I could have improved on. One thing I like about my front cover is the cover star's photo. I made sure she was smiling with her teeth and also holding folders on her hand because it shows that she is happy to be attending the college and that she is a hard-working and intelligent student. It also makes the college seem like a welcoming and lively place because when I was taking the photo, I captured the image when she was laughing. It looks natural and not forced which also adds to the happy, welcoming theme. I took the photo outside because natural lighting is the best lighting especially for a college magazine as an effortless magazine would catch many students attention making them feel no different than the cover star. However, the image I was planning to use for my cover image was not the one I used on my final magazine. The reason I changed it was because when I originally took my front cover photo, I took a long-shot image because I wanted to show the environment of the college. When I used the image, I was instructed to make it a mid-shot because that was the ideal college magazine my teachers wanted. However, after zooming in on the same image, the photo became pixalleted and blurry which decreased the quality of the image. This meant that I had to use a different image because having a pixalleted front cover would not attract the audience and it would have made my magazine look unprofessional. My new image I used is not as pixalleted as the original photo I was planning to use which is a good thing however one thing I could have done better is take an actual medium shot image so I wouldn't have had to zoom in and reduce the quality of the image. " The front cover looks very clean as a front cover as the brightness makes the cover star stand out with the bright background and the dark clothing worn by the cover star makes the cover star stand out from the background. "- Joshua Michael
To edit my image, I used Photoshop to brighten the image and also increase the contrast. I brightened the image because the place I took the photo was outside however there was no sunlight as the weather was cloudy. The bright image has made my photo look as if it was taken in a sunny area. Also, the fact that the background is very bright was an advantage because the model was wearing dark clothes as Joshua has pointed out, and this made her the focal point as the dark clothing was contrasting with the light background.
The masthead being wrapped around the main image makes the cover star stand out." - Joshua Michael
Another thing I liked about my front cover is the masthead. I erased part of the masthead (on Photoshop) so It could look like it is behind the model. This method is used in many magazines and it made my front cover look professional. I also like the font I used for the masthead because it is bold, yet the 'Style' part is italic and is in a different font which makes the magazine look more fashionable as it is a lifestyle magazine.
"You could have added another colour to create a 3 colour scheme." - Ismail Parlakbudak
The colour scheme on my magazine matched the traditional 3 colour scheme where I used three colours. The colours I used were 2 different shades of blue and an orangey colour on the puff. I counted the orangey colour on the puff as part of the 3 colour scheme however someone commented saying I should have used a 3rd colour. This means maybe I should have included text in an orangey colour because the colour on the puff may have not counted as a 3rd colour. However, I do believe that my colour scheme was effective because I did not choose very bright and unappealing colours as it would have been pointless because my model was wearing dark clothes. The touch of the light blue was the bright colour which added a touch of colour but still kept the magazine looking mature and not colourful.
"You're Mag layout and the way you have made it is good and appealing to consumers and its also attractive with the coverlines and the gift giveway. " - Ismail Parlakbudak
" The cover lines are brief and precise to the information in the magazine. The skyline having to be linked with Leyton adds regulations to creativity but, you handled it to a point in which it is student friendly." - Joshua Michael
Also, I thought of my cover lines very effectively because the activity we done about the pages in our college magazine allowed me to pick out the most eye-catching cover lines which would attract more audience. I used the most useful and interesting three cover lines which I thought would attract more students because if people are affected by the cover lines, they would want to buy and view my magazine. My main cover star's story was my first cover line because her story was the main news in my magazine. My second cover line was about easy tips and tricks for staying healthy. I chose to use this because I know from many of my friends, that staying healthy is a real struggle so having easy tips would increase the audience's curiosity and make them want to buy my magazine. My third cover line was about clothes and the 10 outfit ideas. I think the number 10 added more quantity to the magazine as having 10 ideas would inspire the audience to build up on them and create even more outfits. This however would attract more female buyers rather then male buyers as the audience would automatically think the clothing ideas were for females only because the cover star is a female. I should have made it clear that the outfit ideas would be for both boys and girls however as the magazine had a feminine vibe I did not change anything.
"The coverlines used are very good, and the colour scheme contrasts nicely with the image.The use of a puff is good as it brings another splash of colour to the page (other than navy blue and light blue). I like that you have included a price and date above the barcode, making it look conventional." - Melissa Hunt
I added a puff/flash to my magazine cover because majority of the real magazines have them which meant it would make my magazine look more professional. I wanted to achieve a professional looking college magazine which meant I had to use many typical magazine features. The colour I used on my puff/flash was an orangey colour which linked with the model's lanyard card. I did not use the colour green for my flash/puff because when I tried the colour, it did not look bright and it did not suit with the blue I used on my cover lines. I added the writing 'WIN a FREE IPAD" because the capitals would make the writing stand out and it would be more visible for the audience to see. I used this text because everyone likes to win things and if they can join the competition for free, they would be more likely to try as they would have nothing to loose but instead they could win an Ipad.
Furthermore, I added typical features in my front cover like the skyline,barcode, issue number, date and the price. My skyline was " Success at a caring college" which is Leyton's slogan, and as this magazine is a college magazine, having the college's name as a masthead and their slogan as the sky line was a good idea. I included the barcode, price and issue number/date at the bottom right of my magazine as many typical magazines have it at the bottom in small writing so the price does not distract the audience from the useful info on the cover. The price for my magazine was £1.50 which I thought was a reasonable price as it included discount codes and many exclusive information.
Overall, I believe that I could have improved on the image as took a mid shot which means I wouldn't have had to crop the image to make the desirable size I wanted it to be and this would have stopped my photo to become pixelleted. Another improvement I could have made is add another colour on my colour scheme which means it would have been three colours because the puff/flash's colour may have not counted. Also I could have taken the picture in a better environmental place so I could have had more greenery which would make the college seem even more welcoming. The bricks in the background made my photo unprofessional because It looks as if it was not planned out although I did plan it out. Also, taking a photo in a better weather would have been better as I wouldn't have had to brighten the image so much because it reduced the quality of the image.
Another excellent, audience-led evaluation that is through and comprehensive. You should be proud of this work. Vanessa
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