Overall, I think there has been a definite improvement from my preliminary task, the college magazine, to my final music magazine coursework. I feel I had much more confidence in using the creative suite software (InDesign and Photoshop) and was given more creative freedom in terms of the target audience and what I could do with the cover, contents and the inclusion of an double page article.
Comparison of covers
My preliminary cover is very basic, as it was my first time using InDesign and wanted to keep things simple. The main image had very little manipulation in PS; there were only two modifications. The first main change was an adjustment the brightness to give it a slightly darker appearance; the second was simply erasing a wall decoration on the brick wall behind me in order to keep the background a solid
brick wall.
This is a big contrast to my music cover, which required a lot more work. Firstly, I had to render the image of the cover star (erasing the background), put a colour overlay onto the guitar in order to change it from orange to red (to match the general colour scheme of the magazine) and finally add a lighting effect behind.
Another improvement was the masthead. On my college magazine cover I just used a basic font and did nothing else to modify. With my music magazine I became a bit more confident in using Photoshop and actually manipulated the text (the font was downloaded previously). Using the bevel filter on Photoshop I gave it a slightly raised, almost 3D appearance. I used the same filter and effect for the "Win!" button, which I made completely from scratch using the brush tool.
The combination of this and the white border on the text, as well as the more professional looking font help to give my music magazine a more serious look, and show to some extent I have improved my photoshopping and image editing skills.
Comparison of contents pages
Again, the contents page of my college magazine is very basic, with little image manipulation and basic font used throughout. The background as well is just a two colour gradient (blue fading to white). With my music magazine contents page I was slightly more confident, and used a metal texture for the background. This was then editing in Photoshop, reducing the brightness so it didn’t clash with the images and text. I think this turned out well; it gives the magazine a gritty, urban feel and keeps within the general theme of “metal”.
The font is another change, moving from the basic fonts available to a more serious, fitting type which better suits my magazine. The initial layout of the contents page is a lot different as well, and from using researching online I decided to change the basic “list” approach from the college magazine and go for something more professional and interesting. The contents centers around one main splash image relating to the main feature of the issue, and a giant quote in order to direct the reader’s attention straight away. Because this is the thing readers care about the most, I didn’t feel other smaller pictures were necessary, and there was a space issue due to more features having to be listed.I also included a footer for the first time, a common convention of regular publications I felt was necessary to include in order to create a more professional appearance.
On the whole, I think it’s clear that there has been some definite improvement from the preliminary task to this music magazine. I have gained more confidence in using Photoshop, as shown by the wider range of effects used, and the difference in text and general layout of the pages.
I feel I have a greater knowledge now as to what makes a successful magazine, and what features help to sell the publication. I am pleased with how my magazine turned out, and would rate it as a successful construction which would appeal to my target audience
