Preliminary Evaluation

Did you plan your magazine? If not, what have you learnt about the importance of research and planning?
I did do a very basic rough sketch of the layout of the magazine, based on research / analysis I have done on music magazines. Planning is very beneficial for working out the theme of each issue, placement of images, and ideas surrounding fonts and colours. This will ultimately save you lots of time and you will achieve a professional final image.

What technology did you use to complete the task and how did you use it?
I used a mixture of hardware and software technology to complete this task. All images I took were on my Canon 700D camera or my IPhone. I took special consideration into the lighting and angles, so I could get high quality- effective images. I manipulated the images in 'Serif PhotoPlus', by changing the saturation (to add image continuity) and cropped the images. Finally I used the desktop publishing software 'Serif PagePlus' to create the school magazine cover. I imported the photographs, and experimented with the inbuilt 'shape' feature, to create the final cover.

Did you encounter any difficulties? If so, what were they and how did you overcome them?
I did encounter a few difficulties whilst completing this task. My first issue was the placement of the main promotional image (my sister holding her folder), I couldn't get the image to cover the magazine- without the sizing looking ridiculous. To overcome this problem, I had to alter my plan for the magazine, I added the grey background to the masthead. This way I could have a background for the whole magazine, and keep the image proportions correct. My second problem was the transparency tool, I couldn't find the correct transparency effect. To overcome this issue I had to experiment with the transparency tool feature, and read the Serif self help guide.

How successful was your magazine? Please identify what worked well, and with hindsight, what would you improve/ do differently?
Overall I would say I was successful in this task- my final cover fits the brief stated, and looks professional and suitable for use. I have received positive verbal feedback about my magazine from my teacher/ peers/ family, so I am very happy with the finished outcome. If I was to improve, I would have experimented with different fonts. I used 'Times New Roman' for the majority of the text, and although practical, I think it looks plain and doesn't appeal to a young student audience.

What have you learnt from completing this task? Looking ahead, how will this learning be significant when completing the rest of your foundation coursework, do you think?
This task has enabled me to learn the basic skills for using desktop publication software, and other technological skills (for example downloading images off a camera). It has been useful as an interactive way of learning about the structure of magazine covers, whilst still teaching us important software knowledge (which will be valuable when we start creating the music magazine cover).