Evaluation Question

Looking back at your preliminary task of designing the front page and contents of a school magazine what do you feel you have learnt in the progression of it to full product?

Comparison of the covers:

• Whereas the preliminary task cover only uses one font, the full product cover uses a main font (Helvetica) and a different one for the feature story
• The photography in the final product is also more suited to its purpose. The lack of objects makes the text more legible and the fact the audience can see the subjects' faces allows them to identify with them, an concept that relates to the uses and gratifications theory
• The full product also incorporates more magazine conventions, such as the issue number and date

Furthermore, the planning required for the final task was much more developed than the preliminary task planning. For example, I used a flat plan to make my production more efficient. Additionally, the knowledge I gained about photography (iconography, shot types) when making the school magazine helped me think about how I wanted the music magazine to look. Learning about mise-en-scène was particularly helpful when it came to arranging the lighting, backdrop and actors in my photography.
 I also became more discerning when selecting the photos for the final publication, despite not being restricted to using a certain type of shot on the cover.


I developed my skills in Photoshop during the process of completing the product, learning more about layers and other techniques which sped up the production of my front cover and contents page.

Feature article from NME, October 2010

Looking extensively at existing publications helped me recognise the features of a magazine that I needed to include in my final project. Continuity features such as a page footer on the contents page and feature article page allow the reader to easily navigate through the magazine. I also summarised the contents of each section on the contents page, copying this from the examples of the music press I looked at.

The magazine's page footer shows the page number, the publication title, the publication date and the logo