For my preliminary (prelim) task I had to produce the
front page of a new school magazine, featuring a photograph of a student in a
mid shot with appropriate text and masthead. As well as this I had produce a
contents page to go with the front cover.
I had originally planned to set my
preliminary front cover in a science lab and have a student use the equipment, unfortunately,
all of the science labs were unavailable; therefore, I chose to take my picture
outside. I decided to feature a student doing school work as this was relevant to
the purpose of my magazine. By taking the picture outside I made my magazine
appear positively and therefore make the issue more appealing. (see figure 1)
Editing
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| Figure 1 - Original Prelim image |
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| Figure 2 - Edited Prelim image |
Due to the natural light and setting I chose to
edit the image by enhancing the colour and removing any imperfections from the
surroundings. (see figure 2). I also did this in my final task. For my music
magazine I used artificial light (a skill that I had learnt throughout the
process) therefore, the picture appeared more professional than my prelim task.
Additionally, my final magazine image had imperfections that I removed in order
to make the magazine more aesthetically pleasing (see figures 3 and 4). Similarly,
I enhanced the colour of my final magazine, this was not to make the magazine
appear in a more positive way but was to exaggerate the use of the colour red
throughout my magazine. I feel that the editing for my music magazine is more
natural than my preliminary task and therefore more successful.
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| Figure 3 - Original image |
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| Figure 4 - Edited image |
Image
My music magazine image is more successful than
my prelim image for different reasons. Firstly, my preliminary image was
landscape; this was unsuccessful as all magazines are portrait. However, my
final magazine image was portrait therefore making it more conventional and
more successful. By having a portrait image, I was able to position the cover
lines more effectively in order to make the magazine look and feel
professional.
Furthermore, my prelim image did not engage
with the audience as the model was looking down, although this was to show her
doing her work, it is ineffective in evoking emotional connections with the
audience. Consequently, my music magazine image is more effective as the model
uses eye contact to engage with the audience and connote the personal aspect of
the issue. Throughout the process I learnt about the importance of images and
their positioning, therefore I knew that eye contact would be more effective in
enticing my audience’s attention.
Photography
Photography
For my prelim task I used an iPod 5, this provided a reasonable picture quality, however, for my final product I used a Nikon 1 J2 camera. This improved my final image as it had a better pixel quality than the iPod 5 and provided me with more flexible options. For example, the Nikon had a 30 mm zoom, which allowed me to prevent my shadow being in the shot while still getting a close up shot. As well as this, the Nikon had a range of built in editing options such as Selective Colour and Backlighting which helped to enhance my image. Furthermore, the use of a tripod allowed me to get a stable image using the Nikon which could not have been achieved through the iPod. The iPod was good as it was easy to access and was quick in transferring the images, however, the Nikon provided a better quality and a wider range of photography techniques.
Conventions
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| Figure 5 - Final Preliminary Cover |
When constructing the prelim task I was unware
of some magazine conventions, this resulted in a cover that had very little
conventions featured. For example, ‘study break’ has no barcode, although this
is not a feature exclusive to magazines, a barcode is essential in order to
sell the magazine. Without a barcode ‘study break’ would not be able to be
sold. As well as this, my preliminary task does not have a sell line. A sell
line is a convention of a magazine that informs the audience of the purpose of
the magazine; without a sell line ‘study break’ would be unsuccessful as it
would not inform the audience of its function and therefore would be less
likely to attract its target audience.
My music magazine contrast this as it includes
these conventions. Between finalising my prelim task and composing my final
piece, I researched into the conventions of a music magazine and found that a
barcode in the left third of the magazine and a sell line within the masthead
were both typical and important conventions of a music magazine. As a result,
to make my magazine look professional, I chose to include these two conventions
in my final magazine.
By including these conventions, my final piece
was an improvement on my preliminary task as it accurately imitated successful
music magazines and more effectively informed my target audience of the
function of the magazine.
Contents page
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| Figure 6 - Final Prelim contents page |
From researching into
magazine contents pages my final product has developed dramatically from my preliminary
task. My prelim contents page was unsuccessful and did not follow the
appropriate conventions (see figure 5). By positioning the title ‘contents’ at
the bottom of the page my prelim does not clearly indicate the function of the
page; this would make it difficult for busy people to understand the purpose of
the page and therefore deter them from reading the magazine.
Furthermore, there is very little colour used
on the contents page to attract the reader’s attention to specific information.
This consequently makes the contents page seem boring and unappealing.
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| Figure 7 - Final Music magazine contents page |
Finally, the prelim contents page does not
include other images, which is a convention of magazines. This also makes the
page boring and unappealing resulting in the magazine being unsuccessful.
I learnt from these mistakes when making my
final piece and so included colour and images in my contents page (see figure
6). By including colour I was
able to draw attention to different information, I enhanced this effect by also
using different sizes in order to make the page more interesting.
As well as this, my
final contents page included smaller images to further inform the audience of other
artist and therefore appeal to a wider range of people and tastes. By applying
this convention to my final piece I created a more successful contents page
than that of my preliminary task and therefore improved in the progression from
my prelim task to my final piece.
Conclusion
Due to further research and planning following my prelim
task I learnt about the features needed to make a successful magazine. Because of
this I was able to produce a better piece that included successful aspects and
conventions, therefore producing a more professional and appealing final piece.
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