Evaluation: H: Skills Development

Looking back at your preliminary task (the college magazine task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

New Magazine Cover

         Old Magazine Cover

           

 Here you can see how I progressed when using Photoshop from September 2014 to February 2015. My old magazine lacked substance and was left with a lot of ineffective white space. When I first used Photoshop I was unable to edit images properly hence why I left a white border around my first magazine to hide any discrepancies of poor editing. However on my new magazine cover I have successfully learnt to edit my image using the Photoshop tools available (Magic wand etc.) The colour scheme used on my initial magazine lacks creativity and is very boring to look at however on my newest magazine my colour scheme has been utilised effectively and creates a sense of what the magazine is all about.                                                 

 

My new Masthead is a lot more effective and unique than my old one. The new one looks a lot more professional and has it's own unique features (crown on the 'i', and red cross line). This makes the masthead a lot more memorable and instantly recognisible by the reader.

This masthead only uses 2 colours and lacks creativity. Only a basic font is used and there is no stand out features to the masthead that make it really recognisible or unique.

Here is my contents page from the preliminary task. This contents page is very basic and lacks any image at all. This conveys a sense of unproffesionalism and wouldn't stand out in any way at all. There are still only 2 colours used which makes the magazine repetitive and boring to look at. The information looks extremely basic and lacks any interesting or unique feature.

Here is my contents page from my media product. Instantly it looks completely improved and has a strong sense of uniqueness and individuality. The 'Contents' title is placed at the bottom of the page in which challenges the codes of conventions of most magazine and I think it looks original and stands out. There is also an image on the contents page in which creates more of a sense of professionalism and adds to the unity of the front cover. Not only does it have a few insights to what is in the magazine it has more information and a 'features' and 'regulars' section aswell. This follows the code of conventions of contents pages as most will have this feature. Another thing that has carried over from the front cover is the use of small crowns as dividers. This is a unique idea and ties in with the crown from my 'CLiQUE' masthead and creates an image for my brand.

I have developed many skills during the time of creating these two media products. I have learnt to use imaging editing tools correctly and learnt more of the codes of conventions of magazines. My new magazine has a strong uniqueness to it and my improved skills with Photoshop have helped create this. I have learnt to use tools such as blending options effectively to create a professional looking media product in which conveys a strong brand image and is instantly recognisible for its uniqueness and bold statements in font choice, images, colours and conventions.