Prelim Contents Page

Prelim Front Cover

Prelim Evaluation

1. Did you plan your magazine? If not, what have you learnt about the importance of research and planning?
   I did not plan my magazine as such, I knew what I wanted in the sense of content and the way I wanted it to look but I think if I had planned it properly by drawing it out and labelling what I wanted, it would have turned a lot better than it has. Planning it fully would have saved me time because as I spent a lot of time working out if aspects of the magazine looked right in certain places and what text I wanted to put onto it.
2. What technology did you use to complete the task and how did you use it?
   I used the computer to make the magazine as a whole. This was my main form of technology that I used. I also used my iPhone to take the pictures I used for the magazine. The camera on my iPhone was sufficient enough to take good quality pictures and it was easy to transfer them onto the computer. To upload them onto the computer, I used the lightning cable to put them onto the computer. The software I used to create the magazine on the computer was Serif PagePlus X6. There was a software inside Serif PagePlus X6 called Cutout Studio which I used to cut the background out from the actual picture I wanted. The main software, Serif PagePlus X6 was very simple to use as a whole but had some complex elements to it which threw me off a bit. Overall, I found the software very simple and self-explanatory to use. I also used the internet to research codes and conventions so that I could get a better understanding of what each part of my magazine was actually called and what they mean.
3. Did you encounter any difficulties? If so, what were they and how did you overcome them?
   The difficulties I encounter with my magazine were the cutting out of the pictures. I used Cutout studio to try and get the picture away from the background but I found this hard to use because it takes a lot of time and precision to cut them out perfectly. In the end, I used a picture that was easy to cut out from and I found that using a different size tool make it easier and also if I took my time when doing it, I found that I could make it as neat as I could. I also found it difficult thinking of some of the text to put on the front cover and where to put it. In the end, I thought of some articles I could put inside the magazine and put those on the front cover. I placed the text around the page so it was spread out and not cluttered. Another thing I found difficult was finding a font and colour for the text so it would stand out from the page and the pictures I had placed into it. The font I chose, I think, stands out from the page and is easily readable. Also, the colour I used for the text on the background stands out and you can read that as well. I found taking the pictures for the magazine very difficult. We had to get a medium to close up shot and it was hard finding a person that would be willing to be in the magazine and finding the right angle to take the picture in. It was hard figuring out if the shots I took were medium to close up as I had never taken photography before.
4. How successful was your magazine? Please identify what worked well, and with hindsight, what would you improve/do differently?
   I think my magazine wasn’t as successful as I had hoped it to be but it was a good effort for a first time user of the software and a first time thinking of a concept for a magazine. If I had planned it fully and prepared myself in what I was doing, I think it would have turned out more professional looking. I think if I had thought of the whole idea beforehand and thought out each individual concept so that I would know where to put everything, I think that my magazine would have looked more unique and different that everyone else’s as I feel, from the ones I have seen, that most of our magazines are similar looking.
5. 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?
   I have learnt that planning ahead really helps in the process of making a magazine. If you plan ahead, you know exactly what you are doing and you know where to put all the content and what to write about. Another thing I have learnt is to use a colour scheme. A colour scheme really helps so that the page doesn’t look all cluttered and childish; it looks professional and modern. I have also found that knowing what type of pictures you want in your magazine really helps save time. Taking lots of pictures of different people from different angles will help you decide what angle and what type of person you want on your magazine. I found out the hard way but cutting lots of pictures I had taken and placing them into my magazine to see if they fit. This took up a lot of time as I was trying to figure out what picture looked the best in what position and what went well with each picture; i.e. other pictures, different text or the colour scheme of the whole magazine.