Last Week Review

The image to the left is my final design for my student magazine. The colours I have decided on are orange, blue, maroon and black. I really like these colours because they stand out and would be eye catching amongst other magazines. Photos I have included illustrate college life outside the classroom. They show students having fun and enjoying college. I decided to include a variety of photos because from my feedback, this is what students liked best. I have met all my specifications and am ahead of schedule. Please comment below with your suggestions of how I might improve my magazine. Also what you like and dislike. Would you buy this magazine if you saw it for sale? Thanks :)

Magazine Design Cover

This is my first magazine cover design. I have decided to use a few basic colours to break the page up and so that it is clearer to veiw. The name of the magazine is the main attraction of the piece because the white contrasts against the dark blue. Furthermore I have included the issue number and price directly beneath the masthead. I have also included a space which will be a midshot of a student. This will be layered with a banner as the main lure. I will also include exciting photos at the bottom of the page which relate to the articles inside.







The image to the right is my second design. I have used a basic white background which will be cheaper to print and also doesnot distract the reader. In this design I have included a strapline so that the reader knows what area of topics will be in the magazine. In this design I have used an orange masthead because this is bright and colourful. this has been contrasted with the blue banner. In this design I decided to use photos releated to the article displayed in a layered look as this looks fun and represents a wide area of student's lifestyles.

In this design I have decided to carry on the layered look because I thought it worked really well in the second design. However I chose not to make thi the main focus of the page. Instead I have kept the midshot of the student as the centre of focus so that the cover doesn't look too busy. Colours I have chosen are yellow, orange and blue. I like these colours because they are bright and stand out amoungst other magazines. As part of the background I have chosen to use a yellow jagged shape as tis looks explosive and exciting.

This Week review

This week I have managed to complete most of my aims in the first week of my action plan. I have completed a questionnaire which will help me when designing the front page because I will have a greater knowledge of what students like. I have also completed a textual analyse of First Car which has helped me learn the techniques of drawing readers in. I have decided to call my magazine College Poke because it is fun and quirky. I have also started to design some magazine covers which puts me ahead of my action plan.

Questionnaire

1) What do you look for in a magazine?

2) Do you prefer more photos than text or more text than photos?

3) What sort of colour scheme are you most attracted to?

4) What is the most you're willing to pay or a student magazine?

5) Which topic are you most interested in reading about?

Please answer the questionnaire and post it as a comment, thanks.

Textual Analysis of 'First Car'

I have begun looking at various magazines aimed at students. I have decided to analyse a magazine called 'First Car' because most students are at the stage of learning to drive.

The colour scheme is made up of a limited palette of white and yellow edged in black. The bright colours contrast against the dark background which is attention grabbing and pulls the reader in. The headline is the biggest and clearest font, which is important so that the reader can recognise the name of the magazine if they were to read it again.

Words such as 'Killer' create a sense of excitement because an element of danger is involved. These words are then accompanied by photos of car crashes and vehicles driven at a fast pace.

Students are also attracted to the photos of the actors from The Inbetweeners. This is a comedy popular amongst teenagers so if the reader isn't interested in cars, they may still want to read the interview inside. The midshot of the main character is the first image you see, showing what age group the magazine is aimed at.

Action Plan

The task is to design the front cover and contents of a student magazine. The requirements are for the page to appeal to my targeted audience which means eye-catching font and a variety of attention grabbing photos.

I have summed up my action plan in the following:
Week 1) -Decide on a name/style/colour scheme
- Research and plan the pages
- Questionnaire
- Textual analysis of existing magazines
- Mock designs

Week 2) -Start designing
- Photo shoot

Week 3) - Continue designing
- Complete first draft of pages and get feedback
- Adapt pages according to feedback

Week 4) - Finish pages and evaluate
- Make sure everything is complete
- Answer evaluation questions on blog

Depending on how fast I work, I may adapt my action plan as I venture through the perilous journey that is media.