Prelim task evaluation questions

Did you plan your magazine? If not, what have you learnt about the importance of research and planning?

No, I did not plan my magazine as it was the first magazine I have ever created, and so had no idea what I wanted it to look like or what it should look like. The importance of research and planning is massive, without research into what other magazines include my magazine would look totally different. Looking at market research of other magazines is a useful way of comparing your magazine to competitors and creating the best image possible for your magazine.

What technology did you use to complete the task and how did you use it?

 I used Serif PagePlusX6 to create the magazine as it give me the key tools needed. I was able to use the cut-out studio to trim my photos, use different fonts of texts using the wide range of options available, create a border and a masthead using by creating shapes, and used the assets pack to add a background to my magazine. The software also allowed me to import images from either a file or using copy and paste.

Did you encounter any difficulties? If so, what were they and how did you overcome them?

Most of the difficulties came in actually designing the magazine itself, in the terms of how my design would look. I found difficulty in the selecting the colour scheme of the text and actually working out how to do it, as the system was complicated for a simple procedure. To overcome this I played around with certain buttons on the page until I found out the way to change the colour of the text.

How successful was your magazine? Please identify what worked well, and with hindsight, what would you improve/do differently?

I felt like my magazine reflected a first attempt at creating one and using new software. What worked well was my content page, I liked the close up shot as it seemed something that an actual magazine would include, however my front cover looked messy and didn’t include the features that a magazine should have on its front page. I would improve my front page by looking in detail at what a front page should include and work on creating a classier front cover.

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 now feel comfortable in using Serif pageplus, which will be helpful in the construction of my magazine. I now know the tools and equipment I can use in creating my magazine, and know how to translate my ideas of what the magazine should look like into a real creation.