College
Magazine Evaluation
I took a few shots of friends who agreed to feature in my
magazine after I asked them. I decided that each mise-en-scene should look as
if it is related to student/college life, which is why some photographs were
taken in a music room with a piano, and others are during lunch, in the library
and one was actually taken from when I went to Peak District for Duke of Edinburgh.
A team member, who is also a member at Leyton is included in the shot, so as to
make the picture relevant to the college magazine. I used props, such as the
piano, food and text books, which made the pictures seem more realistic.
When making coverlines and features on the contents page, I chose to anchor
some of them to the image, making them relevant. For example, I wasn’t too sure
of what would be appropriate for the photo of the students at lunch, so I
created a feature called “Your Say: Packed Lunch vs. College Meals”. This
seemed most applicable as the two students’ pose is of them talking during
their lunch break. Similarly, the photos of students sitting at a piano is
anchored with “Free Piano Lessons”. I used two different students, one on the
cover page and another on the contents, so as to convince the audience that it
is open to all, and it would seem unprofessional if the same person were
featured on both pages, as the audience might think the magazine was rushed and
she was the only model available for the shot.
I made some other possible coverlines/stories such as film
club screen showings, CV and personal statement help (many students will be
able to relate to this. I also created an ask panel called “Ask Alice” (who
could be an ex-student) as this is common in teenage magazines so could be
useful in a college magazine, as are posters, which I included in the form of
an Exam Timetable, which would be handy for students.
The colours I used vary from mellow colours (mustard yellow, olive green,
cream), standard colours (black, white, grey) and bold colours (red, orange,
yellow). I didn’t want to use too many bright colours, as that would be more
appropriate for students in a younger age group.
I received some feedback from some peers in my class and some
non-media students.
One person wrote:
“I LIKE IT. The colour scheme you used
goes well. It looks professional. I like how you laid out your pictures in the
contents. Can't think of any improvements, maybe use a pic of me, jk jk. oh
wait, I have one, it is difficult to read the cover line at the bottom because
the font is too dark.... ;)”
Another mentioned the conflicting colours at the bottom of
the cover page, which didn’t sit well with the black and white keys on the
piano.
“The WIN! part in the corner of the page
seems out of place. I think it could be moved a bit. Also, the Free! sign looks
out of place. I like the colours used for the text, but the text at the bottom
could be white with a black outline instead.”
This task helped me to manoeuvre Photoshop. When I first
started the task, I often stumbled on problems, but the Photoshop Help proved
to be useful and I am now comfortable with the programme.
