Reflection on AS Coursework

In this post, I will be reflecting on my coursework from AS and looking at how professional my music magazine is in terms of its conventions and look.

 

The front cover of my AS magazine uses conventions of professional magazines.  The sell lines incorporate different colours and are kept to the sides in order to ensure that the main focus is on the image.  They build the scheme of three colours and give the impression that its is a mature magazine. The composition is well laid out and it is easy to navigate around the page.  Despite this, the professional look could be improved upon, particularly in the photography area.  The essential information (barcode, date, price, issue number) are kept out of focus, applying to conventions well.  For my A2 coursework I am going to improve upon the quality of images and give the cover more depth and visual appeal.

The contents page applies the convention of an organized layout.  The listings are separated into three columns with images focusing on important features of the issue.  It carries on the colour scheme from the cover, but similar to the cover, it lacks the depth required for professional magazines which I will improve upon in my A2 coursework.  I found it rather difficult to make the contents page visually appealing as I did not feel that other designs fitted in with the target audience.  Keeping this in mind, I will be aiming to give the contents page of my second design more of an effective look.  The white background will not be liked by everyone and it may have looked better if there was a subtle amount of colour there.  The A2 design will expand upon these ideas through the continued use of PhotoShop.

The double-page spread is well laid out and uses columns and headers to create an effective composition.  The images are once again an area that could be improved upon.  The interview is well organized however features such as the headline and sub-headline do not have as much of a creative style.  The main image would have worked better if it filled the entire left page which would have given it more focus than the text.  In A2 this will be an area which I will work on as the images are what attract young audiences to magazines the most.  Also in A2 I will focus on making my magazine more of a suitable product to be sold in stores.