Question.7- How have I improved since my prelim task?

PROGRAMMES For my premium task I didn’t

have any prior knowledge of how to use photo shop, because of this I used Microsoft Publisher as I had previous knowledge of using this programme. On Publisher enables you to paste images, shapes and text on top of one another which lead to my final product.

However, as I was not impressed by my premium task as I knew I could produce a higher standard I decided to teach myself how to use photo shop. Photo shop was hard to come to terms with but once I learnt how to use it I was able to do everything I was able to do on Publisher, plus edit the photos as well. On Photo Shop, I found it easier to move photos and text around as you can edit each layer individually.

FONTSWith my Premium task I didn't use a range of fonts. This is because I had no knowledge about magazines and didn’t know how important it is to add some verity into the magazine. I also didn’t use many different font sizes which were a bad idea as it makes it unclear to the reader what the important text is. In my final product I used a range of text sizes, colours and types. This added some variety into my work and made it look more realistic and appealing. This also helped to make my magazine look more professional.

ColoursSomething else which I have learnt is the use of colour. Colour can help establish; genre, target audience and much more! In my prelim task I used dark, dull colours which were not eye catching so would not be very appealing to a target market. In contrast my final product features a theme where there are a range of colours included. This helps to attract more people to the magazine which makes it more successful.

ResearchingFor my first task I did not complete the research which would have helped me to gain a better understanding of how to complete it. However, for my final product I completed a range of in-depth research to help me to enhance my knowledge of the magazine industry and the products already available to the market. This helped me to produce a product which stands out from any of the other products out there, yet includes certain conventions which make my magazine still look professional.

Photographs

Taking Photographs: The difference between the qualities of my photos, have come a long way. I have now put a lot more into the mise-en-scene' of my photos and I have also got the angles right now.

In my first task I mainly focused on the costume of my photos, not considering where the photographs should be taken and whether any props should be used in the shots. This all changed during my final task as I ensured I paid attention to every detail. For example when looking into mise-en-scene I used a guitar to represent music and a rose to represent love which is what most songs in my genre are about. This helped to make my photographs look more realistic.

Extras In my final product I included more cover stories in order to make my magazine more appealing to the target audience. I also included more pictures of different artist in my contents page as I felt this showed the audience that there was more than once story in the magazine so it was worth the money I was charging, instead of relying on the readers to assume that the magazine has more to offer. I also included more; competitions, evens and interviews as I felt this also meant my magazine would be more successful.