Evaluation
Magazine Contents and Cover Ideas
For this part of my task I used the digital manipulation programme Photoshop to create my cover page ideas and contents page; by using my earlier flat plans I used them as guides on how and what way to layout each cover page. These are the ideas I came up with...
COVER PAGE 1
COVER PAGE 2
CONTENTS PAGE
Slide Share review of Images for School Magazine
For this task I decided to use Slide Share as a source to complete my audience feedback; however I got 74 views of the power point and a few comments, to get feedback I posted the link of the Slide Share on my personal Facebook page. I fond this very useful as a lot more people from my school were able to access this link quickly and efficiently, by using social media this allowed me to reach out to my target audience in a short effective space of time, as majority of young people based a lot of their time online.
Images For School Magazine
Photo Shoot Plan
Item(s) / Model(s) to be photographed
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Shot type / Angle / Distance
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Lighting / Atmosphere
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Background / MMiseen scene
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Positioning on Front
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Details of editing
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Group of sixth form students sitting together in a group laughing, setting them comfortably in an appropriate setting to convey an atmosphere of relaxation.
Two students in library smiling directly at the camera. I want the readers to get a feel for their expression and gestures; I want them to portray a happy environment.
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Ariel shots of students doing work so the reader get a sense of work ethic from the image, possible content page image.
Mid-Shots with the models looking directly at the camera to portray equality with the reader. Also they will be able to look at facial expressions and body language to help them with their visual understanding of the image.
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Will use areas of the school with a lot of natural lighting to help with shooting — natural light will enhance the photos and flash will not have to be used.
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Plain dark backdrop to contrast with the green uniform, I want this as the models and expressions will be the main focus of the image, the reader will not be distracted by the background.
Taking images in classroom environments to add realism to the photos whilst the models are ‘doing work’.
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Enhances on the whites of eyes on the models to draw the reader in.
Crop some backdrop off images to have complete focus on the models and what they are trying to portray.
Insert masthead and puffs around main image/images.
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Contents Page Flat Plans
After creating my cover page flat plans I then went to make two possible ideas for contents pages, I again made flat plans to convey my ideas. I wanted to make my contents page clean cut and professional like my cover so I used the normal conventions of the contents pages, however I then decided in the second one to mix it up a little by moving around the titles and blurbs. These are the ideas I came up with...
CONTENTS PAGE 1
CONTENTS PAGE 2
Images for School Magazine
For my magazine it was a must that I took photos in a way I wanted the school magazine to be represented. After gathering models I took multiple shot types, took the models to different scenery, made them sit on levels etc... Once finished I went through my camera roll and these were the images that appealed to me most. I then created a SlideShare to share these images with the public to get audience feedback, I posted the SlideShare to my personal facebook and was able to recieve responces (74). These are the images for my potential Main image and few contents page photographs as they were the images that majority of my audience voted I think the images chosen were great as they would match well with the contents images and give fluency to the magazine. From my questionnaire I was able to conclude that majority of students wanted to see the images based on the actual students, so I decided that all my images were to consist this; when finished these are the images the public liked the most...
2. I was glad to see that my audience feedback had elements of people wanting to see ICT in the magazine; they have chosen the image where two models to sit at their laptops and display a concentrated look to highlight work ethic, I made sure when taking the photos that their uniform was perfect to display to my readers a visual portrayal of 'model students.' I would use these photos to the inside contents page as a feature captioning 'How Can ICT Benefit me?!' this will immediately draw attention to my reader and they will be more likely to read that feature because of the images. I took a mid shot and an over the head shot so the readers will be able to identify what is in the image and how the model is reacting to the object. I made sure to have three point lighting so I could eliminate and shadows, and I made sure to shoot both models in a classroom environment to blend in with the school theme. In my editing I will just blur out the background slightly as I want the main focus to be on the girls and the laptops as I most likely will use these as contents images to direct readers to certain features; again I want my editing to be very simplistic as I want a clean polished look for the magazine.
3. Many students liked this image and I personally think it would be great as a front cover for the magazine. This image adds an element of fun as they are looking directly at the camera and only their eyes are on display, I chose to shoot them at eye-line with the books over their stripy sixth form collars as I want all students to feel like they can all read the magazine, and that it is not just aimed at the sixth form students. I would caption this image as 'What would you read?!' to promote the school library. Also I then shot the two models looking directly at the camera with happy smiling faces, I want my readers to feel welcomed to read the magazine so I believe this image would also be a good main image on the front cover for the magazine. For each image I will crop the outside slightly so they will fit for either my main image or contents images, in the first image I want the students eyes to stand out, so I will whiten the whites of their eyes so that my reader will be directed straight to them and feel somewhat personal touch as the image is looking directly at them. I used the flash in the second image as I felt that their was not enough focus on the models faces, I wanted their expressions of happiness to be poignant as this is my main goal for my reader. The background of this image is the school library, I wanted the girls to be in a natural environment whilst they were posing with the books so the library fitted appropriately for this shot.
Cover Page Flat Plans
For this section of my Preliminary Task I created two ideas to choose from on helping me decide what I wanted as editor to have on my front cover on the magazine and how I would lay it out. I used slightly bubbly text boxes as I wanted to have a laid back fun feel to the cover, I did stick to the more traditional cover style (with the masthead at the top) however I did this as I believe magazines are more accessible with having the more simplistic layout and can be identified easily for readers. The font I used to create these cover pages is defiantly something I would use as it has a school vibe, easy to read and very fun for the readers eye.
COVER PAGE 1
COVER PAGE 2
My School Magazine Ideas
Questionnaire Results
I was able to gather my results by using SurveyMonkey; an online way to gather information, I thought an online based survey was the better option as I believed it would be more likely to get responded to. I also posted my questionnaire onto my own personal Facebook page, I asked specifically for the students of St Catherine's College Armagh to respond to the questionnaire and within minutes I had hits and was able to analyse my results. In total there was 28 people who answered the questionnaire; this is the feedback I received...
This first question can be seen as a cliche to all surveys, however I purposely used this question to see if my audience would be mainly female or male based. And it is clear by the results that females are the domineer in this questionnaire; I now know my target audience, so I will be able to enhance and make my magazine slightly more female based and adept it to more female tendencies as they do represent 92.5%.
By this question I am able to recognise the age of the audience I will be looking to adapt my magazine to - I can see that majority of my audience will be either Key Stage 4 (68%) or Sixth Form students (32%).
From the people who answered this question I was able to raise questions such as; "How can I make people who said no want to read a magazine?" as a small amount (18.5% ) said they will have no interest in a school magazine. However it was good to see that majority of the people who answered (51.8%) said they would read a magazine.
This question made me see that most students would want a school magazine published either every term(34.6%) or on a monthly basis (53.8%). This question will help be a guide as it will determine the amount of content put into a magazine. Every term there will be heavier content as more events will have happened compared to every month. I believe personally that every term would be the best time to publish a magazine.
It was good to see that the students who answered this question wanted mainly the whole school to be included in the school magazine (80.7%). This statistic is important as it will give an editor an idea of what to add into the magazine and they will know that they will not be limited on information as they will be able to include events etc for each year group.
I was glad to see a varied selection of answers in this question, I had made this question multiple choice as I wanted students to give more scope into what they themselves would like to see included in a school magazine. The most popular answer here was to have competitions included in the magazine (64.2%) by adding in competitions students will be enticed and more likely to read the contents of the magazine to find out competitions/promotions. It was also interesting to see that student involvement within the magazine was close behind (60.7%) by adding in student involvement into the magazine, they will be given a chance to publish their own works to show to the school, this sense of pride is likely to increase readership for the magazine.
This question was a no brainer. 100% of students who answered this questionnaire would be more likely to read a school magazine if promotions or competitions were included, this gives the editor scope into knowing that certain elements (e.g. competitions) that will get them readership and potential followers of the magazine. I was able to recognise that enticement was a key point to success in a magazine.
65.3% of people who answered would not pay for a school magazine. However surprisingly 30.77% said they would pay up to 50p for a school magazine. I was able to understand that if I did decide to charge for a school magazine, it would have to be cheap as students are not willing to part with very little money.
I thought this would be an interesting question to ask as I myself have seen school magazines online which are easily accessible and fit in will with todays modern society (E-Zines.) However majority of students (46.4%) would prefer a hard copy of a magazine compared to accessing one online — there were also students who said they wouldn't mind if it were either or both!
I then for my last question asked 'Please explain your answer to question 9...'
This is the feedback I received... P = Published O = Online
- Easier to read etc P
- Easier to pay for P
- More people would read it P
- Prefer it better P
- Doesn't bother me whichever
- Magazine would go unseen if online, if handed in class they would be a hit! P
- Online can be a lot of hassle to access P
- Easier accessed some people don't have Internet P
- Both
- It would be cheaper to publish an online magazine, but I prefer and would be more likely to read a hard copy P
- Don't mind
- Both would be equally as good
- It is easier for you to read O
- It doesn’t really matter if its online or not O
- Easy to access O
- So we have an option, if we can't afford to but it at least we can look at it online!
- Then you can access it at any point O
- Printing wastes ink O
- Easier to read P
- Easier to read. P
- People will more likely read it, if it is in their hands. It could also increase your readership. P
- Makes more sense as we now live in a more technological society. O
On this question I received quite mixed reviews, but by being able to read other peoples perspective gave me a way of analysing everyones point of view, personally I would prefer an online magazine however now I am able to acknowledge why others would like to have a hard copy published.
Questionnaire
Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey , the world's leading questionnaire tool.
Analysing School Magazine Contents Pages
This is the contents page of the magazine ‘Back to School.’ This contents page is extremely different to normal printed magazines cover, because this is a E-zine (online based) the editors have been able to add in more information to the context page by adding in scale pictures of the actual articles, and also making it easier to access articles as readers are able to interactively slide over the options and with a simple touch or click it will bring them straight to their desired page. This cover page is from their summer issue and used for giving tips and guidance to parents on entertaining their children over the summer holidays.
This contents page has a total of 12 links to show each article within the magazine. I believe the use of having the pages visible for the read to click on is very cleaver as it makes the magazine much easier to manoeuvre around. The colours within this magazine is very nature based with vivid greens, yellow and reds; this highlights the magazines theme of the summer outdoors and how it is promoting on taking kids out over summer rather than keeping them cooped up on gadgets. In this issue the magazine’s editor Amanda Gerrard 'personally' shows the readers what is in store for them in this issue, this use of personal trust in the reader shows how the magazine is involved so much in helping give accurate information to parents of young children in primary school.
Each heading on the separate articles have the same typeface however different colours are incorporated to make each individual one stand out; also this is used to highlight different themes such as the 'The baby dads guide to surviving the school holidays' the colors used here are mainly dark navy blues and more masculine compared to the 'Summer Mummy or Slummy Mummy' article which is filled wit more vibrant feminine colors of orange and yellow, the use of color is very significant as the magazine publisher and editor want to portray a feeling of summer, holidays, fun, excitement so bright coloring throughout the magazine would only be appropriate.
By the use of images of male and female shows that the magazine is making it versatile to both gender of parents, this hence will enhance readership and not be based on one gender. In each article there are many different images used to illustrate the contents of the article such as 'Joannas Summer Shape up' is a full shot image of the woman herself who is the features in the magazine running with fair amount of concentration on her face. This image slots in well with the fitness theme and anything but this would see out of place and irrelevant. Also there are many images of young children with parents such as the little girl on her dads shoulders in the 'Take me to a festival' article — however there is little images of older children such as 10/11 year olds, this therefore is not a true representation of all children in primary school as this magazine from the images is really based on younger children in primary school rather than all age groups.
The information is organised well, everything is in order however each page leads to a page in the magazine which is not in chronological order; this is good in my eyes as the reader can therefore skip to a page they desire whilst going through all the other pages without even realising, the uniform layout is extremely easy to work through and this simple strategy just enhances the readers experience of sing an online magazine. Each main article which is mentioned on the front cover of this magazine is included in the contents page — they also include the enticements and competitions 'Hands up!' which will increase readership as this is a strategy to get readers involved and let them feel they are getting not only information from the magazine but something for them personally too.
The actual magazine mast head is not included in the contents page which can seem slightly strange however throughout the magazine the pages between the articles are filled with advertisements which are linked to the 'Back to School Partners'.
I think that this is an excellent contents page for the reason that it is online and so simple to access. The interactive nature is appealing to my own generation as we live in a highly technological society. This contents page is filled with contrasting versatile colours which really make the whole image so different to every article, meaning it wont become boring or people will not become disinterested.
‘’Back To School magazine (BTS) is a free digital magazine for parents of primary school children. It is packed with great advice for parents on everything from starting school to surviving SAT’s, helping with homework to luscious lunch boxes. With regular contributions by numerous celebrity writers including Julia Donaldson (author of “The Gruffly ) and children’s nutritional expert Annabel Karmel BTS is your essential guide to primary school.’’
This is the contents page of the magazine ‘Back to School.’ This contents page is extremely different to normal printed magazines cover, because this is a E-zine (online based) the editors have been able to add in more information to the context page by adding in scale pictures of the actual articles, and also making it easier to access articles as readers are able to interactively slide over the options and with a simple touch or click it will bring them straight to their desired page.
The uniform layout of each page within the magazine is quite organised but with the plain boarders around the outside of each image and the top title of ‘Contents’ in an old school chalk board. This style really gives off a sense of primary school which fits well with the information sourced within the magazine. Each article contrasts from each other in terms of colour; however all pages have the same layout; with the title of each article at the top left hand side and the remaining information scattered around the page, they all seem similar however different because of the colours used in each. The style of this contents page goes well with the cover page; they do compliment each other — the bright colours and funky typefaces tie in together to create a childish school vibe without becoming tacky or unprofessional, also whilst on the contents there are interactive links which move and increase when you slide the mouse over the link, this interactive aspect is great as its easier for the reader to access the information.
I find it strange that the main cover subject which is ‘Annabel Karmel is not featured physically in any of the articles but simply mentioned. I believe that there should be images of her included more as she is the main feature in this issue of Back to School. However the magazine is able to entice their readers by adding in fantastic competitions; ‘winter sun Hotspots!’ by adding in these puffs this will increase readership and promote the magazine.
There are many images on the contents page, many which include toddlers, young children and adults which seem to be parents. I don’t have an understanding why there are young toddlers on the contents page as children at primary school start from the age of 4/5 and leave at the age of 11/12 - hence my confusion in why toddlers are included in the magazine, however I can see how the magazine are not only trying to entice parents of primary school kids, but parents who may be sending there children to primary school in the future and may want some tips if they are easily available; which this magazine is. This then can broaden the magazines readership even more. The images are suited to the themes and target audience, anything other than young kids etc would not be fitting and seem very out of place.
Analysis Two
The mast head of this magazine is ‘Back to School’ it clearly indicates the mode of address for this magazine; it will contain information and tips on students going back to school. This title with its primary meaning highlights on how simple the contents will be able to read and how professional this magazine is. The simple masthead is enhanced with a bright colour scheme of white and yellow text, the easy read serif font with slight shadow effects and a thin black outline highlights from the neutral background. The smart choice of the very domient colour yellow is effective as it stands out and will be eye catching for the magazines audience. The colour is also ran through as a theme of the cover linking all the cover lines together.
The professionalism within this magazine is a key feature as it is aimed at the niche market of parents of young children in primary school: this is clearly iidentifiedby the slogan below the masthead reading ‘Parent’s guide to primary school.’ Parents will be seeking only the best quality of accurate information, so it is highly important that the layout of the magazine portrays this image of professionalism. The magazine is able to interact with the target audience by adding in puffs to enhance the cover of the magazine. ’12 Days of XMAS! Keeping the kids busy from boxing day to the 6th of Jan’ this type of puff would be extremely attractive to a parent of kids during christmas as the magazine portrays that they have all the tips and ideas needed to keep young children entertained; this is a great strategy on the magazines behalf as it will entice the reader on to open and read the contents of the magazine. It also includes cover lines such as ‘Naughty or Nice? Our top toys for XMAS 2013’ and ‘Gifted… Or grinch? Take quiz to find out!’ the use of this puff lure’s the reader in more as an enticement strategy, it will also encourage readership of the magazine.
This magazine is known as an ‘E-zine’ meaning that it is based online, it is free and accessible on all Desktops, Android and App Store. Published by DigiMags it allows parents and teachers of primary school children information on how to go through primary education smoothly, a new issue of the magazine is published every term. For further information on this magazine there is a full Facebook and Twitter page.
The presentation of this magazine is extremely well polished and professional; its expensive look portrays a great representation of not only this issue but also the issues of this magazine that came before and after. The colour scheme of dusty pinks and reds contrast well with the bright yellow main masthead and also the strap line which instead of being situated at the top of the cover runs along the bottom reading ‘The BTS Christmas Fairy to the rescue’ again this is ways of enticing – thus making it more eye catching for a consumer to read and can be seen as aspirational; they will believe that by reading this magazine they will be able to ‘beat the Christmas credit crunch.’ The cover mount on the bottom left hand side of the magazine lures the reader in even more and encourage sales to visit their ‘local pantos and ‘Win a family cruise!’
The mode of address in this magazine is to give out information to parents of young children in primary school tips and ideas how to keep their kids entertained over the school holidays. This is portrayed by many puffs and a Christmas edition special. The main image is a mid shot of a little girl dressed in a pink fairy costume, she is looking directly into the camera with a surprised enthusiastic face – this gives off a positive vibe as the readers will not be able to pass the cover without thinking about the cute and innocent nature of the child. The magazine chose a child to be the front cover as Christmas is an exciting time for all kids so the image fitted well with the context, however the magazine could of chosen a young girl and boy or a group of happy children to show a true representation of all children at Christmas not just one.
I believe this magazine is so popular as it is so easily accessible and free! We live in a technological age which is dominated by electronics; by providing E-zine especially for parents and teachers this will hopefully enhance their child's life in school and educate them on good ideas and tips to get their child through primary school and build them up for the next stage in their lives. Every issue of the magazine offers their reader’s new exciting competitions and tips; this strategy of enticement increases their readership also by giving information to benefit parent’s children.
Analysis One
The masthead of this magazine is ‘Back to School,’ the title is very straight forward and makes it easy for the reader to understand exactly the context of the magazine. Clearly from the title it states that the magazine will be full of tips and knowledge on students going back to school. This magazine due to its context could apply to an older audience – the parents of children in primary education as their slogan is ‘Parents guide to primary school.’ This simple masthead is enhanced with a bright colour scheme of white and yellow text, the easy read serif font with slight shadow effects and a thin black outline highlights from the neutral background. The smart choice of the very domient colour yellow is effective as it stands out and will be eye catching for the magazines audience. The colour is also ran through as a theme of the cover linking all the cover lines together. This magazine is known as an ‘E-zine’ meaning that it is based online, it is free and accessible on all Desktops, Android and App Store. Published by DigiMags it allows parents and teachers of primary school children information on how to go through primary education smoothly, a new issue of the magazine is published every term. For further information on this magazine there is a full Facebook and Twitter page.
The main image within the cover is of ‘Annabel Karmel’ who features in this ‘Back to School’ addition. From the image it includes cooking utensils gives a strong idea to the audience that the lady featuring is a chef and will be sharing her ‘clever’ lunch ideas for kids. The mid shot of the lady suggests a positive vibe, she is smiling and looking straight into the eyes of the reader, this confidence she protrays will therefore give reassurance to the reader that she can be trusted when is comes to cooking healthly meals for children. Also this would be appealing to parents of young children in primary school as her older age may suggest she herself could be a mother of young children, this would be a great aspect as readers could find a trust in the tips she is sharing as they will be able to acknowledge that she also is looking only the best for her children and others; nutrition wise. Her friendly apperance also enhances the aspirational cover lines and plain cover lines such as ‘Looking outside of the lunch box’ or ‘The two R’s’ and ‘Safe and sound,’ this magazine protrays a professionalism to it which is a delight for readers such as parents as they clearly would want to seek accurate and trust worthy information for the benefit of their children. This simple text and colour scheme enhances this masses.
The mode of address for this cover is for parents of young children to trust this source of information for the benefit of their kids. This is highlighted by the approach of comforting catchphrases such as ‘Shaky starts.’ Many kids go though tough times settling back into school after holidays or if they are starting a new beginning by going into school, whatever the situation, this magazine portrays a positive approach as they use these sorts of text to comfort parents who may see their child having difficulties in settling into school.
There are two puffs added into this cover. This is to engage the reader into thinking not only is their information within this source but also activities they may interest or apply to them. The ‘Plus Quiz savvy or scrooge?’ is highlighted in an orange and while trimmed bubble and is enhanced more with a small arrow pointing towards it. This draws the reader in further as it brings an aspect of fun to the magazine for the parent. The other puff is titled ‘Winter Hotspots sensational short hall selections’ the clever use of alliteration allows the reader after seeing it remember the title which later on will bring the reader back to the magazine. Also this could appeal to a family thinking of going on holidays and persuade them the consideration of going even more by the use of the words ‘sensational.’ This will entice the reader further to find out the remaining context of this puff inside the magazine.
In terms of the magazine’s overall presentation, a professional look is achieved: appealing to the niche audience of parents with young children without being melodramatic. The glossy approach is expensive and eye catching for the audience; also with aspects of being free and accessible virtually anywhere, it is moving on into the next generation of publishing which will soon be online.
I have analysed both of these cover pages to help my understanding of the style and themes cover pages use for different magazines; this will help me in the long run for my research and task of creating my own magazine cover.
I have analysed both of these cover pages to help my understanding of the style and themes cover pages use for different magazines; this will help me in the long run for my research and task of creating my own magazine cover.
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