Analysing Previous Student's Work

Name of Magazine	Strengths	Weaknesses	Grade I awarded
Platinum Mine	-Eye catching -Colour contrasts well with the background and the cover lines stand out. -Advertisements on the contents page look professional. -All the features of a front page are on it (barcode, masthead) -Play on words (De Vyn) -Professional use of a pull quote on the double page spread. -Photos on the contents page and double spread are good quality and look professional.	-Masthead isn’t very clear (background) -Colour scheme isn’t co-ordinated -Fonts are not professional with the shadowing -No issue number, date or price. -Front page image is not good quality	C
iMAGe	COVER -Clear black and white image of good quality -Red writing stands out on black and white background -Good word play as masthead has the word ‘mag’ in it -QR code (extra essential info) -Similar fonts and size of text -Pictures and text don’t overpower each other CONTENTS -Good mix of styles for photos -All clear, good quality images -Effective use of blurred background in image -Makes each section look like a section in iTunes/ links to music layout -Not too overcrowded -Simple, minimalistic layout -No clear weaknesses to be pointed out DOUBLE PAGE -Dominant image showing the artist in question -Image takes up whole page without trying to add things around it which would contrast with the simplistic layout throughout -Interesting pull quote put into an appropriate font style that corresponds to the artist -Uses the pull quote as the article title -Three columns of text to not overpower the reader	COVER -QR code and barcode is sharper than the image and text so attention is drawn to them rather than the main image -Quite clear the image has been edited onto the background NO WEAKNESS FOR CONTENTS PAGE DOUBLE PAGE -Could have used other images rather than one -No captions used to anchor the meaning -Words don’t fit onto one line and instead have dashes to connect it to the next line -Text stops halfway through a sentence	A
TALENT	-Clear masthead with an appropriate choice of font -All essential information present -Main image used -Consistent colour scheme -Splits contents page into sections -Includes stories with page numbers -Splits stories into categories -Uses a pull quote in the double page spread -Relatively effective edit of dominant image -Questions and answers in different colours to split them apart and make easier to read	COVER -Bad quality main image -Poor choice of font for text -Overcrowded -White background visible on star in top right corner -Could use background shapes for text -Images overlapped poorly CONTENTS -Poor quality images -Mentions what is on every page instead of picking out key stories -Changes title fonts from cover -Text and images too close together making it overcrowded -Pull quote could be better placed	C

From looking at the work completed by previous students I have learned that the layout, colour scheme, font and the quality of images are the most important factors in the magazine as these are responsible for how professional it looks as a whole. It is essential to make sure none of the pages are too crowded and have decided that a simple, minimalistic front cover is the best way to go. The idea of making the contents page have a music library layout has given me inspiration of how I will design mine. I will also try to blend all of the images and text together so it isn't obvious they have been edited in seperately. I now know that having a colour scheme that doesn't clash but is also slightly different to avoid overpowering the reader is a good idea. Font styles should stick to a specific house style but having the same font for the whole magazine wouldn't take advantage of the ability to use the connotations from certain fonts to the magazine's advantage like #1 of the double page deconstructions.

The more simple aspects of the magazines have proved to be lacking in some examples proving that all parts of the magazine should be focussed on and not just what is seen as the more important, creative sections. For example, ensuring all spelling and grammar are correct is essential as it is difficult to have respect for the brand of magazine if there is an obvious spelling mistake present.