Preliminary task outcome

Before moving on to the final task for the foundation portfolio, we were made to do a preliminary exercise in order to experience photoshop and develop basic skills for the final magazine task:

The outcome of the preliminary cover and content page was this: Since this was the first time I was using most photoshop tools, this what I came up with although I felt like I could have done an even better job if I had some more knowledge of the tools but a major issue was that I was being very restrictive with my creativity. I didn’t want to over- do it but at the same time I didn’t want it to look unattractive either.

The use of the blur tool is evident in this, so the contents can be easily read also focusing on the male star child. The content page has similar colors overall creating a sort of symmetry within the stencil.

This was the first time ever for the photoshop experience and I felt like with more time and effort a lot newer skills could be developed for the final task of the foundation portfolio.

Creative Critical Reflection

Making the Double Spread Page

The double spread page was a challenge. To make the double spread look attractive for the audiences i had to experiment a lot because at first I wasn’t happy with it at all but then the graphic elements and side columns made it look a little like what i wanted.

The first few steps were something like this:

I was sure of how i was going to place the text on the double spread page but in the beginning I wasn’t very sure of how i would place the images and other graphic elements. Experimenting with the page continued for quite a few hours and this is the basic i came up with- using cupcake cutouts instead of the whole picture gave it a very cute look instead of placing the whole picture which made it look very untidy.

Changing the fonts, adding the pull- quote and similarly color graphic boxes made the page appear to be colorful and gave a very comfortable look overall. I even asked a few people verbally, whether they would want to read this magazine page or would they just skip it because it doesn’t attract them. I got a good response and I felt that this would be a good way to have an insight about what the audience has to say. For me graphic elements were a winner, they add life to the page and anything that attracts consumers is something that is perfect for marketing.

The first draft of the final product is shown below:

Since i wasn’t very happy with my photography i tried my best to cover  up the laws by using cutouts of images, graphics, textured background and minor picture editing so i could have a better outcome of the final product.

After some more research and discussion with my media teacher i realized that there were definite issues that could be countered using photoshop. While creating the double spread page I realized, I did not pay attention to where the page is to be folded to close to magazine; and hence in my current structure the text would have been cut.

Also, my teacher showed me some real media examples of sample double spreads and I felt like even though there were a lot of graphic elements in my page, I could have a more simple approach to it along with the graphics by removing the unnecessary textures in the background and also changing the placement of “Chef tips” and the graphic cupcakes etc.

Firstly, I added the margins to the page so I know exactly where I need to place the text box and the graphics; this is a mistake I made in my first draft and was determined to make the page look better.

I also removed the texture used on the background and figured that without the texture it looked subtle and fresh. Having the  cupcakes behind the title gave it an overall interesting look giving me more space in the bottom right corner to utilize.

Sorting out the margins made it easier for me to align the text and the graphic bars on the side- giving a more professional and easy to read look to the entire page. Instead of directly placing the quote under the subtitle, I added it in the middle of the paragraph so the audience would have more interest in reading what it’s all about.

The final look of my double spread page was this:

I was pretty happy with the way it looked by the end of the second draft, a lot more vibrant and colorful, perfectly depicting the genre of the magazine and the colors dominated the entire outlook.

Making the Content Page

The content page took a lot of time since i wanted it to give a unique look which i wasn’t able to give at first. The first look of the content page was this:

While I did some extensive research for my media magazine project I realized this page was not as attractive as i thought it would be, most food magazine pages whether cover, content or even double spread pages are with plain background colors with not a lot happening on the page which is what makes them unique and attractive to look at. I looked at the various conventions and eventually tried to follow them-

I removed all the unnecessary effects such a bevel and emboss, gradients and reduced the color palette adding more graphical aspects to it instead.

I decided to remove the flowers in the background and make it comparatively subtle so i decided to go with a polka dotted background, this made the magazine look like a proper dessert issue since it reminded me of the sprinkles that are used to put decorate the delicious little cupcakes.

I tried to incorporate as many styles as I could for the different aspects of the page. Instead of using the general format of contents, by having the heading and a little detail about the article, I decided to revise it with more graphical effects instead (adding an image and its heading below). The style of the boxes was done using the rectangular and circular shape tool. Both the tools were masked together and the image was placed on it, making it attractive and something that would attract people. This idea was inspired by how most cupcake holders are shaped like that and it kind of symbolises the genre of the magazine very clearly.

The revised version of the content page looks like this, as it can be seen that various different styles have been used to enhance the look, more graphics, interesting background depicting what the genre is and it looks like something that would attract audiences. During my extensive research I noticed how not many dessert issues are colourful, it’s usually just a main picture that gives a strong impression- In my case, I feel like this is something different and gives a very cute feel to the magazine.

The final version of my content page:

Making the Cover page

Towards the end of the year our main motive was to finish our media magazine for which we had been learning various conventions and even practiced them for our preliminary task.

The media magazine took a good amount of time to be completed especially since it has to look worthy of getting a good grade. The genre i chose was food because it felt as if i could really relate to it since.. it’s food and everyone loves food whether sweet or savory. For the cover page the image i chose was:

This picture was the best one out of all of them, personally I wasn’t very happy with my photography and the camera angles I used weren’t up to the mark but I somehow managed to make the cover page look comparatively better than what i expected it to look like. The making of the cover page was like writing a story in different phases, chipping in different ideas and recognizing the target group and who would be represented by the magazine which was mostly bakery chefs. 

These were the steps of the making of the magazine cover. Choosing the color palette was the trickiest and making sure what looked right was important.

Photoshop does have a lot of font options to choose from but I wanted to choose something different in order to give my magazine a classy yet a really professional look, also since I was enjoying my work so much I felt like going into the depth and finding out various ways to make the magazine look better. I used new fonts from http://www.dafont.com.

To make the magazine look a bit different instead of having the cover- lines written in a normal font I thought I Should add a graphic touch to it so it looks colorful and interesting. I used the shape tool to make a puff and added a gradient to it making it vibrant and attractive.

The final cover looks something like this:

 The strips, puffs and the colors added a great touch to it and made it look colorful- Everyone loves food and for the magazine to be picked up without second thoughts it has to look attractive and this was my try.

Shooting Experience:

The shoot went well but it certainly didn’t give the most amazing results- admitting that not a lot of attention was paid on the planning of it. However, I managed to take a few good clicks along with some that didn’t turn out as well as I wanted them to.

The experience was exciting and at the same time really tiring, photography requires a lot of hard work and creativity- even the simplest items can be made to look beautiful. For my cover- page, I had an option of whether I would want to do cakes or cupcakes. Since I had already tried to work with a cake in my test shoot, I decided to change it a bit and make it more colourful just by placing a cupcake with soft decorations.

These were a few pictures that were taken by me. Not a lot is going on in the pictures and there is a lot of negative space in most of them but these pictures will be used in a very tactical way where the areas which have a lot of negative space will be covered with graphic strips (especially in the lower part of the picture) and cover-lines. The Masthead will be incorporated on top of the magazine cover.

Strengths: While I was doing the photo shoot, I tried to make sure that the lighting I had was enough to make the cupcake look delicious- also, the background matters a lot and after going through a couple of magazines that had cupcakes on them, some had more than one cupcake while the others were with a plain background and one cupcake with yummy icing on top! A good thing about my product was that it didn’t require much decoration, a simple yet appealing decorative icing was all that was needed. Also, a plainer background with a hint of silver colour gave it a very cool look, and allows the main product to be dominated.

Weaknesses: The reason I felt that a lot was missing out on the photography was probably because of the camera angles that were used. When I sat down and tried to figure out what the cover page would look like I felt like a huge mishap had taken place and the images seemed to be more suitable to the content and double spread rather than the cover page which clearly is the most important one since it is because of the cover page that the magazines are sold.

Test shoot

Since my food magazine is featuring the cake issue, I obviously want it to look extremely appealing so the audience doesn’t have to think twice about purchasing the magazine when they look at it: I wasn’t very content with my test shoot as I didn’t get the result I expected and hence, I will carry out another shoot which will be final (hopefully).

The test shoot, however included the following pictures:

  

These were the few pictures I captured, the reason why these images cannot be chosen as the pictures for the cover page mainly because the proper mise-en-scene is not being developed- the background needs to be a bit clearer maybe with a window blurred or a very calm and fresh scene at the back instead of it being plain white.

Planning: Schedule and Budget

I plan to carry out a test shoot on Thursday, 9th March, 2015 before 12 noon keeping in mind the daylight atmosphere gives a very fresh look to the pictures. Also, since it’s the food magazine fresh food makes it look even more attractive.

The final shoot, however will take place on Sunday, 12th March 2015 after discussing and pointing out the strengths and weaknesses of the test shoot.

For the budget: the only greater expense would be of fuel for the car- otherwise expenses (if needed) would include the essentials the model does not have for example an apron, chefs hat OR if extra lighting is needed etc. Considering those, the total budget estimate would be of around Rs. 2000-2500.

Planning: Technology and Equipment

In order to begin the shoot the most essential product needed is the camera. For my photo shoot I will be using the Canon 550D, with a 18-55mm lens:
                       Keeping in mind its an indoor shoot- which includes food so the picture would be better if the camera isn’t very shaky when it’s being used, and so- a tripod will be used. 
If necessary, extra lighting would be used so the photograph is actually the way it is supposed to be and doesn’t end up being a disaster. 

Planning: Software

For editing, Adobe photoshop would be used keeping in mind the various tools it has along with the effects which allows us to transform a low quality image to a greater quality- making the photograph taken look better and attractive; however, not a lot of editing would be done as I would want my consumer to look at what they’ll actually get and not extremely different.