Question 7

Looking back at your preliminary task (the school magazine task), what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it to full product?

When I did the school magazine I had never done media before this, therefore was very new to everything. I had the basic skills of being able to use a camera and knew how to use minimal technologies, for example camera, the Internet, word, PowerPoint, paint and the basics of publisher. Therefore when designing the front cover and contents page for my school magazine I used Fireworks, I taught myself how to use it and worked out what quite a lot of the tools buttons did. At the time the decisions I had made I thought myself looked quite effective and I did it well, but looking back at it now, I hadn't thought things through therefore going onto my main task I had a variety of skills which I developed on and learnt how to use more programmes.

For both front covers I used three main colours, I had similar house styles as I had one main picture and a main title with cover lines down the left hand sides. I felt this was a skill that I recognized early on the in the course and that I should keep to this as this is what most professional magazines do.

The shots I took for the first task I felt did fit the purpose but I didn't use my editing skills until I learnt how to which wasn't until I did my music magazine. Fr my music magazine I used Photoshop to change the colours of the photos slightly to make them more brighter and to make the contrast of the colours better.