What have you learnt about technologies from the process of constructing the product?

Throughout the duration of the production stage of my magazine, I used multiple types of technology in order to create the most professional, high-quality and well-planned magazine as possible. I began this process by having a photo-shoot using a Canon 550D DSLR because this is a camera that does not only produce great looking images, but one that I am also comfortable with using due to previous use. This digital camera meant that I could look through the images that I was taking instantly and could therefore delete ones which I was not happy with. Afterwards they could then be uploaded quickly and efficiently to the computer by using a card reader for the SD card; which saved me both time and effort. I used this camera when taking photos of my models against a white back drop light by interfit portrait photography lighting, in order to create the right amount of light for my photographs to appear professional. Another feature of this lighting was that it had trigger lighting, this means it was in sync with my camera, and therefore every time I took a photo, the lighting would flash also. This ensured my photos looked as clear and professional as possible. For this particular shoot I used an 18-55mm 4.6 aperture lens, ensuring I could capture each image in a variety of angles and sizes. Before the shoot, I had also set up another Canon 550D on a tripod behind me which was focused on the set where I was taking the images. This was then connected to an interval meter where I had set the time limit to 5 seconds, which meant that every five seconds an image would be captured, therefore creating a time laps to highlight the work that I had put in and how I had created the images for my magazine. After this shoot, I also did a second shoot outside so that it would add some diversity to my magazine and give a range of photos for me to choose from. To add to the variety I decided to change the lens on the camera, and instead this time used a 50mm 1.8 aperture as well as a polarized filter. This meant that the focus was placed on the foreground in the image which was the model, whilst the background was blurred. This gave a professional and stylish touch to the images.

Once the photos were taken, I uploaded them to my computer. After deciding which photo’s I wanted to use on my magazine, I began to edit them. For this I used a programme called Adobe Photoshop CS3. This piece of software allows users to edit, cut, change and even create images and graphics. I am quite familiar with this piece of software in an advanced manner. One key feature of Photoshop, that without would have made my magazine appear less successful, is the feature of cutting out images from their background. There are a few ways you can do this, one way being the Magic Wand Tool, allowing you to attach a line to the outline of your image and then cut it out. However, I found this cut my photos out in a rough and bumpy way, therefore decided to use Colour Range, which allows you to click on parts of the image you wish to erase and then edit to perfect using the Mask tool.

Another effect I decided to use was the lens flare tool. This can be seen on my contents page at the bottom where I have used one in order to make my images appear brighter then they originally were. I did this just to add a bit more variety on my page and highlight my skills when using photoshop. Additionally, I cut out a section of a background in one of my pictures which was of graffiti. I then duplicated this layer to make it cover a larger majority of my page and placed it behind one of the images on my contents. Next, I changed the hue and saturation of the image so that it stood out more and drew great focus to the image that it laid behind. Finally sites like Blogger, Scribd and Slideshare have been a huge part of the creation of my magazine, allowing me to document every stage of the production process, showing the different stages and features I considered when making my magazine.

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

Since the creation of my preliminary task I have enhanced my ability when using Photoshop CS3 as I believe that I can now do things on the programme that I could not do before. Furthermore, my research into magazines has also been a great assistance as it has given me the knowledge of knowing how to construct a magazine, and what it should look like. This has then taught me how to make the most out of all of the available space on a page and to make sure that everything is coherent in terms of font, images and colour scheme. The difference in this skill that I had learned can be noticed between the preliminary task and my final task because on the first task there was many white spaces along with boring fonts and no focal points on the page; whereas on my final task I think I have corrected all of these errors and learned from my previous errors in order to create a professional looking magazine.

Another skill I have learnt from the final production is how to cut out images properly without any jagged edges. In my preliminary task, the images had rough edges and I didn’t apply any effects or editing as I did not know how to. This is never seen in magazines, and highlights my inexperience but also how I have grown over the duration of the task. I am now also able to work the professional lighting and this has resulted in much better images for my final piece. Learning the skills needed to cut out, edit and add effects to images meant that not only did my images look good and professional it highlighted my development over the task and how I have grown in confidence when using Photoshop CS3 as I can now apply professional skills like feather, lens-flares and to adjust the hue and saturation.

Throughout the task I also learned how to wrap text around an image or any certain shape. I believe that this was a very useful and important skill to learn as it helps to fill up empty spaces on my page in order to make my magazine look action packed and exciting. I used this skill effectively on my third double page spread where I wrapped the text around my image so that the image would not be ruined but ultimately to fill all spaces on the page. In my opinion, it also makes the images appear to be more striking as they stand out from the text, and the words just act as a background to the strong pictures.

In conclusion, I believe that I have developed my creative knowledge of magazines as now know how to create an effective balance between not only words and images, but also how much should be on the page so that it does not look too busy, or too empty. I also feel as though I know what the target audience of a magazine are expecting to see in a magazine, and therefore have my own knowledge of what to include in a magazine and how to go about creating the magazine with less assistance than was needed in the preliminary task in order to create a stylish, professional and creative magazine.