Magazines: Front cover practical project
Magazines: Front cover practical project
The best way to learn the conventions of a media product is to create one. Your first task for the Magazines unit is to create an original front cover for an existing magazine.
This will also help to prepare you for the cross-media coursework starting with your coursework teacher in July.
Task: Choose an existing magazine and create a front cover for a new, original edition of your chosen publication.
Previous year examples:
Magazine practical production: tasks
Create a blogpost called 'Magazine practical task research and planning' and complete the following tasks:
Research
1) Use Google to research potential magazines that you could use as your brand/design for this project. Create a shortlist of three potential magazines and upload an example front cover from each one. We recommend looking at lifestyle magazines or a similar genre as these are more achievable to re-create.
2) Choose one of the three magazine brands to use for your project e.g GQ, Vogue or The Gentlewoman. Then find three different front covers for your chosen magazine and embed them in your blogpost. Analyse the fonts, colours and typical design. What is the language or writing style? How are the cover lines written? What camera shot is generally used for the cover image? You need to become an expert in the design and construction of this magazine and its branding.
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Planning
We will do a photoshoot in class next week with lighting and backdrop. However, if you prefer you can arrange your own photoshoot for the cover image in your own time - you can use your phone or your own camera to take an image. If you don't have a phone or camera that is suitable, you can sign out a camera from Mr Ray.
You will have one Media lesson to create your magazine cover on Adobe Photoshop or InDesign but you will probably need more time than this. In order to complete this work, you will need to work in DF06 when you don't have other lessons or use Photoshop/InDesign at home. You already have access to Adobe at home via our fantastic Adobe Creative Cloud subscription (worth around £25/month!) as long as you have a PC or laptop that can run it.
This will also help to prepare you for the cross-media coursework starting with your coursework teacher in July.
Task: Choose an existing magazine and create a front cover for a new, original edition of your chosen publication.
Previous year examples:
Magazine practical production: tasks
Create a blogpost called 'Magazine practical task research and planning' and complete the following tasks:
Research
1) Use Google to research potential magazines that you could use as your brand/design for this project. Create a shortlist of three potential magazines and upload an example front cover from each one. We recommend looking at lifestyle magazines or a similar genre as these are more achievable to re-create.
2) Choose one of the three magazine brands to use for your project e.g GQ, Vogue or The Gentlewoman. Then find three different front covers for your chosen magazine and embed them in your blogpost. Analyse the fonts, colours and typical design. What is the language or writing style? How are the cover lines written? What camera shot is generally used for the cover image? You need to become an expert in the design and construction of this magazine and its branding.
The logo is plastered onto each cover boldly, while being one of the main centres of attention, and then a male model being the main centre of attention in the middle. The typography in all covers is very bold and in capital letters. Each model is featured in a closeup shot
Planning
Main cover line: The truth
2) Briefly plan the image you will need for the cover - model, costume, make-up, lighting etc. At this point, simply describe the image you need to capture.
Model: Me
Costume: Casual clothes
Lighting: Highkey lighting
2) Briefly plan the image you will need for the cover - model, costume, make-up, lighting etc. At this point, simply describe the image you need to capture.
Model: Me
Costume: Casual clothes
Lighting: Highkey lighting
Camera: Closeup
It would be a well lit glamourous photo with text that correlates with it, that paints a good light of the model, while being closeup to replicate the style of GQ
3) Write the cover lines and any additional text you need for your magazine cover.
"Man of the year" "Outstanding"
4) Sketch out your cover on plain A4 paper using your written planning. Take a photo of your sketch and upload it to your blogpost.
Photoshoot
It would be a well lit glamourous photo with text that correlates with it, that paints a good light of the model, while being closeup to replicate the style of GQ
3) Write the cover lines and any additional text you need for your magazine cover.
"Man of the year" "Outstanding"
4) Sketch out your cover on plain A4 paper using your written planning. Take a photo of your sketch and upload it to your blogpost.
Photoshoot
We will do a photoshoot in class next week with lighting and backdrop. However, if you prefer you can arrange your own photoshoot for the cover image in your own time - you can use your phone or your own camera to take an image. If you don't have a phone or camera that is suitable, you can sign out a camera from Mr Ray.
1) On your planning document blogpost, state the date, time and location of your photoshoot and the name of the model or photographer you will use (you can choose anyone to be your cover model or you can be the cover model yourself).
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Photoshop or InDesign?
Photoshop or InDesign?
You will have one Media lesson to create your magazine cover on Adobe Photoshop or InDesign but you will probably need more time than this. In order to complete this work, you will need to work in DF06 when you don't have other lessons or use Photoshop/InDesign at home. You already have access to Adobe at home via our fantastic Adobe Creative Cloud subscription (worth around £25/month!) as long as you have a PC or laptop that can run it.
Online tutorials
The best way to learn Photoshop is simply to start creating your magazine cover and learn as you go. There are thousands of tutorials on YouTube to help you - here are just a couple of examples of Photoshop tutorials:
You can find an excellent InDesign tutorial here or alternatively try this:
Publication to blog and evaluation
I have succeeded in my goal in creating a new, original edition of an existing magazine. My cover stands up well alongside the existing covers of the GQ lifestyle magazine, appearing somewhat professional alongside the genuine examples.
One thing I would do differently would to use a slightly more focussed initial photograph,
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