Final Peice Evaluation

I have found that throughout the Foundation Portfolio task i have learnt a lot of key skills in being able to recognise conventions of different magazines. I have found it very useful in the sense that this task has given me good practice in being able to analyse thoroughly both text and the language of an image. These skills enabled me to successfully create my final piece of designing the front cover of my own college magazine along with a mock up of a contents page.

My end product is a college magazine, it includes all the traditional conventions and features you would expect to see in any magazine. I have made sure to include such things as; issue number, date, price and bar code, a masthead (sub also), main headline, sub headline main image additional image and a plug which appears bright and bold offering students discounts which relates directly to the target audience. I also included an unusual feature i spotted in 'School Sport' magazine which is a strip along the bottom which indicates briefly the content of the issue.

My college magazine is aimed at students and the target audience would range from around 15-19 years old, this gives potential students the chance to read the magazine also. I designed my front cover using very bright and bold text fonts to ensure the magazine stands out to catch the readers attention. It is unlikely a target audience of a younger generation are going to pick out or want to read a magazine which appears dull and boring. The mast head is the biggest text featured on the cover so that it can be easily recognised and features a sub-masthead above to enhance the title and college it's self.

Throughout the design process of my final piece I was able to look back to other magazines which I had analysed in a previous post to make sure I included the conventions which are seen in real media products. I noticed that in each magazine there was a set colour scheme used in fonts and backgrounds usually consisting of three colours, for example in 'School Sport' and 'Blunder' a colour scheme of black white and yellow is shown. I made use of this particular convention by using a colour scheme of red, white and purple. Although I wrote the word 'striking' in yellow text which steers away form my colour scheme.

I wanted to make a link with the yellow background of the image in the top right hand corner as i realised no other yellow appeared anywhere else. As the image is advertising a sport jumper and the particular headline that I have included the yellow in is advertising a sports win i decided this was a good opportunity to make a related link between the two. I also used a different colour text for my main headline, firstly to make it stand out more and secondly science exercise books always used to be orange and as my headline focuses on this idea it relates well. Also if you notice on the left hand side of my cover is the layout of a more conventional way of a gossip or fashion magazine and the right hand side focuses in on the academic representations of the magazine.

The image of the science student is the main focus of the cover as all the other features are placed around her so that she is dominant over the rest going on in the cover. I edited my photo using photo shop elements to blur out the background of my photo. I did this so that the student would become the main focus and stands out more from the rest of the photo. The student is looking up towards the test tube portraying a positive and optimistic outlook and this is the message i am trying to get across about Wyke college in my magazine.

I put a lot of thought into my main image focus, to ensure that it entirely reflects the main headline. Similarly to the 'Look' magazine and 'School Sport' she is not looking directly at the audience but rather at the test tube in her hand, she is dressed in a science lab coat and safety goggles creating the impression she is taking part in an experiment. In addition to this another reason i chose to include the test tube containing solution is to emphasise the pun displayed in the headline 'Science: A Solution to Succeed', this is written written bigger and bolder in comparison to the other text around and is written across the students arm to emphasise the link between the two. The costume also strongly represents the social stereotype of what a scientist dresses like. My image suggests the student is unaware their photo is being taken implying it has been captured during a lesson creating a sense of realism and verisimilitude.

If I had the chance to make improvements to my final magazine cover i would make changes to the colour scheme and limit them to three colours and only three as seen in the other magazines I have analysed previously. I would change the yellow background colour which I took my photo against in the image of the sports jumper, so that it links in with my chosen colour scheme and is not entirely unrelated. I have boxed some text as part of a headline, however no other boxing appears anywhere else on the cover so i would either not include this or box a whole headline instead of just part of one.

Overall i believe i made good use of the conventions of magazines and I am very pleased with my end product for the foundation portfolio task of creating a front cover for a college magazine.

Mock-Up of Contents Page

My contents page has the general appearance and layout of any magazine contents page. I have kept the colour scheme of red, white and purple, along with the additional text colour of black and slightly different shades of previous colours. I have included images that support a selection of the headings featured on the cover and the page number so it is easy to find. I divided the content into different categories which is what you would normally expect to see in a contents page. I also featured a column dedicated to the editor's letter (usual feature of a contents page)and a Principal's letter, which i thought would be appropriate as it is a college magazine.

Final Piece (College Magazine)

This is my final piece for the foundation portfolio task. After thourough analysis of differnt types of magazines I was able to successfully design and create my own magazine for Wyke College students.

Main Image Medium Close-Up

My main photo has to be a medium close up which only shows from the high waist area upwards. This allows me to be able to include a surrounding area whilst still allowing me to capture detail and emotions in the face and body language.





I have decided to use this 1st picture as the student is looking up towards the test tube portraying a positive and optimistic image and this is the message i am trying to get across about Wyke college in my magazine. You can see clearly the surrounding area of the science lab which creates a sense of realism. When editing this photo i will use photo shop elements to blur out the background so that the student becomes the main image focus of the picture.

I do not think the 2nd photo is a good option as the student is looking down portraying a negative image and this is not appropriate for the outlook of Wyke college. The surrounding area is limited and not as clear and bright as the 1st photo. Also one of her eyes looks almost shut. Overall I do not think this would be the best option to use as my main image.

Additional images

I wanted to include an additional image to represent the college jumpers. My original idea was to get a photo of each type of jumper available to the students, however I had difficulty in getting all three together, so instead i only featured the sports jumper. I chose to take my picture against three different backgrounds so that I could pick which one would best suit my magazine.This picture has the brightest and boldest background out of the three. I have chosen to feature this photo on the front cover of my magazine because the two strong colours against each other will catch the readers eye and attract my target audience. When editing this photo i will be able to crop the right hand side of the image to get rid of the unwanted scenery that is visible.

This image has a more toned down background as it is of a lighter but similar colour to the jumper itself and almost blends in. For the reason that my target reader is from around the age of 15-19 years old I do not want my images and background to blend together as I would prefer them to be more noticeable.

I thought about having a naturalistic background so I chose to take this picture against a window that looked out upon a green/grassy area to create a naturalistic feel. Also because this is a sports jumper you generally associate sport with the outdoors so i thought about relating the jumper to the background. However i decided that with the bars and the lighting contrast there is too much going on for it to be a suitable image.

Final draft for Foundation Portfolio

This is my final draft of my college magazine. I have chosen particular ideas from my last post and featured them in this draft and i have kept the layout the same.

The masthead i have chosen is 'BURST' it represents the college in a positive light,suggesting Wyke is a college bursting with opportunity to do well and succeed, this is also shown in the sub-masthead situated above the title. The colours of my masthead will be very bold and eye-catching, avoiding all dark and dull colours. The whole word is clearly visible ans the lettering is very clear to the reader. I have designed the letters of 'burst' to not quite fit in the designated space (as if it is 'bursting' out), this a creative design idea of the word itself and a reflective idea of the college image I am trying to portray.

In the top right hand corner i have shown how i want my images laying out. Each of the hoodies will overlap the next, including prices to show that they are affordable, as seen in the 'LOOK' magazine. I will use a white background for this so that the jumpers appear bolder, brighter and sharper.


I have attempted to draw my main image, I have decided to use a science theme. I will ask a student to pose as a stereo-typical scientist, dressed in a lab coat and safety goggles, whilst holding a test tube which will contain some solution. Similarly to other magazines the main headline is cutting into and overlapping the image. The test tube is placed inside the 'O' of the word 'solution', this is an effective play on words as the test tube contains solution, which is inside the word solution. The headline is very Representative and reflective pun of the illustrated image.

The background I am going to use will simply be the background of my main photo, this will be a science laboratory to continue with my theme and create further authenticity.
The cover will follow a colour scheme, the additional text will consist of just two colours as seen in previously analysed magazine overs. However the main head line will contrast with the other text to make it appear more dominant over the rest, likewise with the masthead.


I have included four sub-headings, (in the real cover the font will be much larger) each accompanied with a small image that represents the featured story. These stories cover a range of different areas, the first being sporting achievement featuring a story titled 'A striking Success' focusing on the area of a recent football match the college took part in. I think the title is very inventive and a creative way to advertise.

The second sub-heading features a charity event hosted by the college. This gives a very positive outlook as it shows the college is interested in helping those less fortunate. The event advertised is a cat walk which students will take an interest in because students generally like fashion. I came up with the heading, 'Strut your stuff', it's alliterative, reflective and very catchy.
The 'A Scary Sight' cover story is a fun way to attract students to want to read the magazine as most enjoy looking at photo's and because the photo's will be featuring their college peers attending a college fancy dress it is more likely they will be eager to view these pictures.

The 'Basket Ball for Beginners' offers something for new learners or those who want to try something different. By promoting new courses it represents the positive outlook i am trying to illustrate and opportunity.


The plug promises a clear benefit to every reader. This attracts the target audience because people like to know when they can gain from things. Students will want to read the magazine if they know they are at an advantage of getting student discount with this magazine. I will display this plug in bright and contrasting colours to make it stand out and catch the eye of the reader.


Across the bottom of the cover i have bullet pointed the main features of the magazine content similarly to the 'School Sport' magazine I have previously analysed. This is just an additional way to emphasise the content, to persuade the reader to want to buy and read it.

idea layout for college magazine

When designing this magazine cover layout I was able to use ideas from my magazine analysis from the post below to help with my design and layout ideas.


Masthead: To help me come up with a suitable name for my college magazine I have collected a group of words that relate to achieving and learning; excel (excel yourself in learning) passion (passion to want to do well) freedom (freedom to achieve what and how you want) fresh (the idea that the college is new and fresh, promoting modern learning) vivid (wyke makes the future look positive, very bright and clear) blab (ideal name for a college gossip magazine) desire ( a desire to want to succeed) accomplish (accomplish personal targets and target grades) burst (suggests the college is bursting with opportunity) Another idea is to call it 'College Knowledge' i think this is a a good play on words as they both rhyme and could be very catchy. The only disadvantage is that it's quite a long title for a magazine.

Sub Masthead: Similarly to the LOOK magazine I have also included a sub heading. In LOOK it was used to emphasise the type of magazine, however I am going to use it as another way to emphasise the quality of the college. I have come up with a catchy phrase that reflects on the masthead; 'licence to learn', I thought this would reflect well on the masthead 'Accomplish' as heard when completing something people say 'mission accomplished'. In the film James Bond, there is a line 'licence to kill' instead of using this I would change this phrase to 'licence to learn' and use this as the sub-masthead, these two phrases compliment each other and by playing on these words I think it is a creative way to advertise the college.

If I used the masthead 'Burst' my sub-masthead that I would use to reflect this would be 'Wyke College, Bursting with Opportunity'. This suggests the college is overflowing with opportunity which is a very positive outlook.

Main image focus: I will use the same conventions as seen in all the the magazines I analysed, in the sense that I have designed all other text and features on the cover around the main image. I have come up with a few different image ideas for different themes, subject areas etc. If I was to do the main focus on the subject law, I would have a student posing at a desk looking as though the image has been taken whilst in a lesson, with a law text book in view,that students are issued with when they take the subject. The classroom will be in the background, however it would be blurred to focus attention on the student, as seen in the sport magazine I analysed.

Another idea is to use a seasonal theme, focusing on bonfire night. The cover would advertise that the college is hosting a charity bonfire. The image would be of a student, dressed for winter and looking up to the sky, as if to be watching the fireworks. I would include a picture of fireworks in the background to add authenticity to the picture.

I also have an idea to have a science theme, advertising science at Wyke. The image would be student posing in a lab coat, safety goggles etc whilst holding a test tube with solution inside to make it look like the photo has been captured whilst the student is carrying out an experiment.

Main headline: If i decided to go with the science theme the main headline would include the words 'A SOLUTION TO SUCCEED'. The image reflecting this will be a student holding a test tube with solution in it, causing the headline to become an effective play on words.

If i went with the idea of a bonfire night theme for the main image focus, my main headline would include words such as; explosive, bang, colourful, fiery, bursting, bright, display. I have come up with the headline, 'AN EXPLOSIVE NIGHT TO REMEMBER REMEMBER' the saying for bonfire night is 'remember remember 5th of November, so by including the first two words in my headline it has a stronger to link to the event whilst still being creative and catchy. However i would prefer to use a headline which is more short and snappy.

Additional image: I have chosen to include an additional image as seen in the 'LOOK' fashion magazine cover. i have decided to use this space similarly to advertise the range of different Wyke hoodies; Dance, sport and psychology.

Sub headlines: The sub headlines will include things that are happening in the college and different subject areas. I was thinking of including a sport sub headline, maybe to advertise inter form matches or rugby/football events and results. If it was to advertise a football win i have come up with the subheading, 'A STRIKING SUCCESS'.

A sub headline advertising a photo gallery inside from the wyke Halloween party, i came up with the title 'A SCARY SIGHT', this is a good play on words as it could be interpreted as a sarcastic point of view on the actual photos of the students or a scary sight suggesting their costumes where scary, hence it was a Halloween them.

Another idea is to advertise a charity event hosted by the college for 'children in need' for example a fashion show. A catchy subheading for this would be 'STRUT YOUR STUFF', it is onomatopoeic and relates to a catwalk, therefore it is a suitably catchy title.

The magazine should be able to offer something for new for begginers, giving students an oppertunity to want to take part in something within the college, for example beginner's sport corses. I could use the subhead; 'BASKETBALL FOR BEGINNERS' it's short simple and imformative whilst still including the language feature of illiteration to make it more catchy.


Plug: I have some different ideas which the plug will be used to advertise things like a competition for example; to design a poster or a logo for the college and they could win an i-pod. Or to advertise trips out with college to a theme park for example. Or to advertise a charity event in college. Or to advertise student discounts etc.