evaluation - technologies

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

Whilst producing my my magazine, i used numerous amounts of technology, such as publisher, fireworks, a digital camera and word etc. While making my magazine, i feel i have improved my skills in using these technologies, and been able to create a professional looking magazine.

I took my photos using a digital camera, meaning i was able to get a variety of distances and shot types, this ensured i had enough photographs to edit and use in my magazine. I took the photos around my house, this was because i had plain backgrounds to take them against, and it was easy to crop out objects such as skirting boards etc to make the shots look more professional.

I edited my photos using an editing software called macromedia firework, it is quite a complex program, but it allowed me to effectively edit the photographs to make them more professional looking. For my front cover shot i had to extend the background, so it fitted the page, then i changed the light settings for it to compliment the model. 

I was able to use this software efficiently and it enabled me to achieve the look i was striving for when editing my pictures relatively easily. I was also able to use new tools on fireworks that i hadn't used before, therefore developing my skills. For the other photos in my magazine i used the similar techniques, and in some i removed the background. The following are some examples of the pictures i edited:

The screen shot below shows the program, macromedia fireworks that i used to edit my photos, the wide variety of tools and the easiness of using it allowed me to produce photos that will fit with my magazine and look professional. 

To create my magazine, i used Microsoft publisher to create my magazine, it is a relatively simple program to used, which enabled me to efficiently and effectively create a professional looking magazine. For the front cover, i used text boxes and fonts downloaded from dafont.com to create the mast head and cover lines. I also imported images of artists that i had seen live, such as example and ed drewett and also the 'example' logo. I placed cover lines around the main image, in order to keep the layout neat and simple, meaning it would appeal to the older end of my target audience too. It is easy to move objects around on publisher, which was helpful when creating my magazine, as i was able to re-order object serveral times before i got them into the correct position. The following images shows the transformation from my draft magazine to my final product.

For my contents page, the layout changed considerably from my draft, i chose for the final layout to have a letter from the editor on the left hand side, as this is typical of many magazines, i then chose for the contents to be in columns with subheadings. i achieved this by using text boxes to create the columns. i then wrote snippets about the articles under some of the contents, in a different font and colour, this was to interest the reader more, and make them want to continue reading. Using publisher allowed me to play about with the layout until i finally found one that suited the magazine style, and also i was able to alter the colours so that it would flow effectively from the front cover and look professional. 

Again, i used publisher to create my double page spread, the columns were created using two separate text boxes, that were the same size. i also used a text box which i filled in a blue colour to create the fact file box. I imported my edited images onto the double page spread, and used a font from dafont.com to write the large title. If i was able to go back and do the magazine again, i think for the double page spread, i would have taken my photo against a busy background, as it looks quite plain. 

Whilst constructing my magazine, and using various different technologies, i feel i have developed my skills in them, enabling me to do a variety of different things on them, i have become more confident with using them and understand them better, i have learnt how to do new things on there, enabling me to be able to create a professional looking magazine.