Development DiaryContents Page

I started off the contents page by adding the header on the front cover in a lowered position on the left hand side of the page. I made it really opaque so that it just faded into the background. I thought that this look really nice and before I added to listings I already knew that it was going to look really unique and different.

I then added the header to the page. I decided to write ‘Inside This Month’ over something such as ‘What’s Inside’, because it signifies to the reader how often the magazine will be released. I chose to go with this particular font, which is called ‘Shady Lane’, because it looks as though someone has hand drawn it onto the page which I thought looked really intriguing and different. I chose to use a brighter pink colour so that it stood out on the page and so that the reader would be automatically drawn into that particular area of the page before they started scanning through the listings or looking at the images.

I then added the first picture to the page which is of the main story that I am going to write about in the double page spread. I faded the edges using the gradient tool so make it look more feminine and effortless. I decided to do this because I thought that it would look more appealing to the target audience. The picture itself was cropped using the crop tool on photoshop so that it would blend well with everything else on the page.

I added these three headers to go onto the contents page so that I could categorise the listings. I thought that these were appropriate headers to go with because it would be fairly easy to separate each different article that I put on the page. I chose to do these titles for the listings because they are to the point and the reader can easily find what they are looking for.

I placed them in these areas, making sure to leave a significant gap in between each one so that I can fit the listings in. I wanted to position them in this way because it is an easy way for the reader to navigate around the page. If I had placed them any differently, I don’t think that the reader would’ve been able to quickly scan over the page to find what they’re looking for.

All of the screenshots on the previous page are of the left hand listings that I chose to put on the contents page. I categorised all of the different pages so that they would fit under the correct headings. I made sure that the numbers were in the same colour as the masthead on the front cover so that the colour scheme would be constant. I made the actual listing the same colour as the box colour surrounding the headings ‘features’, ‘essentials’ and ‘reviews’. I made sure that this was kept the same colour so that it all blended into one. I think that if I were to do it in a different colour, there would be far too many colours on the page, thus confusing the reader drawing their attention to many different areas on the page. When it came to the descriptors I made sure that the colour was the same as the numbers so that the main focus was on the listing itself with the descriptor coming straight after. I think that all of the listings fall into the correct categories and I made sure that all of the numbers were in numerical order so that the reader can easily navigate through.

I then added an area to the right of the listings called ‘On The Cover’. I thought that it would be good to make this area as the majority of the readers pick up and buy the magazine because they like what they see on the front cover. Therefore, to me, this part of the contents page is vital in drawing the reader in further. It will make it easier for them as well, to navigate through the magazine to find the main stories that are seen on the front cover. All of the features that are in this area will be the main stories and articles that are in the magazine as well as the ones that are featured on the front cover.

Before I started working on the on the cover segment I decided to put a page number on the image with a small descriptor so that the reader can easily navigate to the main story which is shown on the front cover. I thought that this would be more efficient to the reader as they usually just want to get to the main part of the main part of the magazine which in this case in the story on Jemima.

After I added the writing to the image, I went on to add the listings to the ‘On The Cover’ area. As it clearly states I added all of the features that the audience can see on the front cover. I made sure that I would add a little more detail into these descriptors so that the reader knows in more depth, what is actually in the articles themselves. I thought that this would be better to do than just having a simple description as it will signify to the reader whether or not they actually want to read it.

I added a second image to the page, placed slightly to the left of the centre of the page. I thought that it would be a good idea to add this to the page to add a bit of variation. It likes to one of the listings in the ‘Essentials’ area so I thought that it would be a good idea to signify to the reader that it is a good article to read. I think that the image itself highlights to the reader exactly what will be featured in the articles and emphasises what you can expect to read about.

This is the final look of the contents pages, complete with the editors word. I made sure that I mentioned all of the main stories in the editors word so that the reader can know what the best areas in the magazine are. I signed the bottom with my name so that the reader feels like it is a lot more personal.

Here’s a closer look at the editors word.