Question 7Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have learnt in the progression from it

to the full product?

As you can see from looking at my preliminary front cover (to the left) and my main task front cover (to the right), there is a clear difference in the change of quality and final outcome.

Front covers

Comparing•Mastheads- In both magazines the font used has obviously been carefully thought about to suit the style of the magazine and what connotations it wants to give off, however the masthead for my final piece is a lot more professional looking and is made to stand out a lot more than the masthead in my preliminary task.•Coverlines- the coverlines are made to stand out in both magazines and the language used is appropriate and I think the angle at which they are slanted is appropriate in both, again suiting the styles of the magazines. However, although they are both made to stand out, there is a clear difference in the standards of how they are made to stand out. In the preliminary task they are made to stand out by the contrast of colours in the blocks, in the main task the coverlines uses layer styles to make the text stand out.

•Mainsell- There is a clear difference in the quality of the photos, and the photo manipulation. The main sell in my final piece is a much higher standard. Also, although the mise-en-scene in both covers suit the styles of the covers and the use of props was good, the mise-en-scene in my final piece is again a lot more professional and was thought out and arranged a lot better.

Comparing•Colour scheme- the colour scheme in both covers suit the style and give off the right connotations. The acidic colours used in the preliminary task give off, excitement, loud, rebellious connotations, where as the colours black and purple give off, relaxing, sophisticated, mature connotations. However, the colour scheme in my final piece was thought out a lot more , for example the colours match the mainsell’s dress, nail varnish, lipstick etc, where as in the preliminary task the top that the model is wearing doesn’t goes as well with the colours used.•Both use screamers, puffs, dates, barcodes etc. I think the barcode’s in both are angled suitably, but the barcode in the preliminary task may be a bit too big.

•Layout- As you can see from looking at the two front covers the layout looks a lot better and more professional in my final piece, the page is balanced and the text size is appropriate along with the positioning and the bleeding of the coverlines and mainsell is suitable, where as in the preliminary task the bleeding of the coverlines and mainsell is not suitable in some places for example the one coverline bleeds into the mainsell’s face a bit to much. Overall the layout is much better.

Technology aspect

The quality of my work has be able to improve, mainly from learning new technologies and learning more about technologies. To produce both my preliminary and main task front cover I used Photoshop. However when I produced my preliminary task I was fairly new to the programme and didn’t really know how to use a lot of the tools. On the other hand, by the time I came to produce my main task I was fairly confident in using Photoshop and was more familiar with the tools and what they do. This was the same circumstance for the programme Quark Express which I used for my contents page for the preliminary and main task and the double page spread for my main task.

As you can see from above the quality of my mainsell and edited mainsell is a lot better, in the preliminary task, the models face isn’t airbrushed or edited very well, for example the skin is blotchy and the eye colour isn’t realistic. Also there is use of over contrast on the mainsell in my preliminary task, making the mainsell look unprofessional. The reason why the quality of my mainsell has improved it because I have learnt a lot more on the programme Photoshop. This has enabled me to improve the quality of my mainsell. For example to make the model look more professional I was able to use a newly learnt tool (colour replacement) to add nail varnish.

Technology aspect: EXAMPLE OF HOW LEARNING MORE ABOUT TECHNOLOGIES IMPROVED MY WORK

Photography

The quality of my images used throughout my final magazine has improved a lot. This is because I was more organized when thinking about the props used within each photo, the mise-en-scene, the clothes worn, the make-up, the hairstyle etc, making sure they gave off the connotations, which I wanted my magazine to give off. My photo’s also improved as I was more confident in directing my model, telling her what to do for example facial expressions and body positioning. The final outcome of my photos had also improved as I had learnt a lot more photo manipulation techniques.

Time schedule

I was able to meet the deadlines for the production of my magazine front cover, contents page and double page spread for my main task promptly, allowing myself time to check over and add any finishing touches to my work. However, for the preliminary task I was working on my magazine right up to the very end of the deadline and only just met the deadline. This is because for my main task I had created a timeline for when I was going to do what and when by. I was a lot more organized and had a much more professional approach when producing my main task magazine.

Conclusion

Overall, I think that the preliminary task was very useful and enabled me to create a better final outcome for my main task. This is because I was able to practice using the necessary technologies and I was able to analyse my preliminary task and learn from mistakes, noting where I went wrong and what was needed to be improved on.