Preliminary Task - School Magazine

The preliminary task is the first task I have been set for my Media Studies AS coursework. The preliminary task is to create a school magazine front cover and contents page. In order to create the front page and contents page we have to follow the codes and conventions and research other school magazines to see what works well and what doesn't. Therefore I searched the Internet and found various school magazines which I liked and didn't like, below.. 

This is the first school magazine cover I came across on the Internet. Although I really like the way the school magazine fits in with the fact that it is an art school i feel they haven't really stuck to the codes and conventions. For example there are no features, pictures or cross references to persuade the reader to pick up the magazine and read on. There is no masthead, price or headline. I also feel the front page has quite a lot of empty space and doesn't contain much relevant to attract the target audience. On the other hand I like the creative side to the front page using the fonts and bright colours.

This is the second school magazine cover I came across. The first thing I noticed was that throughout the front cover they have kept a consistent colour scheme. The colours are carefully chosen due to theme of the Christmas issue. This is a good way to attract the readers as the festive colours are relevant. Although the front cover does follow the code and convention of containing a mast head with the issue date and also the name of the magazine. This is shown in  black therefore it contrasts on the red. Also the mast head is a lot bigger and bolder to catch the readers eye. I then went onto notice that the school has used just one specific picture to cover the whole page which is relevant due to the theme of Christmas but there are no other photos on the front and there is a lot of empty space. The headline of the magazine is quite far down and is in red which i feel is not good as it doesn't stand out on the page and the font is not big enough. Near the bottom of the cover the features are shown but there are no cross references and the layout is poor. On the other hand it is shown in black therefore it contrasts.

When I first saw this front cover I immidatley thought it was a music magazine because of the boy in the picture, he has no uniform or relevance to school. The picture covers the whole page like a few other front covers I have seen, although this photo is very dark and not clear. The mast head slightly covers his head but using the red contrasts the black. The mast head follows the codes and conventions that it is a lot larger than anything else on the page. Once again on this front cover they have used a colour scheme throughout. On this front cover I liked the way the different stories are in different shapes therefore it catches the eye of the reader. Also the exclusive interview down the side is good in catching the eye of the reader. Having a picture is a good way in attracting the audience to read on because they seen something that appears inside. The headline is big, bold and contrasts therefore the reader can see it and also the issue date in the corner of the page.

On this front cover it immidatley addresses the target audience using the mast head stating 'Parent And School'  and using different fonts to show the difference. Once again this front cover has used one big picture on the front page which shows the boy in school, working. The headline in green, contrasting from the picture stating on science. The strip across the bottom is where the front cover states the features inside but has no cross references. The colours are cleverly used to stand out to the reader and throughout they have kept to a colour scheme of red and black like lots of other school magazines. 

This is the first contents page I came across the first thing that caught my eye was the signatures. Due to the fact it is the last issue of the magazine they have used signatures as the background and also on the page. Right at the bottom before all the features and pages are shown they have used the question ' Whats in here??' then listed all the features and the pages therefore you can chose what page you want to go too. 

This school magazine cover and contents page I really like because it follows a lot of the codes and conventions and is cleverly created. Firstly throughout both pages the colour scheme is consistent. The mast head on the front page is nice big and bold, not blocking any part of the photo also the issue date is shown in the green colour and a lot smaller. All around the outside off the photo it contains the features, the price and pictures all in different colours, fonts, sizes therefore they all contrast and the layout is cleverly created. Using cross reference helps the reader to turn straight to page needed. The only thing I feel has let this front cover down is the fact it is very packed and everything is quite large so I would maybe take a few things out. 

The contents page of the magazine has a really good layout which is clear for the readers. I like how down one side there is pictures with the page number in the corner and also how the contents page using all different colours and size fonts in order to show the different stories on different pages. I think it is very clear to the readers and looks really good. 

Planning the layout

Above is the planned layout of my front page of my school magazine. I firstly decided to put the school logo quite big in the top left corner therefore it shows it is the school's own magazine. Also using my knowledge and research on codes and conventions I put the masthead just next to it with the issue date just underneath therefore the reader can see the name of the school magazine and what issue it is. Underneath the logo I decided to use a circle shape to put a headline of a story in and cross reference it. I decided to use a circle because when I researched other school magazines I saw that one magazine used a wide range of different shapes therefore it catches the readers eye into all the different headlines. In the centre of the magazine I will use a picture which will stretch over the whole front page which will be relevant towards the theme and the headline which is placed just underneath the picture also with a subheading. In the bottom left I will use a photo which will sum its self up basically telling the reader already what its about with a cross reference. Down the side of the page I noticed on a lot of the front pages this is where they place a lot of there pictures and headlines and I believe it is a good way to attract the readers eye and to persuade them to read on. Lastly in the bottom corner in a semi circle I will have the price letting the students know how much this issue will cost.

Following the codes and conventions of a contents page I firstly will have 'Contents' on the top making it clear to the reader that it is the contents page. Underneath that I will have a range of photos therefore maybe instead of reading down the whole contents page if they see the picture which relates to a story they want to read the cross reference will be in a circle on the bottom of the picture. Underneath that I decided to put a short article/letter from the head teacher stating how well the school is doing and future plans. Then underneath I will have the contents with the page numbers next to them. 

My School Magazine

Evaluation

In order for me to be able to create my school magazine I firstly had to research other school magazines (above), research my target audience and also plan my layout of my school magazine. When researching other school magazine I immediately like some things they did and other things such as layout, font, size, colours etc I feel they could of done better. Therefore when creating my own school magazine I looked at what i thought went well and decided to use those ideas. As my target audience is students I created a school magazine that interests them and seeing as its the last issue of the year, I chose to have a theme around the year 11's leaving which was on the front cover being my main story. The first thing I did when creating my school magazine was put the logo on the top right hand side stating that it is Epsom & Ewell High Schools school magazine. Next to that I created the mast head which I did using a bold and large font making it contrast and catch the readers eye. I chose the name 'EEHS NEWS' as having a short and snappy masthead is key. Just below that in smaller font and a different colour contrasting with the green masthead was the issue date which is put on nearly every magazine therefore the readers or people who collect magazines know the date of issue. Whilst researching other school magazine I really like the idea of having different shapes for the pictures and cross references catching the eye of the reader into looking at all the different shapes and stories. Therefore on my front page I used squares and circles to put different pictures and cross references. I chose to use a picture to stretch over the whole front page which was relevant to the last issue and also the headline. I put the headline in big bold font which contrasted from the picture background therefore the reader can see it well. I also created a subheading underneath just suming it up in a smaller font and different font to attract the reader. In the right hand corner I wrote the price therefore they are able to see it clearly. 

On the contents page I firstly created a gradient background of green and white which is my theme. I chose to use a big bold white font to create my 'contents' page title. Underneath the title I placed 3 square boxes which I put pictures in which sum up the story that will be inside. Next to all these photos I put cross references. I chose to use all different colours to attract the readers eye. I chose to use boxes with pictures in because when researching I saw a school magazine with a similar layout. I thought it looked effective therefore I decided to do something like that. Below that I included a letter/note from Mr Russell the head teacher due to the fact its the last issue of the year. Below that I used a different shape box with the contents page numbers and what's inside therefore the reader can go straight to the page. Throughout my magazine I used the same font and the same theme of colours therefore it looks neater and more professional. I feel it looks a lot better than all different random colours. The reasons for my colour theme was due to the fact it is relevant because of the schools logo. 

If I was able to re-do my school magazine I feel I could get a better range of photos to use on it and also create maybe a better mast head to attract the readers eye a little bit more. Also on my front page I feel if i had more time i could add a few more little headlines next to the photos because by the photos people may not understand the story.