question 7 evaluation new

7. Looking back at your preliminary task, what do you feel you have

learnt in the progression from it to the full product?

PRELIMINARY

FULL PRODUCT

Cover Comparison

Although I used the same two pieces of software (Adobe InDesign and PhotoShop cs3), it is evident that I used many more

features to better effect in the full product

• I used many of the same conventions such as a header/footer, barcode, date and issue

number, masthead and colour scheme.

• I’ve learnt to use colours to a better effect in my full product, as in my preliminary task

I tried to use a range of bold colours in order to try and achieve an eye-catching look. However, they clashed quite a lot

which made the features such as the sell lines difficult to read. Learning from this mistake, I stuck to a strict scheme of red, white and black, and then when a feature needed something extra, I used yellow or

blue. I feel that this makes the product looks much more professional as the colours work

together very well.• I also used more boxes and transformations to slant object and make them appear more

visually grasping.

Cover Comparison (continued)

• In the preliminary task I was already quite familiar with many PhotoShop tools, and I tried to apply things such as gradients and drop shadows all over the product. Upon

reflection, it seems cluttered and that it needs a pinch of simplicity with a ‘less is more’

approach, which is what I tried to do in the full product

• In the preliminary task, I used quite a number of sell lines to try and frame the subject of the image, but I knew that this would be difficult in my full product as I had my mind set on a band as the main feature, which would mean using a group shot, so I steered clear of using any sell lines. This way you could see the band

more clearly, which is what I wanted

•More specifically, I used the levels tool quite a lot to edit the subject and the background of the cover image in my preliminary task. After

realising that the desired effect of contrast wasn’t achieved, I made the background very

dull and plain in my full product

Contents Page Comparison

• It’s quite clear to see that the layout of the two contents pages are very similar,

as I was quite pleased with the one I produced in the preliminary task, so I

decided to build upon it

•However in the full product, I used less gradients, and focused more on the

colours and layout in the interest of the reader. I used a ‘polaroid’ style

photograph to demonstrate some vintage style (which is popular in indie),

doing a similar thing as last time. Although, in the full product, I set it backwards and slanted it to make it appear wedged onto a clipboard for

some visual effect

• I also used my knowledge of InDesign to add a drop capital on the beginning of my briefing of the band, and well as

a QR code that would link to their website

PRELIMINARY

FULL PRODUCT

Conclusion

I believe that since my preliminary task, I have developed a broader range of skills within InDesign and PhotoShop, using features more effectively to appeal to the target audience

I think that my sense of design has also improved, in that I have become much more disciplined in using the layout and effects of features/objects, rather than just using every skills I know when it may not be relevant to the task