Magazines: Front cover practical task

The best way to learn the conventions of a media product is to create one. Your first task for the Magazines unit is to create an original front cover for an existing magazine.

This will also help to prepare you for the cross-media coursework starting in June.

Task: Choose an existing magazine and create a front cover for a new, original edition of your chosen publication.

Example: student version of Vogue magazine...

Magazine practical task: blog work

Research
Create a blogpost called 'Magazine practical task research' and complete the following tasks:

1) Use your lesson notes on magazine genres and conventions to view a range of potential magazine covers. Create a shortlist of three potential magazines and embed an example front cover from each one.

2) Select your chosen magazine to create a new edition for and explain the thinking behind your choice.

3) Find three different front covers for your chosen magazine and embed them in your blogpost. Analyse the fonts, colours and typical design. What is the language or writing style? How are the cover lines presented? You need to become an expert in the design and construction of this magazine and its branding.

Planning
Create a separate blogpost called 'Magazine practical task planning' and complete the following tasks:

1) Plan your main flash - this is the main cover story that links to your central image.

2) Plan the image you will need for the cover - model, costume, make-up, lighting etc. At this point, simply describe the image you need to capture.

3) Write the cover lines and any additional text you need for your magazine cover.

4) Sketch out your cover on plain A4 paper using your written planning. Take a photo of your sketch and embed it in your blogpost.

Photoshoot
The photoshoot will take place on Monday 23 April. Make sure you have everything you need for the lesson - model, costume, make-up etc.

Photoshop design
You will have the photoshoot lesson and one additional single lesson to design the front cover on Photoshop. Use YouTube tutorials to help introduce Photoshop if you haven't used it before - this one is a complete guide to creating a magazine cover.

Publication to blog and analysis
Create a blogpost called 'Magazine practical task evaluation' and complete the following tasks:

1) Save your finished Photoshop magazine cover as a JPEG image and upload it to your evaluation blogpost.

2) Write an evaluation of your work: have you succeeded in your brief to create a new, original edition of an existing magazine?

3) Put your cover alongside a couple of genuine covers of your chosen magazine. How professional is your work alongside genuine examples?

4) What is the strongest aspect of your work?

5) What is the weakest aspect of your Photoshop magazine cover? 

6) What would you do differently if you completed this assignment again?


Dates and deadlines

Research deadline: Friday 20 April

Planning deadline and photoshoot: Monday 23 April

Photoshop editing lesson: Friday 27 April

Final deadline: Friday 4 May

We will have two weeks' of lessons for this but you will still need to complete much of this work for homework. Deadlines specified above!