InDesign - 2st attempt

InDesign 2nd attempt

Here, my second attempt shows how my skill developed when trying to create a well-laid-out DPS. Although the DPS isn't very adventurous, and perhaps not even well-developed, it still follows some basic conventionalities of a magazine DPS. To begin, I chose a background image that would fit the whole page and didn't consist of too many colours, because if it did, the article would be very hard to read, and the other images might even be difficult to look at. Then, I placed my text in columns, ensuring that it was bordered with a white colour so that the words could be distinguished from the background image. The text was then broken up into paragraphs which would make it easier to read for my target audience. The drop-cap in the text also shows the audience where to begin reading. The headline for the article is made to be in plain view with a font that is of a complete opposite colour to the background, and the quote kicker underneath is position in a place that keeps the reader's eyeline in the same area to begin reading the article. Then, I used my newly found knowledge of effects on photoshop to create images that had back-shadows and had been tilted, and this - again - is a basic conventionality of magazine layout. 

InDesign - 1st Attempt

Here is the first attempt at creating a DPS for a magazine. Clearly, this attempt is deplorable because the page doesn't actually reach both pages as an actual magazine would. The masthead of the magazine is randomly placed at the top of the page, and it looks completely out of place, in actual fact, because it doesn't actually seem to be serving any purpose because the headline for this article is about writers, and the headline is unobtrusively positioned above the (what seems to be) article's image. The image itself hasn't actually been placed in a way that makes it look as though it has a place in the article, for it's not actually making contact with anything else in the article - everything is placed too far apart, and this is very unattractive.
The article itself is placed in a 'boring' position because the body of text doesn't actually have anything to wrap itself around. Overall, the attempt was one that was made with few skills learned, and this has given me the opportunity to experiment with some tools on InDesign.

Creative writing

1st person
There are several forms of first person pronouns. Examples of first person inclusive plural pronouns include 'we' & 'us'. Then there are just first person singluar pronouns such as 'I' & 'me'.

An example of 1st person writing would be: Today, I found myself there again. Another deep reverie that played over why I wasn't good enough for her. For one, it's bad enough for other people to be telling me that she was out of my league, but for my own thoughts to tell me the same - what's that all about? Trying to bring myself back to why I had her in the first place was hard enough, since all I seemed to do these days was the wrong, and I was - at this point - unable to right wrongs.

2nd person
For second person, there is no standard English word that is second person plural, and so there are only singulars - 'you' & 'your'.

An example of 1st person writing would be: Hello to you on this fine day, Sir. You must have been parched after several rounds of the most exquisite sport in the world: cricket; and your team must especially be sulking over their loss. Anyway, my associates and I were pondering one whether or not you and your team might like to join us for another round next Saturday? Yours faithfully, Marcus.

3rd person
With second person, there are plurals such as 'they' & 'them'. For singular third person, we would use 'he/she'.

An example of 3rd person writing would be: Twigs clapped as their feet slowly crushed the leaves that lay peacefully below. James and his dog were new to country life, of course they were; they'd just been relocated. 'Thanks, Dad,' James thought to himself as he struggled to see in front, but the mist was thicker than a whale's belly fat, and he could hardly see his own hair.

CD Cover

For my CD cover, I used certain brushes and experimented with them in order to create an image that only consisted of a brush. I downloaded different fonts, and then clicked on my image to insert the brush onto my image. Then, I took selected a thin font that looked rather original, and chose a colour that would stand out against the rest of the filterd brush. I did this because it is original and is an unprecidented design.

Final Product

Blog Entry 3

With my product, I am extremely happy with the colour scheme because it follows a strict scheme that only includes the colours red and black. I did this because these are colours that induce negative emotions in the audience. Also, these colours have negative connotations behind them, and this is good because the main function of my article was to portray alcohol as a substance that can only do evil. I think the layout is effective because the subject of my main image was placed at one side of the DPS which was where it looked best. The sell lines were very blunt and abrupt which may have been striking to the audience, as this may have been a little more than what might be expected of a youth magazine. They were blunt because they mainly consisted of declaratives. I believe that the font of the masthead was very effective because it made the magazine seem superior to anything else because it’s tall and bold, and the word of the masthead itself has a strong definition.
My model was rather exasperating because I had relied on him to provide the right kind of outfit because I had expected a white shirt, but received a white t-shirt which seemed less professional. I simply had to work with what I had because nothing could be done to work around this, other than actually working with the problem at hand. It took longer for me to actually get started taking the images because my subject forgot to actually bring the costume, and so we had to retrieve the costume from his home. However, once we acquired the costume, it was easy to get started with the images, and it took less time to take all of the pictures.
Things were done in the right order, but I could have used my time more effectively by taking more images than what I did. I took fewer pictures than expected because I had one model and no props, so I found that I was just taking the same picture again and again, but none-the-less, more pictures may have been good. With the finished project, I didn’t have the time to make any finishing touches, and so I believe that the image looked rather plain because the little details were missing, and it’s these details that could have made the project.

Final Skills Audit

AS Media Production: Final Skills Audit Print Production

 

Name: Shane Mitchell                           Tutor group: 1.25                Date: 15/4/13

 

Photographic Skills

Which of the following photographic features/equipment have you used on a camera before:

 

Feature	Yes	No	Comments if yes – where have you completed this skills and to what level
Manual Focus features	Y		This skill was completed as while we were out taking pictures, for we needed to know how to manually focus on a subject in order to have a well-focused image.
Shutter Speed	Y		This skill was used when we needed to capture fast moving images. I slowed and quickened the shutter speed, resulting in effects that otherwise couldn’t be applied to my images.
Aperture control	Y		The aperture control was used when more light needed to be applied to image and was used at varied levels throughout the shooting process.
Continuous Shoot Mode	Y		CSM is used when a process of quick actions transpires. I used this when my subject performed an action that required multiple shots in order to capture the full action.
A tripod	Y		A tripod was used during my photoshoot. I chose to use it because it was efficient in stopping the image from being blurred due to camera shake.
External flash	Y		Also in my photoshoot, I used an external flash in order to capture a fully illuminated image.
Self timer facility	Y		The self timer facility was used when I needed to capture an image away from the camera, therefore meaning that I could either put myself into the image, or could make some last minute adjustments to the shot I’m taking.
Light meter		N
Composition grids	Y		The composition grid when I needed to use the rule of thirds to capture an image that complied with the basic rules of photography. It also allowed me to insert different connotations into my images – for example, I could create connotations of authority by putting the eyeline of my subject in the top third row of the grid.

 

Photoshop Skills

Which of the following features of Photoshop have you used before:

 

 

Feature	Yes	No	Comments if yes – where have you completed this skills and to what level
Text control	Y		Text control was used I needed to insert and manipulate text in my product. This was easy to do because  my products needed text insertion in order to complete the product.
Filters	Y		The filters were used when I needed to add some unique effects to my image. I used them through experimentation, and waded through a trial and error process as I selected the most desirable filter.
Brushes	Y		I used brushes when creating a CD cover for my blog. By selecting the appropriate brush, I was able to create a CD cover with a huge brush print for the cover. This gave it a unique look.
Layers	Y		Layers were used when trying to combine different images on one document. This meant that I was able to create certain effects with the use of other images.
Opacity control	Y		I used opacity when creating an effect that allowed me to show the image behind the new image, so that my breakout box – for example – wouldn’t obscure my main image.
Shape creation	Y		Shape creation was used when I needed to create a circle so that I could follow conventions of magazine layout, as circles on magazine covers often showed the price. With this, I was able to create different effects that almost gave the illusion that the circle was jumping out of the screen.
Brightness and contrast control	Y		Brightness and contrast enabled me to portray the main subject of my image as demonic, as I darkened my image, and turned down the contrast, making the entire image darker.
Gradients		N
Load selection features		N
Feathering		N
Colour curves adjustment		N
Resolution setting control	Y		My resolution setting allowed me to give my image a better resolution, therefore making my image look more aesthetically pleasing because the image had a better resolution.
Magnetic lasso, polygon lasso tool	Y		I used this tool to at a large amount when playing around with my project, seeing what worked and what didn’t work.  When using the magnetic lasso tool, I inverted the effect, allowing me to create a black & white filter on the background of my image, keeping the main subject of my image in colour. This made my subject stand out.
Cropping tool	Y		I used the cropping tool many times when making some images smaller so that they could fit on my main article.
Clone tool		N
Retouch tool		N
Other skills

 

In Design Skills

Which of the following features of In Design have you used before:

 

Feature	Yes	No	Comments if yes – where have you completed this skills and to what level
Margin and column guide creation	Y		Margin and column guide creation was used to a high level because I needed these guides in order to position my article in a way that followed main conventions of a magazine layout.
Inserting an image ID	Y		Inserting images is constantly done when using InDesign because the article consists mainly of images.
Resizing images in ID	Y		With resizing my images, I did this frequently because I needed my images to fit around certain parts of my article. My main image needed to be resized to fit the entire article, then I could wrap my text around the image.
Text manipulation – resizing, rotation	Y		I used text manipulation so that I could take my text and fit it around the main subject. By rotating the text, I was able to make my text seem more spontaneous and ‘free’.
Text manipulation – controlling kerning and leading	Y
Text flow creation	Y
Using transparent imagery in ID		N
Shape/line creation In design	Y		By using shape/line creation, I could break my page up into sections, contrasting with the spontaneous that I sometimes added because lines give the article more of a structure.
Exporting to PDF from In-design	Y
Text Wrap		N
Other Skills

 

 

 

Number of new skills achieved:

Final Skills Audit – 26
Initial Skills Audit - 11