Front cover

This is my finished front cover. i decided to use a different picture than the style i used in my sketches. i changed the subject character to be standing up rather then sitting down to give her a more edgy character. i chose this picture from the range i had taken previously and uploaded it onto photoshop. i changed the size to an a4 format. first of all i adjusted the lighting, giving the photo a brighter feel to coinscide with the summery festival mood. i then tweeked the contrast to make the picture a bit more arty and sharper. i also edited the 'Hue' to make the colours stand out more, especaily the blue guitar and the red scarf. i wanted to make them part of the folky style i wanted to show in the singer. i then started on the mast head.


to start with i used an oval shape tool as a backgorund for the mast head to make it stand out. i wanted the artists head to be in front of this oval. i did so by duplicating the image, cutting out her head with the magnetic lasso tool and cuttin git out. i then dragged it across into my original picture and, after postioning the oval where i wanted it,placed her head over the top. i did this because i thought it made the cover look more professional and it would have looked a bit amatuer covering the main artists head. However i wanted the title and brand of the magazine to be over her head. first of all i wrote the word blue in 'Poor Richard' font and placed it within the parameters of the oval. i then wrote the word violin in the 'script' font which shows the more classical side to folk in contrast to the more edgy blue 'poor richard' font. i did this to show the idealogy of my magazine; to provide information and news about traditional folk but also to give a voice to the new upcoming folk stars, expanding the genre to a wider audience. i decided that the blue and white would be the base colours for my magazine as they are basic and calm giving the whole magazine its cohesive and relaxed tone.

i used white boxes to makes the hook lines stand out to the intended audience. i used my tagline underneath my mast head to tell any new readers in one sentence what the magazine is about. i also decided that behind the white hook line boxes i wanted a box to make them stand out more and give the magazine more of a professional look. i used the colour grey for this box as it is also quite clam and goes with the other colours used. i think this gives my front cover good compostion and colouring. to add to the professional effect i wanted to involve and intergrate my picture withing these text boxes which i have seen in other magazines. i did this in much the same way i did for the artists head on the masthead; i duplicated the image then cut out the guitars fret board, dragged it into my main picture and postioned it in line with the original picture.

next i wanted to intergrate another picture onto the front cover to hook the readers. i did this by inserting a picture that i had previously took and writing a hook line underneath. i chose an article about modern folk so as to appeal to a younger audience. i also used the grey box underneath to outline and give the picture an edgy look. finally i added a barcode and the main feature of the magazine; '100 greatest summer songs.' i used the white box and put the black writing over the top. thes colours contrast making the writing stick out drawing in readers. i also entwined the capital 'S' and 'G' to again achieve this professional feel. i am pleased with the outcome of my front cover as i feel it has good compostion and the layout is clear. there is a lot going on but nothing is overshadowed. i like the boxes that give a modern feel to the magazine and add to the cohesion. however if my photoshop skills had been better i could have incorperated a few more images perhaps but overall i am very pleased with the out come.