Wyke Magazine Analysis

When it came to creating my magazine, I originally planned it out on Publisher, using simple boxes, and then I made a more detailed version. After doing all of that, it then lead to me creating the real thing on Photoshop. I stuck to using a simple title for the magazine which is ‘Wyke College Magazine’, the masthead being printed diagonally across the page, in a font that is easy to read and large. The simplicity of the masthead also being easy to remember, and quite catchy in a sense. Underneath the masthead, I placed the tagline which is ‘Keeping you updated.’ The idea behind the tagline was that it was quick and easy to think of, which would also make it easy to remember, not to mention that it is slightly catchy. That way it can appeal to all students in Wyke, and possibly staff.
            The main image of the magazine is a medium close up of three boys, the boy to the left of the image carrying his folder and also smiling. On stereotypical terms people would tend to think of him as the one who is always early to class, and also always hitting the high grades in each topic. In the middle there is a boy wearing an ‘OBEY’ hat, and also some beats headphones, people generally assuming he is of the mainstream genre, and kind of a slacker in a sense. Then to the right of the image shows a male in a slightly violent jacket, his hood up, and also smoking, which leads people to think he is a rather shady character. This image taking up most of the front cover besides from the white shape at the top. To explain the image I have placed a tag line underneath, stating about stereotypes and that there is a discussion going on about it. I chose this topic to appeal to the audience due to the fact, discrimination and stereotypes play a huge part in today’s modern society, it is also something that people tend to feel quite strongly about. The font of the word being in separate colours, the top line being black, the middle line being grey, and the bottom line also being black. In a way I wanted to add contrast to the cover, but without adding a mixed array of colours. So different shades of each colour sounded fine.
            When it came to making the cover more realistic I added the official Wyke logo to the top of the page, and also an OFSTED logo. Not to mention a bar code in the top corner. Most people expecting to see some form of logo branding on a magazine, and also a bar code to name the price. Underneath the Wyke logo I have also placed the date of the magazine, this just being a simple thing to see on a magazine, making it look more realistic.
            The image that I wanted to go for, when making this magazine was that it is suitable for everyone in the college, and exciting for everyone to read. Not to mention eye catching. Whilst doing that, I was hoping that the representation of the magazine would come across as organised, smart and also civilised. Without the magazine looking too high class in a sense.
            If I had to do the magazine again, from scratch, I would possibly choose a different layout, but I would keep the masthead and tag line in the same place. Going with the idea of the ‘Z’ format reading style, where the reader begins to read from the top left of the page, then to the right, then down to the left, then to the bottom right. Making sure the reader’s eyes scan every image and piece of information on there. Also the idea of starting again would mean another topic, I would possibly base the next one on smoking, drinking, the general aspects of normal college students lives.