Final Cover Revisions

Introduction. In this blog, I finalized my magazine cover. I used Canva to add the masthead and coverlines onto my main image after editing it using Adobe Lightroom.

Final Magazine Cover:

Masthead

My masthead is "Trouvaille." This means "a lucky find" and I liked the idea of calling my magazine brand a lucky find. It also ties into my genre and I interpreted it as the locations I am giving to readers as lucky finds that will draw them in again. I placed it at the top because that is usually where most magazine mastheads are in my genre, (Blog Post #1, "Codes and Conventions: Travel Magazines"). I made the font Cinzel Decorative because, as a decorative font, it is inherently unique and that theme matches the image I used. I have seen a few travel magazine covers that have arches on them, but this is the only one whose arch is not curved and looks more like a rectangle. I bolded it so that it is more visible against the image behind it and made it white for that same reason. Using any other color from the image would have made it seem invisible, and using dark colors like black, did not help.

Main Image

I chose the image of the arch because it is different from anything most people have seen. It has intricate designs on it which draw the viewers' eyes and makes them curious as to what it is. It was originally a dull picture because of the way the sun caught the camera, but after editing it, it looks much better. I made the "Contrast" 49 because it emphasized the differences between the dark and light parts of the image and changing the "Highlights" to 20 also helped make the lighter parts of the picture brighter. Making the "Shadows" -14 helped balance the highlights so that it is not too bright. The increase to the "Whites" made the whole picture lighter. I increased the "Texture" to 100 to make the details of the image, like the designs on the arch, more clear. To give the image a cooler feel, I made the "Tint" 19 and the "Vibrance" 9. To maximize the effect of all of the editing and the original colors, I made the "Saturation" 100. Finally, I positioned the image so that as much of the archway is shown as possible.

Selling Line

Most travel magazines do not have selling lines as their mastheads are usually very clear as to what type of magazine they are, (i.e.: Luxury Travel, Travel + Leisure, Travel, World Travel). I have decided to go against normal conventions of travel magazines in this instance because my masthead does not make it clear what type of magazine it is. Trouvaille is not a well-known word so most people do not know what it means. Therefore, I added a selling line "unique travel locations" to make it clear what I am talking about in my magazine.

Coverlines

The main coverline is in Kaushan Script because script fonts symbolize fun which is how I want to advertise this location. A lot of the architecture of Dubai, in this case, the Dubai Frame, is very interesting and many people have seen pictures of them as they are very impressive due to their size and designs. This is why I made the main coverline "Famous Architecture in Dubai" and the first supporting coverline "Tallest Skyscraper in the World," as the Burj Khalifah is in Dubai. The supporting coverlines, selling line, and issue information are all in Open Sauce Light to give the readers a feeling of comfort and encourage them to look inside the magazine to read the spread. As many people associate Dubai with luxury and wealth, I made the second supporting coverline "A Taste of Luxury" to hint at various activities in Dubai besides sightseeing. Many magazines have short descriptions under their coverlines so that the reader is not completely lost as to what they are talking about. Travel magazines, however, do not employ this tactic as said before with the masthead, their coverlines are clear about what the topic is. Since my coverlines also hint enough without being too revealing, I have left out descriptions.

Miscellaneous Items

I placed the barcode at the bottom left because it covered up the least amount of the main image that way. Barcodes are mostly just for keeping track of the magazine and not a very important part of the magazine for the readers which is why it is set aside. The issue information like the issue number and season the magazine was published are under the masthead, again, so that they do not draw too much attention away from the main aspects of the magazine. I also put the price of the magazine with the issue information so that all of the miscellaneous information is together.

Colors Used

A good way to make a magazine cover look unified but not cluttered is to use a few colors, usually three at most, for the entirety of the page. Those colors frequently originate from the main image itself, (Blog Post #4, "Magazine Design and Layout Tips/Guide"). My main image had blue, white, gold, green, and different shades of brown and gray. Most of the image was already filled with gold so if I made the text gold as well, it would have been too overwhelming. Blue, green, brown, and gray would not have been very visible against the shade of blue of the sky in the picture so I could not use those either. To make it look simple but also stylistic, I used white for all of the text.

Fonts Used

As mentioned in Blog Post #2, "Font Psychology," fonts have different hidden meanings and evoke different emotions in people. I used this concept to my advantage while making my magazine cover. I used decorative fonts to match the uniqueness of my main topic and used script fonts to advertise it in a fun, carefree manner. To avoid making the page look like it is being pulled in different directions, I made most of the font the same sans serif font, or variations of it. I bolded all of the text to make them visible against the background.

Peer Feedback and Revisions

After making the magazine cover, I showed it to my classmates to receive feedback on what I can improve, and what I should keep. They liked the main image and the masthead, and they gave me some tips to help me improve the rest.

Feedback Given:

• The issue information and price can be spread out
• Add some color to the coverlines
• Try making the coverlines smaller so they do not take up too much space and so they do not take attention away from the main image
• Change the fonts for the coverlines so they match with the theme of the words

Final Magazine Cover:

Revisions Made

As advised, I broke apart the issue information and the price and replaced them on top of and around the barcode, which I moved to the bottom right. This will give the cover more space on top. Many of my peers and one of my teachers also told me to make the coverlines smaller so that they do not take away the effect of the main image. To fix this problem, I made the main coverline size 20 and the supporting coverlines size 17. Then I put them all on one side so they are not on top of the archway. Once I did this, I realized that the selling line and issue information were either bigger, or the same size as the coverlines. Since they were not meant to be the main focus, I decided to change their font sizes to 15. I was also told to change the fonts for the coverlines so they match the theme of the words, for example, "since this magazine is about a 'Taste of Luxury,' the fonts should give that feeling to the audience," (Peer Feedback). I followed this advice by changing the font of the main coverline to Cinzel Decorative, which is the font for the masthead, but smaller, and I made the supporting coverlines Kaushan Script to exude a feeling of wealth and luxury. One of my teachers has experience with designing covers as she is the sponsor for the Yearbook Club, and she told me to change the font of the main coverline to match the shine of the sun at the bottom of the archway to make the cover look more unified. I did not know exactly which shade of gold it is, or what combination of orange and yellow can yield that color, but I pulled up the Canva Color Wheel and made my best guess. Then I transferred it to the main coverline.

Wrap Up

Most of the layout and elements of my magazine match the typical conventions of travel magazines like the placement of the masthead and barcode. I also used a color from my main image for my font which is frequently seen in many magazines. The font for my main coverline and masthead are script and decorative to match the theme of the topic of the magazine. I used sans serif fonts for all other text such as supporting coverlines, issue information, and selling line. The selling line is actually rarely seen in travel magazines as their mastheads are usually very clear about what the magazine is about. My masthead, Trouvaille, on the other hand, is not a common word so I went against the conventions of travel magazines and used the selling line to provide readers with some clarity as to what my magazine is about. Trouvaille means "a lucky find" and I tied that into my masthead and interpreted it as my magazine also being a lucky find with many unique travel locations.