https://voicethread.com/share/7746939/
Hello! I’m Camila Araujo Mori and today I will be reflecting on the challenging yet rewarding journey of creating a magazine for the AS level. I would like to begin by briefly explaining what precisely drew me to the magazine rather than the film opening. Given that filming is not my forte and I have long been fascinated by the world of baking, I concluded that the magazine task would be more suitable for me. My concern at first was the focus of the magazine. While I wished I could encompass all types of cuisines, I knew I had to narrow down the many topics I could address.
I immediately visualized a magazine that centered around decorative cakes and so I decided to name it the sweet escape because in my case, baking has been a hobby that has really entertained me and allowed me to unwind. Although food magazines may target both men and women, cake magazines generally target women aged 25-50 of middle and high socioeconomic status, and this is exactly the social group I intended to attract. After thorough research, I discovered the direction I needed to take. I wanted the magazine to be simplistic yet highly sophisticated, since the vast majority of these women are particularly feminine and refined. For this reason, the layouts that I selected are not at all overwhelming but somewhat plain. After reading about the psychology of color and fonts when it comes to designing, I concluded that the masthead of the magazine would be in cursive. I tried a couple of different fonts and settled on Dancing Script largely because it is associated with elegancy and creativity. Regarding the font color, I chose white because it is often associated with simplicity. Both the font and the color I firmly believe express the impression I wanted the magazine to give. I used conventions by researching and featuring the latest trends in cake decorating and offering inspiration for other designs and styles. The magazine and the audience interconnect by having a website in which more recipes are displayed and readers can give feedback on the different ideas from the magazine that they have tried.
As a real media text, the Sweet Escape would be distributed by a magazine publisher like Stampington & Company. It would be available to purchase digitally as well as in supermarkets and book stores. I cannot sufficiently emphasize how content I am with the development of my production skills. Little did I know about Photoshop and InDesign before beginning the project. I had initially decided to work with Joomag mainly because it was not complicated to utilize. However, as I delved further into the project, I realized an elegant magazine needed to be created with advanced programs. I learned how to use the lasso tool, layers, masks, channels, and more, and for that I am truly pleased. Besides learning how to edit and enhance photos, I learned how to work with grids and the placement of objects. Of course, this would not have been feasible without the countless tutorials there are on YouTube and other websites. Although it was not always easy, I am certain that it made a significant difference to have worked with Adobe software. Moreover, I learned about the art of food photography, which I found from the very beginning to be genuinely interesting.
The integration of technologies was incredibly helpful for the overall process. I purchased a few magazines at a supermarket for inspiration and layout ideas. However, a great deal of cake magazines are only digital, so I researched a few online. The cover image was problematic because of the tablecloth and background. What I chose to do is cut the cake and place it on a gradient background in Photoshop, which proved to look better than I had originally thought. I did not include several cover lines on the magazine cover because I researched that these types of readers oftentimes subscribe to cake magazines (instead of purchasing it every now and then) because they continually wish to see more cakes to try on their own. As a result, the cover lines are not a deciding factor when it comes to buying it, since they do not rely on them to see the rest of the magazine and photos. I had first contacted a friend of mine who is a blogger to interview him for the double-page spread. But since he did not focus on cakes, the interview would be futile. Thankfully, I was able to contact a bakery called Bokados and interview them about a specific style of decorating called the “naked” cake. The blogs, of course, were also an immense part of the project and allowed me to constantly be working on the magazine and improve on my time management skills. I want to thank my teacher, Mrs. Stoklosa, for having prepared us so well throughout the year as well as my peers for providing insightful commentary on my progress. In retrospect, this is a project in which all the invested time and effort were worthwhile. I am more than happy to have created a magazine that I am prouf of and that has piqued my interest in graphic design. I thank you for your time and hope you enjoy it!
