Editing an image in Photoshop

I took a digital image that I had saved in my documents and edited it in Photoshop to try and get used to using the editing tools that are available in Photoshop. This is helpful so when it comes to making and editing my magazine cover because I am more familiar with the program.

Before

After

The picture I chose to edit on Photoshop was a photo of my dance group. The picture was quite bright so I reduced the brightness levels which gave it a much more subtle look. I increased the contrast levels slightly but when I added the effect to the photo this doesn’t show much. although i added a 'filter effect' he image is still clear and the colours stand out. The effect I used on the photo gives an old but edgy look to it although it no longer looks like a professional photo but this is the effect that I wanted to achieve. I didnt want the image to look like a ordinary professional group photo i wanted to add personality to the photo and make it more casual.

 I added some text to the image. I added the name of the dance group 'Guardian' and name of the academy 'Angles Dance Acadamy'  to the image; this gives the image a title so it is clear to see the context of it.  I used the same font for both of the texts but I increased the size of one of the texts more than the other to make it stand out. I also changed the colour of the text for the same reason. I used a colour that would complement the other colours in the photo.  I slanted the central text to make it stand out to the audience and centred the top text so it’s used as a sort of 'title' to the image.

Analysing Magaizne Covers

First I looked at an issue of 'Company' magazine.

I like the edgy look that this magazine cover conveys. The title stands out as it is in a bold font and this font is in black which create an impact and makes the magazine known. This bold title complements the subtle yellow and pink colours of the rest of the text on the cover. I also like the font of the main heading “Ibiza rocks”. It stands out because of the stylish and eye catching font used. Your attention immediately goes towards this heading because of the interesting style choice.

The cover also looks fun, interesting and with lots going on it immediately grabs your attention. A reader will think this fun and fulfilled style will carry on throughout the magazine and therefore this may persuade people to buy the magazine.

I then went on to look at this issue of 'ELLE' magazine starring Cheryl Cole on the cover as the central image. The image is sophisticated and mature which is used to specifically draw in the target audience which is young adults. The dull black and white colours work well on this cover even though it doesn’t necessarily look fun and exciting it adds to the sophisticated look the magazine is going for.

The cover is a bit bare and doesn’t have much information on it. This could be a downside to the magazine cover as much more information could be included to give an idea of what else might be included in the magazine.

The final magazine cover I decided to look at was 'Glamour' magazine. I chose this magazine because it appeals to a younger audience than the covers I had previously analysed so I thought it was appropriate to be able to compare a range of cover aimed at various target audiences.

I like the subtle colours used on the magazine cover. The colours are subtle but still stand out because they are in bold prints and overlapping the central picture. The central image is eye catching and friendly which means many young people feel they can relate to it. The golden brown colour of her hair helps the picture out stand out on the page. It contrasts with the rest of the subtle colours on the cover, for example the text colour and background.

There is a lot of information on the cover which conveys the idea that the magazine will also have lots of information inside. Even though there is a lot of information the cover doesn’t look over crowded or including too much.