I have decided to refresh my memory on writing for magazines. As documented In my sketchbook, I have done some academic reading followed with some exercises to help me form a purpose for each of my articles. This includes mind mapping, detailing key points and summarising articles with similar subjects to ensure mine stands out. This has helped me form a purpose for my writing and given me a loose structure to follow.
The name Reel came to me as I have constantly refered to highlight reels online throughout this project. I also like the play on words as it is so similar to ‘real’ which links to my theme of authenticity. I think Reel could be interesting graphically with the double E and therefore would look nice on the cover.
Over the past two days I have set out to complete the advert content for my magazine. I was unsure how these would turn out as I do not have a professional camera or lighting. In true 2020/21 spirit I made do with the materials that I had. I thought I would document this process because it amazes me what you can achieve with such little equaiptment. Below is the before and after of my adverts. 
For a few months now I have been questioning whether or not to buy a website domain. When designing my CV, business card and postcard I found it offputting to put a Wix adress in the contact infomation. Today I decided to purchase a basic plan on Wix which gives me my personal domain (freyacasserly.com). When I saw that my full name was avaliable I thought it made sense to purchase to make my digital portfolio look more professional.
Today I finalised the designs for my CV, business card and post card. I have been putting this off because I felt my designs were too simlple but today I realised that is exactly the style I am going for. I also realised that with every job application in the future I will be adapting my submissions so I am not going to get too hung up on the ‘final’ designs now as they will change.
It is important to note that the final designs do not truely represent the direction I wanted. I wish to have each of these printed on textured paper with my name and other small detailed embossed. This will elevate the simple design making it more sophisticated.
I have refered to my love of how spontanious and unposed disposable cameras are and that they are perfect to accompany my project but I have now developed this ideas as I come to laying out the magazine.
I have decided to embrase the unpredictability of the digital household scanner which has got me through this project. When it came to laying out my magazine I felt I still wanted to stray away from ‘perfection’ and precision. Although I am aware that I need to keep it simple as I do not want to over clutter or distract the pages. I want to use the scanner to determine my layout and therefore will have little post production editing which can lead to changing natural forms and overthinking concepts. The scanner layouts will reflect my themes and remove the tempting nature to fix mistakes in post production making the images raw and exciting.
After creating my flatplan I opened up an InDesign document for my final magazine. I started to imput all the images first so I could get a sense of how it was going to look. I realised that this was not going to be as simple as imputting pictures and hoping for the best. Some of my imagery is very similar which could make the reader bored as they see the same techniques repeated throughout. This means I need to carefully consider the flow of the magazine, dispersing imagery evenly to keep readers attention.
I have been putting off this task until I had enough work to form a consistant looking Instrgam feed with hopes to make it look themed. From my research I found that the best Instagrams were those whos posts matched and created an aethetic profile page.
Today I bit the bullet and started to upload my work to ensure I have enough to showcase for the portfolio hand in. I have been imputting my visuals into a app which helps you plan your feed as you can mock up designs and move them around. Again, as informed by my research I will post 3 times a day with the addition of stories as and when appropirate. This ensures my page is up to date and allows me to upload enough to create a stong body of work.
Throughout this project I have used disposable cameras to capture the visuals for my magazine. When reflecting on this process I notice that my favourite outcomes are those that are most natural, unposed and authentic. I just wanted to put into words that I can see how this technique can come across as not throught through or planned and therefore not displaying much skill. I want to ensure that my project is decribed well to whoever views it and want to show my skills in content creation, layout and art direction. Photography skills purposfully are not truely investigated through my sketchbook as I always aim to stay true to my themes. To reiterate these themes are comparison culture, investing in imperfection, collaboration and authenticity. I hope my work comes across to viewers as honoring this showing my skills in conforming to brand identity and continuity.
I started to put measures into getting my publication physically printed through the online service Mixam. I ordered paper samples and worked out how to convert files to ensure printing was seamless. Upon doing this I quickly realised that this may not be the most effective method of handing in my publication. Due to the pandemic my hand in is all digital and therefore a printed version would be difficult to mark. As much as I want to have a physical copy of the magazine it is important that I meet current requirements. I found the website Issuu where you upload a PDF version of your magazine to create a flipbook very similar to someone flicking through a magazine. Today I finalised my understanding of the website by uploading my second year magazine to ensure the outcome has been done justice. I love how viewers can flick through pages and pause when requires. For my FMP submission I will be using Issuu. I am keen to get my publication printed over summer so I have a source for interviews and for my personal portfolio.