Magazine

Joanna Hardy
Project: Magazine Project
Date: 4 / 15 / 09

Magazine Identity and Readership
My magazine, Energize, is a sports magazine that covers all major sports. Any sports fan would be eager to read this magazine because it would include up to date stories across many sports, statistics, athlete profiles and more. The intended readership would be for any person who likes sports or follows one particular sport. Energize covers many sports, so any fan could find something that interests him/her.

Magazine Visual Identity
Through my magazine, I wanted to convey a strong, bold, bright design. When I created my feature spread and jump spread, I knew I wanted to use very vivid images of Usain Bolt that would jump off the page and create a very strong picture in the reader’s mind. I also decided to make a cover because I was very inspired by the images and design of my spread. I wanted to especially convey this same visual identity on the cover, since that is what the reader first sees.

Article Visual Identity
In my cover article, I am trying to convey the intensity and achievement of Usain Bolt. From my images used in the feature and jump spreads, I want the reader to be able to tell what the reputation is Bolt has as an athlete. The design of the spreads makes the reader realize that this is an article about the life and achievements of a famous sprinter.

Article Design Strategy
The design of my magazine is meant to bring a sports and athletic feel to the audience. On my feature spread, I wanted a very large, intense, strong image to set up the stage for the article. Since it is about a sprinter, I really wanted the focus of the image to be on him and his achievement, which is shown by the strong image of Bolt clearly winning the race. The deckhead is in small lines of white type to go along with the white lines of the track along the bottom. I wanted my typeface for my headline to be bold, strong and noticeable because it is an article about running. My jump spread continues my idea of bold and strong, in terms of color and image. The green lines along the side continue the idea from Bolt’s shirt on the feature spread and the line along the side of the feature spread. I wanted to use an easy to read typeface for the body copy and carry over my typeface from the headline for the captions, pull cote and part of the sidebar. I really wanted the jump spread to be similar to the feature spread in that the images and the colors really jump out to the reader, which connects to the feeling of the feature spread. The sidebar goes along with this idea of creating a straightforward and clear timeline for the audience.



Style Sheet
Cover Title: Stone Sans ITC TT, 65/78, metrics kerning, tracking-0
Cover Teaser: Abadi MT Condensed Extra Bold Regular, 63/52, metrics kerning, tracking-0
Feature Spread Headline: Futura Extra Condensed Extra Bold, 102/122.4, metrics kerning, tracking-0
Jump Spread Pull Quote: Futura Extra Condensed Extra Bold 24.26/29, metrics kerning, tracking-0

Document Grid
I decided to use a three column grid because I thought it would be the most appealing format for the reader. With the three column grid, the large images are able to fit in nicely and balance out the page. Together, they also create breaks for the reader to stop. I made my margins in order to incorporate the text with the images, so that the text is not too far away from the edge of the page.

Sources:
http://blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com/olympics/bolt.JPG
http://media.washingtontimes.com/media/img/photos/2008/08/22/20080821-234329-pic-784162814.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Boltbeijing.jpg
http://www.whoateallthepies.tv/EMP-6243241.jpg
http://media.washingtontimes.com/media/img/photos/2008/08/17/20080817-015624-pic-678736289.jpg

Extras:
My color scheme came from the first image I worked with, the one from the feature spread. The bright green and yellow in his uniform are incorporated throughout both spreads. I thought I would use them because they are such bold, strong colors, which is the type of feeling I wanted to incorporate throughout my magazine. My visual image of a bold, sports magazine is enhanced by these colors.