Cover Drafts

 

In order to begin the construction of a magazine, the first thing that must be done is to draft out the layout of the cover page. So in this post, I will be reviewing five potential layouts to use in my technology magazine.

Cover Layout #1 -

For this first layout, I decided to make a very simple design to set a place for the other designs to alter off of. 

To begin with, I set the masthead in the most generic spot, the top. While its position is very typical, the typeface that I chose is sans serif, which follows the conventions of tech magazines. I also decided to use a sans serif font for the rest of the layouts.

As for the main image, I chose to put a very rough illustration of a PC. This is because I plan to talk about computer parts inside the magazine, so I made the main image correspond with the rest of the magazine.

The headline is directly to the left of the main image in order for it to be one of the first things that the viewer gets drawn to. 

Lastly, I have four cover lines on the bottom of the cover. The reason I chose this location is that readers will look at that last since their attention is drawn to the large image and headline. In each coverline, there is text and an image included. The text simply has elaboration for the cover line and the image is just an image relating to the coverline. For example, if the coverline was "Brand New keyboard", there would be an image of the keyboard and the text would say something such as "This new keyboard by Logitech has wireless capabilities".

Cover Layout #2 - 

For this design, I tried to modify layout 1.

The masthead is the same, just larger which allows it to have a higher chance of attracting attention.

The main image is also larger. It is also a computer for the same reason that was stated previously. One thing that was added for the main image is a small circle that points to part of the image in order to act like a coverline. This is used occasionally in the tech genre alone. It is effective because not only does this add uniqueness, which many tech magazines strive to achieve, it also is useful by letting the reader see a picture of the topic of the coverline in use.

The headline was the same as the headline in layout 1 but it is increased in size and slightly overlaps the main image for a cleaner look, which is common in tech magazines.

The cover lines have a similar concept as the ones in layout 1, but there are only two and they are on the left of the main image instead of below it.

Cover Layout #3 - 

For this layout, I altered everything. 

In the masthead, I decided to break conventions and encourage uniqueness in the design by moving it to the top right, which is not common. 

The main image was moved to the left of the cover for a cleaner appearance with the masthead directly above it. 

The headline was greatly changed and was moved to the bottom right. This, like the masthead, increases the uniqueness of the cover since this is not implemented often.

The cover lines have the same format as the cover line in the other layouts. They are simply to the right with just three of them in order to decrease the space they take up and encourage whitespace.

The most important thing that was in mind for this layout was whitespace. I made white space all around the cover in order for the masthead and headline to appear very pleasing to the eye.

Cover Layout #4 - 

  This layout is similar to layout 3 but with minor differences. 

The masthead is back to the default design.

The main image is still on the left of the cover, but has an increase in size. This is because the goal is for it to be the second area of attention.

The headline was meant to be the main focus of this design, with it being very unique. It overlaps part of the masthead and is directly underneath. This promotes an extremely unique look to the cover as this is something that is rarely implemented in magazines. It also allows for it to appear very appealing if there is color contrast between the masthead and the headline since they are so close to each other, which also can result in it grabbing attention immediately.

The cover lines are the same default cover lines that have been used in the other layouts, but on the right side of the cover.

Cover Layout #5 -

This layout is the most unique of all of the layouts in this post.

The masthead is the same.

The main image is the most different. Instead of simply featuring an image of a computer, there are many smaller images of different forms of technology in order to form one main image. Having the main image like this is very different from other technology magazines, which helps make this layout very unique, allowing for this to be the center of attention and follow the conventions of tech magazines. 

The headline is right above the main image. This is because since the reader will be looking at the main image, they will automatically be driven to look at the headline since it is right above it. The headline is very important for this layout since it helps inform the reader why they are seeing all these different images.

As for the coverlines, it is in the same basic design.

Conclusion -

If two of these layouts would be chosen in order to help determine the best fit for a magazine, it would be layout 1 and layout 5. 

Layout 1 was chosen because of its simple, but modern approach. It is straight to the point and easily serves its purpose of informing readers about technology.

Layout 5 was chosen because of its apparent level of creativity and uniqueness. It looks very modern, which is the most important part of the conventions of tech magazines.