Final TOC Revisions and Feedback
Blog #12 is going to be my final blog out of 4 regarding the Table of Contents. Throughout these blogs I researched the conventions of TOC's, made original layouts based on my research, selected and edited certain content for my specific TOC, and finally made 2 mockups that incorporated elements from professional magazines and of course from my own imagination. At the end of the last blog I made a decision on which of the 2 mockups will be part of my final product and I chose the first one. Therefore, this blog will be the last step in my production process as I will be implementing and testing out some of the feedback I received from my classmates as well as any alterations I deemed fit for my TOC between blog #11 and this one. Basically I shall be explaining the last edits that took place and my reasoning behind them in order to finalize and perfect my TOC so I can then turn to the next part of my magazine, the two-page spread. I will first be explaining my overall feedback, then the feedback I did not agree with, and lastly the feedback I agreed with which meant I then changed my TOC as a result. The last part will be a simple conclusion describing all of my ultimate decisions.
Original Mockup:
Feedback:
The main problem with this mockup was the entire second page. Most people said that the fact that the picture was rotated is slightly distracting and unprofessional. They also said that the two pages do not feel connected in any way and they contrast a lot because my first page is very sophisticated while the second page felt like its own separate article. Afterwards some suggested that I could fix the problems by just eliminating the second page or formatting it differently to make it similar to the first page. Certain peers also had a problem with my heading font being too thick as well as one of my pictures being tinted too blue compared to the rest, thus making it stand out in a bad way. Others even mentioned that I copied the same information on both pages for my description which makes it all seem quite unoriginal. The same exact person told me how my page numbers were also incorrect making my TOC seem informal. The last thing was that the layout of the page number along with the article and description on my second page were placed at a strange angle that was not appealing at all and completely countered the image's direction. My teacher even told me that to bring my TOC to the next level and make it appear realistic I should expand the page numbers as most publications are more than just 18 pages which unfortunately my magazine communicates to the readers is the case with my magazine. As a result, I then realized that the correct order for my TOC should be with the big picture before the rest so that it acts as a sort of introduction to the TOC and a continuation of the cover. Thus connecting everything very nicely with a satisfying flow between certain content.
At the same time I wanted to mention the things that my classmates really enjoyed such as my color scheme that matched my images, the efficient use of dividers to create a modern and formal tone, and the photos themselves since they were very engaging.
Ignored Ideas:
First of all, I obviously ignored the suggestion about deleting the second page entirely due to the fact that it is quite conventional in my genre as you will see later on and because it was a key aspect of my TOC, especially for the audience to understand what content is more important. Another piece of feedback that I tried but was not convinced of was the one about my font being too thick. At first it may have seemed like a good idea but with a thinner font, more space is open that as a result makes the TOC feel very simple and basic. The bold font also gives the TOC more personality and helps direct the audience's attention to the more essential content. What's more is that I , for one, really like the bold font because it has little strokes at the end further cementing the level of sophistication I am striving towards.
Chosen Ideas:
Surprisingly, a lot of the suggestions made truly valid points that I definitely agree with and that in the end would immensely benefit my TOC. For instance the first and easiest edit I conducted was simply increasing the warmth of the image in question to something more bright, yet still somewhat maintaining its coolness. This very same image was then cropped better and replaced the image on the second page. This was very good because it actually fit nicely in its original rotation. At the same time, the image I took away I moved back to the group of smaller images on my first page because it too fit better this way. Furthermore, the layout of the second page was improved by me moving the information next to the subject so that it feels more connected. Unfortunately I faced a challenge concerning readability so I slightly blurred the background of the image to make the text pop more. I then followed the suggestion for connecting the two pages by adding the same design to the second page. In other words I basically just added the black heading and outline to show how both pages combine to make one essential element, the TOC. Before I forget I also wanted to state how I moved all the images downward in response to the second page's original image being moved there. I did this just so that the content was in order of appearance. Another subtle and basic change I implemented was the alteration of page numbers due to them being incorrect and not in an accurate chronological sequence. The final edit I completed in response to my peer reviews was that I created a whole new article so that each article only appeared once, which was not the case in the mockup. More specifically, I made a new article and a corresponding description underneath the Balon d'Or section so that I could isolate the interview article to solely appear on the second by itself, therefore emphasizing its importance above the rest as it deserves its very own page.
Another little tweak I added that was not necessarily mentioned by my peers but I deemed beneficial for the audience's overall experience was the increasing of the article title's font size beneath the images. This slightly bothered me so I decided to make the readability better.
Final Table of Contents:
Conclusion:
In total, my TOC shares many similar characteristics with other sports magazines such as the ones listed below. At the same time, it intentionally breaks some conventions of sports magazines in order to appear more distinct, yet overall it remains faithful to the traditional layout and content of most sports magazines. For instance, most TOC's have subheadings that break up the information into a couple main sections. Typically, these sections are reviewing or previewing a sporting event, news about the politics or money of the sport, and/or tactical analysis of games, players, etc. Therefore, this is the kind of content that I decided to talk about. Although bylines and descriptions are commonly found in sports magazine TOC's, they usually do not appear simultaneously which is the case with my TOC. Furthermore, by applying both I am able to seem more detailed and express the fact that I enjoy sticking to the rules while still being somewhat of a trailblazer. In addition, the use of dividers and multiple images helps with the organization of the TOC and assists the reader in understanding what content is more important than the rest. The second page perfectly exemplifies this due to the fact that only one article and one image appears on this page. What's more is that this page is slightly unconventional because most TOC's are only one page and have a neutral background while this one is the complete opposite. Lastly, to further prove my uniqueness I continued the trend that I started with the cover and placed an outline around my content to develop a sense of unison and draw the reader's attention inwards. The rest of the layout like the page numbers, photograph byline, date, etc. are all in their normal place and contain basic content that appears in most, if not all, sports magazine TOC's.
The last thing I wanted to briefly mention was my color and font choices because I have already gone in depth on both topics as well as the reasons behind the images I selected in previous blogs. For example, all of the images directly relate to a specific article that in turn relates to the usual topics talked about above. Now the color scheme was an analogous one containing red and yellow to make my design feel more alive, joyful, and important. It also really helps certain content to pop out more, especially since I tried to use color sparingly. This along with a white background and black text and outline make the magazine more formal and clean while still remaining fun and positive. Next, my font choices were made in order to try and make the design simple and effective so I implemented a bold font with strokes and then thin, tall, and straight font. The bold one is obviously Alfa Slab One while the thin one is Oswald. Alfa creates a strong and masculine feel in the magazine that is similar to a lot of sports. In contrast, Oswald acts as a more modern and official kind of font that creates a level of sophistication ideal for my particular magazine.
To recapitulate, my TOC is very similar to my cover and other sports magazines in that it tries to mirror the feeling you get when playing and watching a sport. It also plays with the conventions of this respective genre so that the magazine as a whole feels more alive and vibrant. In my opinion, this TOC has ended up pretty good and I am proud of the work that I did when making it.
Motivation:
Tools and Resources Utilized:
- https://www.canva.com/.
- Rodriguez, Daniel. Daniel Rodriguez - AICE Media Studies, Blogger, 27 Jan. 2022, https://danielrodriguez111106.blogspot.com/.
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