Designing a Layout

By the middle of October, it was time for me to start thinking about the design layout of my magazine. I began to learn about the many different elements of design. This includes pictures, copy and white space, column designs, external and internal margins, placement of the eyeline, dominant photo, copy area, vertical axis, and captions.

After that, I started learning about adding more information to my layout by using secondary coverage, how to use micro, conventional, and macro spacing, and the importance of visual/verbal connections which involves the headline and dominant picture.

In early November, I began to study fonts. I completed an assignment where I chose five different types of secondary coverage and then I explained how the different font I chose for each secondary coverage would add contrast, where the text will be placed, how drop and raised caps would be used, if transparency and text-wrapping will be used, and the aligning of the text.

Creating a good headline was the last thing I learned about for my layout. I learned that a good headline has to have a visual/verbal connection with the layout's dominant picture. This is what helps draw the reader in. An example of a visual/verbal connection I came up with is if a headline were to be called A Step into the Future and the dominant photo would be someone on stairs who is well known and is creating a brighter future for many people.