What do you feel you have learnt in the progression from your Preliminary Task to your final product?

This is the front cover of my preliminary task, even though this is a school magazine and the image below is a music magazine, so they are quite different, however, I still managed to compare some of the features fomr both of them.

First of all I am much prouder with my main task than my preliminary. Looking at it I have realised I missed off a lot of key features to attract my audience and also there is way too much empty space for a front cover. I have used only one sell line and the title is not at all interesting, these are two of the main features that are meant to draw your reader in. I do not even have a banner which is unheard of on a magazine, not only this I don't even include a burst anywhere on my front cover. The black background is dull are meant I couldn't use different coloured fonts, I could only use white. This in itself is not a good technique as it makes the magazine look boring and unappealing. The two things I like about this are my tag line and the use of direct mode of address, where the model is looking into the camera lens, other than that I am unsatisfied with this piece.

In contrast to this, my main task, a pop music magazine has a completely different look altogether. It is clear to see that I have progressed well and I have learnt more about how to lay out my cover properly and conventionally. The cover looks a lot more cluttered and I have used obvious things such as, a burst, banner, bright colourscheme, different fonts, all conventions that pull together a professional magazine. The title on my main task is significantly better, I have used three different colours, a bigger font, and I have also put it at a slight slant which draws the readers attention even further.
This image is a normal a4 size, but unfortunately it uploaded into a different size and I couldn't figure out how to change it.

The contents page for my preliminary is not at all conventional and the background for starters, of a brick wall, immediately gives the reader a boring outlook on the magazine. Going from a black cover to a brick wall on the contents page isn't exactly appealing for the audience. I think this is where I learnt a lot about how to keep the reader interested, because if I was readiny my preliminary magazine I would of more than likely skipped the contents, whereas on my main task I have used a large font and and ellipsis which make the reader want to read the page. I know now that with a contents page, images are EVERYTHING and I certainly didn't use enough images, the one I have used should of at least used direct mode of address to give a little more of a personal feel. Comparing my preliminary contents page to my main one, I have decided I am very happy with my final music magazine contents page as I have used a lot of conventional features.     

So to conclude, I have definitely learnt a lot since my preliminary task about   making a successful magazine, my final drafts are significantly better than my preliminary task so all in all I am very happy with my work. I think it is clear to see just how much I have learnt by simply looking at my work.

All that I have learnt has affected me drastically from comparing my preliminary task to my final task visually. Not only has it made me realise how much I have progressed but also just how much detail is needed to make my work the best it can be. 

The main thing that I think helped me progress so much was learning how to research properly and to find the exact information I wanted. I realise now, looking back, that the 'research' I carried out when making my preliminary task was nothing compared to what I needed to do to make a successful final piece. Research is key because it is where magazine companies find out all the vital information about your audience that you need to sell your magazine.
I have created a media text which means I am a gatekeeper, this means I control the information that I give to the audience therefore I am letting them see what I want them to see.