Colour Magazine Layout

Figure 1. Greyscale layout done as a team effort.

In the course Graphic Design, an individual project – Audience – was assigned to redesign a previous greyscale layout (Figure 1) done in a team. The objective of this individual project was to create a colour magazine layout that meets the criteria of two specific people with distinct characteristics, called personas.

Figure 2. Normal vision (right); vision of a person with protanopia (left).

In order to suit each persona’s characteristics, design constraints had to be listed out and considered through every step of the layout’s redesign. The main constraint from the first persona, Amrit, was that he was mildly protanopic – he could not see red hues, as shown in Figure 2. Since the article topic's main colour scheme consisted of reds, oranges, and yellows, I selected new images, edited some in Photoshop and created a draft.

Figure 3. Spread of first iteration.

Upon receiving feedback on my first iteration (Figure 3), I realized that the second persona, Francine, was not well considered in the design. Francine’s main constraint is her tiredness, therefore the design had to include elements that would help lead Francine throughout the article.

Figure 4. Brainstorming of directional elements.

I brainstormed ways that would help the lead the eye (Figure 4), in the end settling upon careful image selection and placement, since extra elements would not fit well with the overall unity of the article.

The images chosen had main objects that angled in the direction of article flow, which would lead Francine through the article. I also allowed for the article title to lead across the spread to connect the two pages together.

Figure 5. Final Layout.

My final layout (Figure 5) definitely put more consideration on Francine's behalf. While Amrit's needs were fulfilled, I believe I can still iterate the layout to better suit Francine. This experience demonstrated how contrasting audiences view the same design, and taught me to be more open minded through my iterations.

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