AS level Creative Critical Reflection 3.

Question 3: "How did your production skills develop throughout this project?"

Growing up around an environmentally conscious family and having previously met with local NGO representatives has equipped me with a pre-existing skillset of knowledge about sustainability, climate change, and who is the best person to speak to within my area in terms of that. However, I had no previous experience with creating a magazine and what goes into that, so this project has been challenging and very useful in helping me develop creative skills.

I decided to start by researching further about my topic, as at the beginning I was not sure if I wanted to talk about more global issues, before settling on presenting sustainable practices in my hometown, Targu-Mures. As someone with dyslexia, instead of hard cover books I chose to learn from documentaries and YouTube videos as well as audio versions of articles to help me learn more about my topic. I also used the internet for tips on how to lead an interview and ideas for what questions to ask. Public speaking and communication is not something I have focused on developing previously so I practiced my interview questions with my family before meeting with the local NGO representatives whom I interviewed for my project.

I have learnt about the artistic vision that is needed in photography, and the necessary creative skills to take aesthetically pleasing photographs for magazines. I have been inspired by National Geographic’s nature landscape photos that frequently appear in their issues. I also listened to online tutorials on camera angles and different types of film shots and perspectives to maximize the quality of my images.

The most challenging part of my project was the process of learning a number of new software that I have not used before. While I have previously used Microsoft Office Word and have made PowerPoints for various reasons, this was the first time I used Publisher. While it was rather similar to Word, I have taken my time in familiarizing myself with the user interface. I also decided to dabble in digital art for this project, with software such as Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator. For this, I have relied on a family member who has previous experience in graphic design and had given me tutorials in how to use the software. I have also watched online tutorials for specific questions. As I like traditional drawing best and have been reluctant to use digital artist software and applications, this has taken a bit of time. Especially to learn to get used to the difference between a digital pen and drawing tablet versus the pen and paper I used before.

Last, but not least I have realised the importance of editing and post-production in such a project. For my first draft, I ended with too much material and too many pages, and it has been a challenge to decide what to cut out in order to create the most optimal version of the magazine. I listened to my tutors feedback and reflected on which are the most important parts of my magazine, what I would like the message to be, and edited my draft accordingly.

Overall, throughout this project I have developed skills that I have already possessed as well as picking up completely new skills I did not think of before. This project has provided me with more information and insight on my topic, and a newfound understanding of the production process of an online magazine.

as well as answering this question below I have also illustrated my learning process through a visual timeline of my skill development which has aided me in developing Go Green Magazine.

I also made a video about this topic: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dzojD44B3S76ecgCKZ07pdQy4kUJyBqL/view?usp=sharing