Question 3: Development of production skills

For Question Three of the Creative Critical Reflection Process: 'How did your production skills develop throughout this project?', I decided to create a mind map using Mind Meister .

I chose the mind map because I find that it reflects the organisation and discipline which went behind developing my production skills, and is easy to be read and understood. Unfortunately, I couldn't manage to get a link to the actual mind map unless I posted it publicly on the internet or paid for a subscription, so I simply took screenshots of it (therefore it is the same as if it was accessed on the internet, but through screenshots).

Like before, I will first post the final draft texts answering this question and then present the final mind map:

At first, before starting the project I had no idea what it would get me through and be like. However, as I was passionate about my idea from the beginning and excited to learn more about this industry - not only the print industry but also the fashion industry - I managed to get through everything I found challenging. Before, when trying to create something similar, I would never go through all the research and planning steps - I believe that is why I never managed to finish well a similar project prior to this one.

The preliminary work was a warm-up for what was to come and hence got me more used to using wix, writing on a blog and browsing through what I have previously done as well as the creative process behind a photoshoot - but a smaller one. I believe that the preliminary work is essential in preparing the student for what’s to come and made me more aware of what I would do next. Another aspect would be the following research and planning. As the research took me a long time, it was still one of the most useful aspects of this process, as it opened my eyes to all these possibilities and made me understand the conventions used better, making me ask myself a few crucial questions regarding what I would want to do next in my magazine and why:

How do you feel about the conventions that you see? Would you, therefore, use any of them in your magazine in order to make your audience feel the same way?
What about the design and layout of the researched magazines? How would you use them in your issue, why and to what extent? (remaining original)
Do you now have a more in-depth understanding of the process behind a magazine in terms of conventions, article structures and design? At the end of the project, will you be able to say the same about your own?

The process of research and planning also helped me think of my magazine from a different perspective - and that of the audience - the client. As business is deeply integrated into this industry, I believe that it is important to also think about how certain aspects of the magazine will help in it being sold and catchy to the eye - whether that means colors, fonts or photos.

By creating surveys and questionnaires I managed to easily understand what my target audience wants and build a brief topic from that. I believe that hadn’t there been the questionnaires, the process of deciding upon a topic would have been a lot harder and time-consuming - which is another reason why I came to the conclusion that planning is a crucial step of the process, as well as interacting with your audience from before the magazine is built as well, not only for final feedback.

Another challenging aspect that led to me developing production skills would be learning how to use Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop and Lightroom effectively. At first, I must admit that I was indeed puzzled by these programs and thought that I would never manage to learn how to use them, but in the end I discovered ways in which to create my magazine, being happy that I have now learned how to use these programs which will for sure help me out in the future. It would also be safe to say that now, if I were given a camera I would for sure feel more familiar with it and confident in using it, as during not only my magazine photoshoot but also my preliminary photoshoot I managed to understand how it works and become more experienced as a photographer besides all of the other fields I became more confident in. For example, as I used the same camera for my preliminary photoshoot I felt more used to the camera settings and taking pictures in my second one, while before that I’d only done photoshoots with my phone. I felt the difference through the quality of the pictures immediately and am sure I will use the professional camera more and more in the future.

Lastly, the first and last step of this process was and is the teamwork that both Ilinca and I tried to maintain throughout the whole project. I believe that besides the technical production skills developed, I also learned how to effectively work in a team, communicate and most importantly learn to understand the other’s ideas - even if they are different from my own - and to accept the critical yet constructive tips of my colleague regarding my own ideas, which is a skill I am surely going to use wherever I find myself in the future.