WEEK 3
Validation Inputs from the BP editorial team (eg. Great Masters article suggestion came from Dinesh Krishna, the editor of BP) were added to the structure of the new magazine and at their request some ideas were kept on hold for use later. We then created a final structure document with tentative page numbers allotted to every story. We shortlisted story ideas and themes for the January 2006 issue and sent them to the editor of BP for validation. Preliminary work on design began. We created a unique 6-column grid to allow for ample white space within layouts. This flexible grid allowed us to do multiple layout options (3-column, 2 column plus half column layouts) in order to show the pictures in the best possible way. Dummy layouts using this grid to show the edit team at BP how their articles were going to be laid out were created. This allowed them to understand what changes they would have to make in the way they approached and constructed the stories. We bought fonts from the ’ITC Bureau Grotesque’ family to use as the title font. After, much rumination, Tyfa was chosen for body copy. Preliminary work started on the masthead of the redesigned magazine.
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Dummy layouts helped the BP editorial team change the way they wrote stories
WEEK 4
Collection of Content
Mock layouts helped fortify the magazine grid and make it adaptable for different kinds of articles
The writers in the BP team were assigned the stories to be compiled on very tight deadlines due to the short gestation period for the project. At Synapse, we sourced web content to fill the smaller elements of the magazine. For some new sections like Q&A and Photocritique, reader input was also crucial. We visited the immensely popular BP Forum on betterphotography.in and picked up reader questions posted there to populate the Q& A section. This was also a time for disappointment as some of the story ideas planned in the original list could not be implemented due to non availability of the photographs. The BP edit team suggested alternatives and asked for interviews again. To get a suitable picture for “Story Behind the Picture’ took time too. We had identified sources and possible pictures (we wanted to feature Gandhi by Margaret Bourke-White) but were met with disappointment either due to high cost of the original picture or lack of response to our queries. We made structure templates for new sections and subsections and send them as pdfs to the edit team to review while commissioning stories. The grid style was finalised and dummy pages and visuals styles were created for every section. Supporting visuals for stories were collected. Masthead and cover styles were finalised. INFORMATION MATTERS
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VOLUME 1
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ISSUE 1