TOC Images and Original Content
Why Are Images Used In A Table Of Contents?
Most cool magazine table of contents use photos as their medium of choice. This is because photos/images make a table of contents look unique, stylish and professional. Including photos in a table of contents, is part of mostly all mgazine conventions since, they are a great choice for tech, arts, and design titles. On-trend flat graphics are also used by magazine designers to create and make their table of contents look particularly design-forward.
Professional magazine designers are known to use Adobe Illustrator, CorelDRAW, or Inkscape to create vector graphics, which make their table of contents look even more appealing and attention-grabbing.
Vectors are a great way to express more abstract or fantastical concepts, and as a result are the perfect choice for magazine table of contents, as they make them more interesting to look at, as the abstract graphic catches the eye, and makes sure that the images, stand out from the text.
Pictures, whether vectorized or illustrated, add a lovely and unique quality to magazine table of contents. Using pictures also helps magazine designers promote consistency across their table of contents, helping them develop a brand look for the inside of their magazine. This makes pictures a great choice for magazine table of contents that need a strong branded style, or want to create a powerful impact on the reader.
What Is Picture Editing?
Picture editing is the act of altering an image. Many picture editing techniques exist. Some are done manually, while others are conducted through automated software. Some picture editing is even done offline, on actual pictures, images, posters or other printed collateral.
Picture Editing helps magazine designers get the best image possible, as close to what they imagined when they got the picture or perhaps even better.
Picture editing is particularly important for magazine brands/companies. The quality of the image directly affects people’s opinion of the product and sales numbers. Studies have confirmed that high-quality images outperform stock (or poorer quality) imagery and that increasing the number of high-quality images helps build trust with consumers and increases conversion rates.
What are the different types of picture editing?
There are many ways to edit a picture — some simple and others more complicated. Most people can figure out simple picture-editing techniques on their own—though this does require time and patience. More complex adjustments may require a dedicated software program or a trained professional editor.
Simple picture-editing techniques include:
Straighten: adjust the horizon of the picture.
Crop: trimming out a portion (usually peripheral) of the image to help draw attention to the subject or otherwise improve the composition
Sharpen: enhance the definition of the edges in an image (will not make a blurry image in-focus).
Noise reduction: smoothing the picture out, typically accomplished by reducing the pixel size
White balance: the color of the light in the image
Contrast: higher contrast makes an image more punchy, while lower contrast makes it flatter in color
Exposure: the brightness of the picture
Lens correction: lessens the effect(s) of the camera lens
Color adjustments: change the color of an item or element in the picture
Background removal: delete the background from the image, isolating the subject (this is often used for white background product photography)
More complex techniques include:
Clipping paths: vector path that differentiates the part of the image that’s visible and the part that’s transparent (extracts a subject or element from an image)Portrait corrections: complexion touch-ups and enhancements
Drop and reflection shadow: create and adjust shadows
Special effects: this can mean an array of things, from animation to adding weather conditions like fog or snow
Adjusting text and visuals: add overlays or manipulate what’s already there
Photo stitching: when you seamlessly put two images together to make it look as though they were shot that way
Photo masking and Layers: the process of hiding and revealing specified portions of an image
Pixel editing and parametric image editing
Two methods of digital picture editing are pixel editing and parametric image editing. Let’s look at their definitions:
What is pixel editing?
Pixel editing, or pixel-level editing, is when you alter an image at the pixel level. Because you’re altering the pixels themselves, this also permanently changes the image file. That’s why pixel editing is considered a destructive form of photo editing because it’s not as easy to undo the changes and restore the original file.
Pixel editing, or pixel-level editing, is when you alter an image at the pixel level. Because you’re altering the pixels themselves, this also permanently changes the image file. That’s why pixel editing is considered a destructive form of photo editing because it’s not as easy to undo the changes and restore the original file.
Pixel editing allows you to make extremely detailed edits and accomplish certain functions that parametric image editing can’t (like CMYK color modes, for example).
What is parametric image editing?
Parametric image editing (PIE) doesn’t change the pixels of the image. Instead, these edits are recorded as a set of steps to follow to accomplish the final look. Thus, it’s a non-destructive mode of photo editing. However, PIE doesn’t always allow for all types of edits.
Many in the industry recommend starting with PIE, and then using pixel editing to refine the final details.
Picture Editing In Table Of Contents Mockups
I used Canva for picture editing my table of contents process and mockups. Canva is a free graphic design platform that allowed me to easily create my table of contents mockups, making them look more appealing and professional.
When using Canva, I could upload my own pictures and add them it's templates using a drag and drop interface. In my opinion, Canva is like having a basic version of Photoshop that's free and doesn't require extensive picture editing knowledge to use.
Canva is also home to thousands of free, professionally designed templates that, thanks to their drag and drop interface, can be customized with just a few clicks. I could simply upload my table of table of contents pictures to Canva, drop them into the template I chose, and save the file to my computer. It also has more than 50,000 templates to choose from.
Canva's template categories include Zoom backgrounds, posters, presentations, flyers, cards, infographics, business cards, Instagram posts, resumes, invitations, book covers, menus, letterheads, newsletters, photo collages, tickets, bookmarks, invoices, recipe cards, and more.
Laslty, Canva's extensive suite of features helped my table of contents pictures pop. It's features included basic cropping and straightening, to adding textures and color correcting. Canva's beginner-friendly features made the process of editing my cover photos simpler.
As I could add various textured backgrounds, to give my table of contents pictures more dimension, insert text to create my own article names and page numbers, create my custom photo grid and add contrast, brightness, and saturation to my picture, making it look like a professional table of contents.
Images I Choose For My Table Of Contents Mockups.
I chose this image because it had a very artistic personality to it, which is one of the conventions for an Art Magazine. This image also looks very clean, appealing, attention-grabbing, and professional. This image is very vibrant, beacause of its contrast and saturation.
Contrast and saturation are two very important elements, in relation to
photos. This is because, contrast manages the amount of
difference there is between the colors of the image, as if the colors
are clashing together, then the image becomes painful to see, which is a
very bad sign. The saturation is what makes the colors bright or dark.
Saturation and Contrast go hand in hand, as if the saturation is too
much, then the contrast has to be enough to balance it out and vice versa.
The balance in this image results in it being very beautiful and visually appealing, which
is good for catching the audience's eyes and peaking their interest in
the magazine.
I chose this image because it had a very artistic personality to it, which is one of the conventions for an Art Magazine. This image also looks very clean, appealing, attention-grabbing, and professional. This image is very vibrant, beacause of its contrast and saturation. Contrast and saturation are two very important elements, in relation to photos. This is because, contrast manages the amount of difference there is between the colors of the image, as if the colors are clashing together, then the image becomes painful to see, which is a very bad sign. The saturation is what makes the colors bright or dark. Saturation and Contrast go hand in hand, as if the saturation is too much, then the contrast has to be enough to balance it out and vice versa. The balance in this image results in it being very beautiful and visually appealing, which is good for catching the audience's eyes and peaking their interest in the magazine.
I chose an image of a manga character, as it aligns with my conventions. I chose this image as it represents the emotions of brotherly love, gratefulness and sadness. This aligns with my conventions, because many art magazines serve as a medium to express different views and perspectives on one’s art, and the photo of a manga character helps connect these two ideas together. This image is very vibrant, beacause of its contrast and saturation. Contrast and saturation are two very important elements, in relation to photos. This is because, contrast manages the amount of difference there is between the colors of the image, as if the colors are clashing together, then the image becomes painful to see, which is a very bad sign. The saturation is what makes the colors bright or dark. Saturation and Contrast go hand in hand, as if the saturation is too much, then the contrast has to be enough to balance it out and vice versa. The balance in this image results in it being very beautiful and visually appealing, which is good for catching the audience's eyes and peaking their interest in the magazine.
This is the before image, of the previous image. I chose this photo, as it depicts the quality of a drawing, before applying the tips and tricks that are going to be mentioned in the magazine. This is the reason why the image looks very shabby, unappealing, monotonous, and unprofessional. This image is also very dull, beacause of its contrast and saturation. Contrast and saturation are two very important elements, in relation to photos. This is because, contrast manages the amount of difference there is between the colors of the image, as if the colors are clashing together, then the image becomes painful to see, which is a very bad sign. The saturation is what makes the colors bright or dark. Saturation and Contrast go hand in hand, as if the saturation is too much, then the contrast has to be enough to balance it out and vice versa. The imbalance in this image results in it being very ugly and visually distant, which is good in terms of compairison but bad, for catching the audience's eyes and peaking their interest in the magazine.
Process Behind Editing My Table Of Contents Mockups
This is the first part of my process, when making a table of contents. In this part, I chose the images, I wanted to include in my first page of my table of contents, since it is going to be a 2-page spread. The images that I chose, were took by me, and the reasons why I chose these images, is because they represent various emotions, and are very clean, appealing, attention-grabbing, and professional. They also have an artistic personality to them, which aligns with the conventions of an Art magazine.
This is the part, where I started formatting my images. I did this, in order to make them look clean, appealing, attention grabbing and professional. I was able to achieve this by changing the brightness, contrast and saturation for each image. I also cropped these images, so that they could properly fit the page. Contrast and saturation are two very important elements, in relation to
photos. This is because, contrast manages the amount of
difference there is between the colors of the image, as if the colors
are clashing together, then the image becomes painful to see, which is a
very bad sign. The saturation is what makes the colors bright or dark.
Saturation and Contrast go hand in hand, as if the saturation is too
much, then the contrast has to be enough to balance it out and vice versa.
The balance in this image results in it being very beautiful and visually appealing, which
is good for catching the audience's eyes and peaking their interest in
the magazine.
This is the part where I started positioning my images. By positioning them like this, the reader will easily be able to see, which article is featuring which piece/photo of art. I positioned these image, in a bow and arrow style, as all of my images are left aligned. I chose this style so that the article titles can be easily seen through out the page. Also, the bow and arrow style, gives the table of contents a creative touch, which is needed in order to make it look more appealing and professional.
This is the final part of my process, for my first page of my 2-page spread table of contents. This is where, I added creative elements to the page, in order to make it more appealing and professional. By adding these images, I'm not only making the table of contents look good, but also encouraging the reader to actually look at the contents and focus on it, as it was one of the most essential elements of a magazine. I also added some final touches to the page, by inserting bright blue triangles in the corner, and adding vines to the sides, in order to depict a border. This was also the part, where I reviewed my process, as it is very common for designers to revise their table of contents and look at it
from a reader’s perspective, so that they know whether the table of contents is
going to benefit or harm the magazine’s sales. This is a very important
method, as it gives the designer the opportunity to revaluate their
magazine table of contents, to make sure that it aligns with most of the conventions
of their selected genre, correct their mistakes, if any, so that the
final table of contents looks professional, appealing, and attention grabbing, in
order to ensure that the magazine is interesting from the inside.
This
is the part, where I started formatting my images. I did this, in order
to make them look clean, appealing, attention grabbing and
professional. I was able to achieve this by changing the brightness,
contrast and saturation for each image. I also cropped these images, so
that they could properly fit the page. Contrast and saturation are two very important elements, in relation to
photos. This is because, contrast manages the amount of
difference there is between the colors of the image, as if the colors
are clashing together, then the image becomes painful to see, which is a
very bad sign. The saturation is what makes the colors bright or dark.
Saturation and Contrast go hand in hand, as if the saturation is too
much, then the contrast has to be enough to balance it out and vice versa.
The balance in this image results in it being very beautiful and visually appealing, which
is good for catching the audience's eyes and peaking their interest in
the magazine.
This
is the part where I started positioning my images. By positioning them
like this, the reader will easily be able to see, which article is
featuring which piece/photo of art. I positioned these image, in a bow
and arrow style, as all of my images are right aligned, so when combining the 2 pages together, the text present in the table of contents will create the beautiful opposing effect between the text. making it look creative and appealing. I chose this
style so that the article titles can be easily seen through out the
page. Also, the bow and arrow style, gives the table of contents a
creative touch, which is needed in order to make it look more appealing
and professional.
This
is the part, where I started adding text boxes to my second page of my table of contents.
By adding text to my table of contents, I am making it more balanced
and informative. As, a table of contents with just images, isn't
informative and is practically of no use. Also, an image with only text,
isn't good either, as it bombards the reader with what would seem like
unncessary information and makes the table of contents less appealing and attention-grabbing.
This
is the final part of my process, for my second page of my 2-page spread
table of contents. This is where, I added creative elements to the page,
in order to make it more appealing and professional. By adding these
images, I'm not only making the table of contents look good, but also
encouraging the reader to actually look at the contents and focus on it,
as it was one of the most essential elements of a magazine. I also
added some final touches to the page, by inserting bright blue triangles
in the corner, and adding vines to the sides, in order to depict a
border. This was also the part, where I reviewed my process, as it is very common for designers to revise their table of contents and look at it
from a reader’s perspective, so that they know whether the table of contents is
going to benefit or harm the magazine’s sales. This is a very important
method, as it gives the designer the opportunity to revaluate their
magazine table of contents, to make sure that it aligns with most of the conventions
of their selected genre, correct their mistakes, if any, so that the
final table of contents looks professional, appealing, and attention grabbing, in
order to ensure that the magazine is interesting from the inside.
Text Included In My Table Of Contents Mockups
Since, my cover, introduces 3 main articles inside the magazine. I decided to include these coverlines in my table of contents. The article titles are, "Breaking The Norms", "Breaking Reality: Digital Art", and "How Manga Changed Art." I was able to achieve this by, inserting my coverlines, in front of the pieces/photos that are going to be introduced in these articles. This is really efficient, as it helps the reader correlate which piece art is featured in which article. This also gives the reader the freedom, to chose which article they want to look first, judging by the piece of art that is featured in the article. I inserted random page numbers for the articles, as this aligns with the conventions of an art magazine. Keep in mind, a magazine isn't just about articles and images, as many famous magazines have to feature ads, in order to recieve money from their sponsors. Another reason why I inserted random page numbers, is to keep the reader excited and wanting for more. As, If these page numbers were in chrnological order, than the reader would most likely be bored by the magazine, after just reading one article. So, in order to avoid this, I inserted random page numbers which will not only increase the time a person reads the magazine, but will also give them a new perspective and keep them interested. Laslty, random page numbers also add a creative flare to the table of contents, in order to make it more appealing and interesting.
Summary
In conclusion, I chose most of my images because they have a very artistic personality to them,
which is one of the conventions for an Art Magazine. These images also
look very clean, appealing, attention-grabbing, and professional. Thess images are very vibrant, beacause of their contrast and saturation.
Contrast and saturation are two very important elements, in relation to
photos. This is because, contrast manages the amount of
difference there is between the colors of the image, as if the colors
are clashing together, then the image becomes painful to see, which is a
very bad sign. The saturation is what makes the colors bright or dark.
Saturation and Contrast go hand in hand, as if the saturation is too
much, then the contrast has to be enough to balance it out and vice versa.
The balance in this image results in it being very beautiful and visually appealing, which
is good for catching the audience's eyes and peaking their interest in
the magazine. The process behind my table of contents was choosing the photos that I wanted to include in my magazine table of contents, then I had to format those images by changing their brightness, contrast and saturation, after that I positioned my images, to depict a bow and arrow style, then I added to test boxes for my page numbers and article titles, right beside the images. Laslty for the final part of my process, I added creative elements to the table of contents page,
in order to make it more appealing and professional. By adding these
images, I'm not only making the table of contents look good, but also
encouraging the reader to actually look at the contents and focus on it,
as it was one of the most essential elements of a magazine. I also
added some final touches to the page, by inserting bright blue triangles
in the corner, and adding vines to the sides, in order to depict a
border. This was also the part, where I reviewed my process, as it is very common for designers to revise their table of contents and look at it
from a reader’s perspective, so that they know whether the table of contents is
going to benefit or harm the magazine’s sales. This is a very important
method, as it gives the designer the opportunity to revaluate their
magazine table of contents, to make sure that it aligns with most of the conventions
of their selected genre, correct their mistakes, if any, so that the
final table of contents looks professional, appealing, and attention grabbing, in
order to ensure that the magazine is interesting from the inside.
Laslty, My table of contents is a 2 - page spread, that introduces 3 main articles inside the magazine. The article titles are, "Breaking The Norms", "Breaking Reality: Digital Art", and "How Manga Changed Art." I
was able to achieve this by, inserting my coverlines, in front of the
pieces/photos that are going to be introduced in these articles. This is
really efficient, as it helps the reader correlate which piece art is
featured in which article. This also gives the reader the freedom, to
chose which article they want to look first, judging by the piece of art
that is featured in the article. Keep
in mind, a magazine isn't just about articles and images, as many famous
magazines have to feature ads, in order to recieve money from their
sponsors. Another reason why I inserted random page numbers, is to keep
the reader excited and wanting for more. As, If these page numbers were
in chrnological order, than the reader would most likely be bored by the
magazine, after just reading one article. So, in order to avoid this, I
inserted random page numbers which will not only increase the time a
person reads the magazine, but will also give them a new perspective and
keep them interested. Laslty, random page numbers also add a creative
flare to the table of contents, in order to make it more appealing and
interesting.
Tools And Sources:
Canva, Canva. “Collaborate & Create Amazing Graphic Design for Free - CANVA.” Canva, Canva, 2013, https://www.canva.com/.
C, Aditya. “Cover Photo Editing/Selection.” Cover Photo Editing/Selection, Blogger, 12 Feb. 2022, https://adityachhabria.blogspot.com/2022/02/cover-photo-editingselection.html.
Fussell, Grace. “10 Tips for Designing High-Impact Magazines.” Design & Illustration Envato Tuts+, Envato Tuts, 15 June 2020, https://design.tutsplus.com/articles/10-tips-for-designing-high-impact-magazines--cms-25956.
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