Revising my Double-Page Spread for Improvement

Revising my Double-Page Spread for Improvement

My double-page spread was a downgrade from my magazine cover. I believe I got the grade that I have now because I was thinking of a unique style, however, the style was not executed perfectly. Furthermore, my stories were too small and left a lot of white space. My suggestions were that I should reorganize it as a traditional magazine, make more descriptive and captivating headlines, and I should add more informational content. I took it upon myself to look inside the pages 20-21 of a Reminisce February/March 2022 Issue and I stylized my double-page spread off of that. The feedback was very helpful, but I wish I had thought of something more contemporary for the style. 

Now that I have seen the results of my peers, I kind of have an idea of what I would like to do for my double-page spread. I would have one side of the page giving information on the subject of memories, like why do we cherish/need memories so much. Then, I can feature the main story with a pull-out quote and have three other mini "stories" with captions on the side. I was told that my visuals are nice, but I decided I want a prominent background. I might put mini polaroids or photo booth strips to spice up the page instead of having a purple gradient background. 

Some examples that I've been inspired are shown down below:

 I really like how the one on the right has the feature stories on the side and it's the perfect amount of pictures. Despite that this one only has two columns of lengthy text, the problem can easily be fixed by making
the main focus picture pushed back to the left of the page. It has advanced copy techniques and it looks very good.

The one on the left looks good too and I'm really focusing on the lack of white space. I wouldn't add the pictures on top of the main focal one because each photo has a different story for my magazine. I like how this one has three columns and the page is filled. The headlines and captions are captivating and catchy.

I am working on my double-page spread as this blog is being written, so there aren't any photos of it at the moment. Nonetheless, I hope that by receiving information from the pros, assessing my critiques, and planning out my double-page spread will certainly improve my skills. I will use this information to get better at designing and creating a traditional magazine spread.