Process Of Contents page In Photoshop

I added the creme background which i got the colour from my previous design - double-page spread. I then gathered the images i took and also one from my main cover which is a well known acoustic artist. I added a black outer glow and a drop shadow on them all so they stand out well and fit in. I also cut the top left corner of these images so this is where the page numbers of the articles for these images will be. For the bottom image i cut out the background of it and just added a outer glow which i think turned out well. Lastly, i added the same typeface which kept through out my designs to keep consistency with the theme.

Then i placed two boxes which is where the features and extra areas will be. I made them dark colours so it stands out on the light background. I added a gradient overlay so they don't look like a whole plain colour but they have a contrast to light to dark which i think looks great. Lastly, i added the background to the page numbers on each image which is a little curved corner and kept it with the themed colour.

Now i have added the page numbers to each picture and made them white which a small white outer glow so both of these help it to make it easy to read over the dark brown background and the audience can easily follow where to find more on these articles quicker. Then i placed the titles for the two boxes and over the bottom image at the top. The 'Extras' title is the only bright red colour on the page so it really stands out that there is something important and special on this page and further in the magazine for you to read. The title 'Exclusive band news' has a black border around the typeface so you can see it very clearly and the white font makes it even easier to see so I'm happy with this colour choice.

Lastly, i decided to have white font for the numbers and writing on the bars on the left side because white on dark colours are very easy to comprehend quickly. I made the page numbers in these sections to have a large black drop shadow which really makes them distinctive. Then for a brief title for teach of these pages i added a large font so you can quickly glance at it and read it still and outlined it in a small stroke of black. Underneath this in the feature section i put smaller font and wrote about the pages being showcased in a short but a more descriptive way. Lastly, i added a plus sign and placed it in the corner of the extras box as it is a visually graphic symbol to show there is more to offer which i also like very much.