This project formed a larger portfolio, produced to develop my visual communication skills during my first year of university. After creating a food magazine, I was tasked with creating a digital platform for the magazine in the form of a website.

It was vital to ensure the branding and visuals of the magazine were carried through to the website, in a way that was user-friendly. I heavily researched the market to understand how other food blogs communicated with their users. A clear, grid format seemed to be the most accessible for users, using images to create a visual hierarchy and guide them through the articles. 

I took inspiration from Ethan Marcotte. I appreciate his use of tabs and using a chronological order as you scroll through the website, as this made the web app incredibly fast and accessible. Therefore, I took this on-board with my web design, as I can see how effectively this design layout can work.

I finalised my design using wireframes to lay out the content of the website and map the user’s experience in a hierarchical way down the page. I made a front page which displayed all the main article links, which gave ease for the user, rather than scrolling through as many tab options. The website also follows a 3 column grid structure, so the user can follow a journey down the columns to read the information. 

The article subheadings were kept short and simple, meaning the user can understand the purpose of the article quickly and know if it is of benefit to them. Having a strong contrast between the background and font colour was important for high readability.

When finalising the digital prototype, I used the main article as a larger cover photo to introduce the website, placing subsequent articles below in the 3 grid format.

In order to be responsive to customers, converting the website for touchscreen use was essential. The layout adjusted to different devices well, however, I reduced the amount of tabs and small touch icons as these can be fiddly on a smaller screen. The user's can scroll through the front page in one easy sweeping motion.