08 May 2014
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Stamp & Coin Mart Senior Designer Nathan Ward
Have you seen the digital edition of Stamp & Coin Mart? In this special behind-the-scenes feature, our resident digital and design expert Nathan Ward explains how the digital edition is put together and what it offers stamp and coin collectors… ...
Our resident digital and design expert Nathan Ward is tasked with designing the pages of Stamp & Coin Mart for both the print and digital editions.
The creation of the digital edition requires more than just the skills associated with laying out text and images as Nathan and his team add interactive elements to the online magazine. ‘We now have image galleries, videos and audio files in the digital edition of Stamp & Coin Mart,’ Nathan says, ‘so there are many different elements for readers to enjoy in addition to simply reading the articles.’
We asked Nathan to explain how the digital edition is put together and what it offers stamp and coin collectors…
So what is the appeal of reading a digital magazine?
There are lots of different reasons why digital issues are great.
The fact that you can just download an issue from the comfort of your own home as soon as an issue goes on sale is great as it saves on time and effort – everything you want is at your finger tips. Also, not having to store the physical magazine is great, especially for someone like me who has a house full of various things I’ve collected over the years, space is at a premium!
The big appeal for me is that it is a more interactive experience than the print - you engage with an article in a way that just isn’t possible with print and you get extra content such as image galleries or videos. If you read a print article and it says there is a video online, you have to actively put down your magazine, go online and find the video. With the digital issue, chances are, the video will already be there for you to watch!
What do you enjoy most about creating the digital magazine?
I enjoy coming up with new ways to show information and playing with the way readers navigate the issue.
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Not everything in a digital issue has to be instantly visible, so it is like you are taking the reader on a bit of a journey through the article, letting them interact with the story at certain points and discover new things. User navigation is probably one of the most important things to consider when creating a digital issue and it takes up the largest part of what makes an issue interactive.
How do you add the interactive elements to each issue?
Once we have sent the magazine to the printers, I look at key articles that have good quality images or have something else to offer, such as a video or a podcast.
I then redesign those pages with the interactive elements in mind.
For example, the GB feature in print has the stamps scattered through out the article, but in the digital edition they are together in one gallery that the reader can swipe through and they are getting to see the stamps bigger and in more detail.
Once the interactive elements have been added, I uploaded the magazine to the internet and then it becomes available for readers to download to the device of their choosing.
How can readers enjoy the digital edition?
The digital edition is available on so many formats now. You can read it on your computer, an iPad, any of the other tablet devices and even your phone. It really is easy to get access to our magazines now!
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The creation of the digital edition requires more than just the skills associated with laying out text and images as Nathan and his team add interactive elements to the online magazine. ‘We now have image galleries, videos and audio files in the digital edition of Stamp & Coin Mart,’ Nathan says, ‘so there are many different elements for readers to enjoy in addition to simply reading the articles.’
We asked Nathan to explain how the digital edition is put together and what it offers stamp and coin collectors…
So what is the appeal of reading a digital magazine?
There are lots of different reasons why digital issues are great.
The fact that you can just download an issue from the comfort of your own home as soon as an issue goes on sale is great as it saves on time and effort – everything you want is at your finger tips. Also, not having to store the physical magazine is great, especially for someone like me who has a house full of various things I’ve collected over the years, space is at a premium!
The big appeal for me is that it is a more interactive experience than the print - you engage with an article in a way that just isn’t possible with print and you get extra content such as image galleries or videos. If you read a print article and it says there is a video online, you have to actively put down your magazine, go online and find the video. With the digital issue, chances are, the video will already be there for you to watch!
What do you enjoy most about creating the digital magazine?
I enjoy coming up with new ways to show information and playing with the way readers navigate the issue.
How do you add the interactive elements to each issue?
Once we have sent the magazine to the printers, I look at key articles that have good quality images or have something else to offer, such as a video or a podcast.
I then redesign those pages with the interactive elements in mind.
For example, the GB feature in print has the stamps scattered through out the article, but in the digital edition they are together in one gallery that the reader can swipe through and they are getting to see the stamps bigger and in more detail.
Once the interactive elements have been added, I uploaded the magazine to the internet and then it becomes available for readers to download to the device of their choosing.
How can readers enjoy the digital edition?
The digital edition is available on so many formats now. You can read it on your computer, an iPad, any of the other tablet devices and even your phone. It really is easy to get access to our magazines now!
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