The transition to the digital medium has affected every kind of content, posing questions about the shelf-life of physical formats. However, across all media we are still very much in an intermediary stage: CDs, books and magazines are still selling, and outperforming predictions of their decline.
So when approaching the goal of creating a digital edition of Habitus our team of designers and IT processionals was very conscious of wanting the content to suit the medium; rather than presenting a bland reproduction we wanted the virtues of the new format to enhance Habitus.
To better understand how the development unfolded, we sat down with Emma Warfield, part of the design team that built Habitus and its umbrella App, Binder.
habitusliving: What was the brief for the project? What were the main objectives when creating the template for the digital editions?
Emma Warfield: The brief was to interpret the print editions of our magazines into a compelling digital format. We wanted to tailor the content to the medium and take advantage of all that it has to offer – richer visuals, interactive elements, slideshows, audio and video. We have created a new responsive experience with quick links to additional online content and social media.
HL: Were there any unexpected challenges or opportunities involved in the design?
EW: Print and digital design are two very different things – one does not translate exactly to the other. Both have their advantages and offer different experiences for the reader. In moving to digital, ease of use becomes a priority – we want the reader to be able to navigate intuitively and discover the new, richer content. The additional scope for slideshows and videos have allowed us to include more in-depth content, such as behind-the-scenes footage from all the original photoshoots we produce for each of the magazines. This gives our readers insight into how they’re put together and allows them to connect with all the talented people involved.
HL: As a designer, what is your favourite element of the digital editions?
EW: I will always be a lover of print and all things print-related, but working across the digital realm has opened up so many possibilities of what we can achieve with our design and how many people we can reach with it.
HL: Do you see the format evolving further in the future? What more would you like to see in digital content?
EW: Absolutely. I’m most interested to see how print and digital continue work in tandem. The opportunities for digital design and content are really endless, so it’s an exciting time to be a part of it.
The Binder team, from left to right: Radu Enache (Online), Rollo Hardy, Frances Yeoland, Alex Buccheri, Emma Warfield (Design)
Habitus, as well as Indesign and DQ magazines are available on Binder through the iTunes App Store for iPad.