Front CoverCommentary

By Luka Delic

Photo Shoot ImagesI thought this image was quite a good one. The close up leaves enough space at the top for the masthead and the coverlines . The grenade in the background is a nice touch as it gives an incendiary, anarchic feel. However, I felt it did not fit my aim of creating an image of a rebellious, rock star who commands authority for the front cover. This is because it features the model smile

In comparison to the opposite image, I believe that this one fulfils my aim much better. The use of sunglasses and the ability to see the Punisher logo create the impression of a sort of punkish rebel, which was my intention for the cover image. The off-kilter pose of him with his mouth wide open suggests a hint of defiance, that I think the reader may find appealing. The pose is

slightly, which does not emit an intimating, authoritative quality and is not a pose often seen on a cover image. Additionally, I wanted his rebellious persona to be reflected in his clothing and props, which isn’t reflected as much here because his Punisher t-shirt is hidden, and his tattoo sleeve can’t be seen.

also more suited to a front cover of a rock magazine, more than the smirk in the image on the left. Additionally, the sunglasses add a layer of mystery that may entice the reader. Overall, I thought that this image showed that I was more aware of my target audience and of the rock genre of my magazine, and I considered this as a possibility for my cover photo.

Chosen ImageThis is the image that I chose for my cover. One of the reasons why I chose this was due to the clearer visibility of the elements of the mise en scene, especially clothing, in the photo.

The tattoo sleeves clearly connote rebellion (one of the main impressions rock stars provide) and youth, targeting the late teen, young adult audience.

The skull connotes death (which is a recurring theme in rock songs) and an awareness of popular culture, due to it being the trademark logo of the Punisher, a character from Marvel comics.

The close up/ medium shot suggests that he’s under the spotlight, connoting that the reader will gain insight into him. However, the head turned away, with no direct eye contact, suggesting the attention from the audience he receives is unimportant to him. All that is important is him and his music.

The sunglasses hide the eyes, which are commonly referred to as the “door to your soul”. The fact that he’s hiding the “door to his soul” intimidates the reader. Additionally, obscuring them creates a sense of mystery, enticing them to open the cover to discover his true personality.

I was aware of taking a photo against a white background, in order to create a colour scheme that contrasted well.

I left enough space here for the masthead to reside at the top.

FirstDrafts

During the creation of my front cover, I created several first drafts, experimenting several styles and designs, while still maintaining the same basic structure and content that my mock-up outlined.

The main reason why I liked this draft was because of the poster edges effect, which projects an edgy vibe akin to the film ‘Sin City’, and still maintains an intimidating quality. Its unconventionality was appealing to me as well.

Another early draft of my magazine

cover

FirstDraft

This was my full first draft.

The choice of blue as a dominant colour implies that Gilles is a cool character.

There are several coverlines and a large kicker to conform with the convention of a crowded cover, and the content applied from these targets my target audience (i.e. “Green Day” suggests the inclusion of the rock band in the issue, and the audience of their music and this magazine are identical - firm rock fans).

Here I used the paint bucket tool to fill the colour of the skull so as to match the clothing of the cover model to the overall colour scheme of the front cover.

For this text, I used an Edwardian Script font. This was unconventional as it seemed to juxtapose the rebellious, youthful tone of the image with the inclusion of a very formal, classy font. However, I liked the look of it, which seemed to suggest a certain stylish characteristic and mystique about the model.

Use of blue is nice choice as it suggests the coolness of the cover person, but try red, I think it would probably be a better choice

Masthead does not catch the eye of the reader as it doesn’t stand out, experiment with adding effects to it maybe

Use of this ‘formal’ font does not match well with the other fonts used. Change font to one that matches better, Impact or serif?

Filling this in blue is a really good effect, links the image to the overall look and colour codes used on the coverSpare space here –

more coverlines?

Change font size to remain consistent throughout coverlines

Add one more band to fill this kicker fully

Feedback

Final Draft

Thoughts:In terms of conventionality, I believe that my cover follows most conventions with its general structure and style. Furthermore, the masthead catches the eye of the reader more easily due to the higher noise shadow, and the duplicating of the masthead layers three times. In terms of changes to my first draft, the addition of more coverlines creates the conventional feel of a crowded cover. This is also why I acted on the feedback provided and designed a button to add here, to fill the previously spare space here and create another element that stands out. Additionally, the change of the predominant colour of the cover from blue to red, creates a more incendiary atmosphere, that feels more in line with the personality of the cover model and my intention to create an intimidating impression of the cover person. Also, the kicker became smaller because I felt that it was too large previously and distracted from other elements of the cover. One more alteration I made, was changing the font of ‘Gilles Geary’ to an Impact one, which matched the cover better than the Edwardian Script. Overall, I feel that my final draft feels more accomplished in achieving an eye-catching cover that is more considerate of its target audience, one way being through creating the feeling of an intimidating and rebellious cover model.

Final Draft