EAST WING: MARSH VS FOURSTARFIZZLE

[The Mask of Norro]

Marsh versus fourstarfizzle

Story: A record company has been searching for freelance designers to submit their ideas for the jewel case cover to one of their top bands latest CD releases. This does not include the back or spine-- only the front. Based on the design of the front, they will pick the top designs and ask the artists to submit the full design to them for the decision.

Basic Rules: Design the front jewel case cover for an upcoming album from a band, or if you can't find any that you like, your favorite album from a band. Only the front, though... we'll take baby steps for the first round.

Restrictions: Has to include the name of the band and the name of the album somewhere. Including the logo of the recording company is optional.

Size: 550x550

Deadline: Sunday, March 26th

[fourstarfizzle]

There we go, it's for the up and coming Ataris album 'Welcome The Night', coming out in July 06. I'm a wee bit busy at the moment with Uni work so hopefully this should suffice without me needing to add or take stuff away.

(Feedback needed? Anything? Blah)

Edited March 22, 2006 by fourstarfizzle

[Wildcat]

I think the hardest part of making graphics is the fact that all you are really doing is taking some background art and just adding text on top of it. The trick is to make it not look like thats all you did but like its one flowing graphic.

What you have so far is pretty good, the bones are there it just needs dressed up. The BG image is great but I think you need to do something different with the font. Its just too basic and doesn't stand out or make a statement at all.

Also I'd try to add either the label's sticker and/or the parental rating sticker or something on there to make it look like a finished peice.

JMO though

[Docpepper]

I whole heartedly disagree with Wildcat on this one . I absolutely love that cover and I can see it being used as a real one. Brilliant man just brilliant

[CLOVER~!]

you should send that in to the atari's I could seriously see that being a graphic of theirs..

[alldaws1]

I whole heartedly disagree with Wildcat on this one . I absolutely love that cover and I can see it being used as a real one. Brilliant man just brilliant

I'm with Doc here. I could see that being used as an actual cover. The text is fine, perfectly positioned and clear, yet subtle.

[fourstarfizzle]

I think the hardest part of making graphics is the fact that all you are really doing is taking some background art and just adding text on top of it. The trick is to make it not look like thats all you did but like its one flowing graphic.

What you have so far is pretty good, the bones are there it just needs dressed up. The BG image is great but I think you need to do something different with the font. Its just too basic and doesn't stand out or make a statement at all.

Also I'd try to add either the label's sticker and/or the parental rating sticker or something on there to make it look like a finished peice.

JMO though

[Guest muddatrucker]

I agree with FSF.

[Guest Jules]

I think the hardest part of making graphics is the fact that all you are really doing is taking some background art and just adding text on top of it. The trick is to make it not look like thats all you did but like its one flowing graphic.

What you have so far is pretty good, the bones are there it just needs dressed up. The BG image is great but I think you need to do something different with the font. Its just too basic and doesn't stand out or make a statement at all.

Also I'd try to add either the label's sticker and/or the parental rating sticker or something on there to make it look like a finished peice.

JMO though

Lol, I'm just finishing my degree in Web Design & Multimedia Graphics Design, I think I know a 'little' about creating eye leading (flowing) images. The text is meant to be a subtle, their new album is nowhere near like their older stuff, and it's showing a maturity in their music, and as mny say, a picture says a thousand words, hence why I dominates the cover, the image itself serves as the flow for the graphic, leading you from the top piece of text, to the bottom.

Thanks for trying to give me some pointers though.

[Marsh]

Here's mine.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

It's a monster....and a box! *gabbles insanely*

[SeanDMan]

There's something to be said for Marsh's design.

[The Mask of Norro]

MARSH

-------------

Pros: Insanely clever-- I love how simple the whole thing is and yet how attention drawing it all seems to be. Nice name placement, nice idea... all around, I enjoy this cover quite alot.

Cons: The quality of the monster blended on the box-- if anything, it detracts from the smoothness of the rest of the cover. Also, even though I like the placement... the text which reads 'One Eighteen' could stand to be just a tad bit darker, as it seems to get lost within the tones of grays. Just looking at the cover casually it sorta fades out of sight for me. Also, the box could stand to be centered a bit better-- it's situated moreso towards the right, based on the distance from the edges of the cover to the furthest ends on the box.

FOURSTARFIZZLE

-------------

Pros: Once again, you truly have to appreciate the simplicity of this design. Not neccesarily 'clever' as Marsh's was... it's just really well-thought out, really. The colors are brilliantly used, I'm loving the smooth effects on the image you've selected. Perspective is awesome... and the positioning of the fonts is pitch-perfect. Just a nice atmosphere to the whole thing, definitely works well with the title.

Cons: This might sound a bit harsh, but if I were going through a CD rack looking for something to select... my eyes wouldn't immediately be drawn to this cover. It's not really downgrading the cover or anything-- it's a nice design, but because of just how subtle everything is, most would pass it by. Now, if you're an Atari fan, obviously there would be that acception.

MATCH OUTCOME

-------------

With Marsh, the idea was a really good one but I feel it could have been executed better. One of the things I might suggest for a design like this is to try cutting out a part of the box to fit with the teeth of the blended monster... make it seem more 'monsterish' for lack of a better term. The quality of the image used for the monster brought it down too, but the idea is class, and the positioning of the text was nice too. Definitely something my eyes would be drawn to.

Fizzle, on the other hand, had a really nice and simple idea executed perfectly. The only problem with it is that to the casual observer looking for a new CD, alot of people might pass it by just because of how simple the design really is. Now I want everyone to understand something: this isn't too much of a con at all, but it gets mentioned because it likely would happen. The fact is, though... he's got some nice balance going on here-- that light at the end of the hallway might actually be the drawing point to the cover itself, as it seems to be the strongest source of light and, with such a dark cover, someone's eyes could actually be drawn to that. A pro offsets a con, so to speak.

In the end, I'm giving this to fourstarfizzle in an extremily close contest. I loved the both of your entries-- Fizzle's being the simple yet effective one, Marsh's being the creatively simple one.

Graphically, I'd have given Marsh the edge... but based on professional designs and the effectiveness of certain designs over others, Fizzle edges him out. Marsh's looks to have more effort, yet there's some rough spots that bring it down. Fizzle's doesn't seem to have taken as much, yet there's such a smooth feel to all of it that it was actually hard to find anything wrong with it.

I have to say, this was the closest decision yet. Really surprised me with that cover, Marsh... it was extremily effective. Had that image of the monster been brushed up just a little to be less gritty, you might have actually beaten Fizzle.

[Wildcat]

FOURSTARFIZZLE

-------------

Cons: This might sound a bit harsh, but if I were going through a CD rack looking for something to select... my eyes wouldn't immediately be drawn to this cover. It's not really downgrading the cover or anything-- it's a nice design, but because of just how subtle everything is, most would pass it by. Now, if you're an Atari fan, obviously there would be that acception.

Edited March 25, 2006 by Wildcat

[Marsh]

Well done FSF.

Here's the image I was working with for the monster, taken with my mobile phone after helping with the box modification / annihilation.

[AJ]

I was really impressed with your entry Marsh If only the box had been of better quality, you might have won. Good work from FSF too, as always.

[alldaws1]

FOURSTARFIZZLE

-------------

Cons: This might sound a bit harsh, but if I were going through a CD rack looking for something to select... my eyes wouldn't immediately be drawn to this cover. It's not really downgrading the cover or anything-- it's a nice design, but because of just how subtle everything is, most would pass it by. Now, if you're an Atari fan, obviously there would be that acception.

Thats exactly what I was trying to convey (poorly, though it was) in my earlier post on the graphic.

I wasn't saying it was bad, on the contrary, I loved the simplicity and crispness of it but if I didn't know who Atari was and I was looking through my favorite music store its not something I would be compelled to listen to or pick up.

Great work by both guys though and I could tell this was gonna be just that close.

I don't know whether I'm understanding you two right, but you make it sound like somebody would go to a music shop and buy a CD based on the cover design. Who would do that? :ohwell:

I could understand it if you mean that you're looking for that certain CD it wouldn't jump out at you, but in my experience someone going to buy a particular CD knows the name they're looking for and more often than not knows what the album cover looks like.

Norris' comments about Marsh's were spot on in my mind. I too loved the creativity and the idea of it but those couple of things let it down.

[Marsh]

(Y) They were fair points, but there wasn't much I could do about the image quality of the box. It was a poor quality picture taken on my mobile phone (as you can see with the image I uploaded ) and I had to take that image and enlarge it to meet the 550x550 specification. I'm actually surprised it came out as well as it did to be honest.

Text is also a fair point, but I wanted the focus to be on "monster box". I didn't cater for the other text in the design, so didn't think it needed to be highlighted as a focal point.

Thanks for the feedback guys, and well done to FSF as well. Good luck in the next round.

[CLOVER~!]

FSF, amazing job... just to touch on something real quick though, having worked in a few different music stores, and running one for awhile, quite a few people pick CD's by image. Some people, who listen to many types of music, look for a CD image to convey to them what the band is about. Sometimes, it's a good way to find new bands you may not have listened to before.

[Dr. Rated-R]

I fucking LOVE the Atari CD cover.

The concept behind Marsh's was awesome, but a better camera should've been used for the monster.