CD Analysis

CD Analysis

How suitable is the CD cover for the genre

 The genre I chose for my CD cover design is 'indie/alternative/folk and acoustic rock, which are all quite original and new age genres (apart from folk), so the design of my CD cover had to be quite refreshing and unique to fit in with it, which I think I have captured quite okay. The album cover that I have made is about an old antique place that was deserted quite a long time ago, which ties in with the album name and the music that would be composed for it (soft, meaningful and unique). The reason for this is because a lot of bands/musicians have the cover of their CD with them on it or at least featured somewhere in the cover, but I have noticed with these particular genres most of the artists prefer to link the albums to unusual imagery because they like to be of the 'original type', so that is what inspired me to do the same. I think my album cover works really well with the genre because it is not ordinary and keeps a low key look to it, but will also catch the curious eye because of it's individuality.

What I think works

The main base to the design of my album cover is the genre and the target audience that will follow, so because of my choice I have made mine quite unusual, but still sticking to the genre. I think that my imagery works really well because it gives you a sense of the albums main theme by using blurred photos and strange props (old children's toys, flowers that were past their best, and left behind belongings). I really think that the back cover is a good choice because it is done it the same setting as the front cover but is cropped from the rest of the props and is just focused on the breaks in the wood on the table top and has the corner of a leaf blurred into the background, which again shows a unique quality. 

The writing fonts and colouring I also think work because they are blended in with the idea of old and left behind theme. On both the front cover and back cover I presented this theme by using dark greens and browns to colour the in writing and chose the font of a typewriter to make it look antique. Then I tilted the band name and album name so that it looked like they were lying flat on the table so that it gives an idea that it could be calved into it.

What doesn't work

There are minor details around parts of my CD cover that I think could have been improved or added, for starters on the back cover I would have preferred to add the band name onto it too and not just have the album name, but I thought it would crowd the picture too much and left it. Then on the front cover if you look very closely the colour of the writing used for the band and album name is slightly tinted to different greens which I think doesn't work great, but isn't too noticeable. The main problem I think with the CD cover is that the colour tone on the front cover is slightly dimmed down compared to the back cover, so it does make it look quite unlinked and I would like to have altered that. 

What was difficult about the project

The main difficulties I had either evolved around getting to know more about Photoshop and  getting the right image for the back cover. Photoshop was probably the one I struggled with more because of my lack of experience with it. Yes, I could do the basic things but I had to keep asking for help in some areas until I got my head around it. For example when deleting colour I would struggle and find myself not being able to select the right options for what I wanted and when I needed to edit the writing it took me lots of trials and errors until I found myself capable. The other difficulty I had was deciphering how my back cover should actually look, but after I tried out some different ideas I found the right one to fit in with the front cover. 

What I have learnt

I have learnt quite a few skills from the project, they do mainly evolve around Photoshop because this was the area of the project where I had to learn about it before I proceeded with it. The main ones are the effects that you can give to an image; you can completely alter the photo of it's colour, shape or even how blurred you want it by just changing a few settings. I have also learnt how to do this on not only photo/pictures, but writing too. I have learnt how to use layering and why it is important the way you do it, how to combine those layers to link the colours together and also how to transform writing from one look to a completely different one.

If I had all the time in the world what would I alter?

I personally wouldn't change a lot with my album cover because I like the way it is and how it fits in with the genres I have chosen. A few details could be altered, for example the ones I mentioned in the section about 'what doesn't work'. The tone difference between the front cover and the back cover- I would take a lot of time to try and get them absolutely to the same tone, so that it links them together more. And the writing is slightly off because of it's different shades of green underneath the browns, that would be something I would definitely change if I had enough time to know that if I messed it up I could start again. Also the little problem of trying to fit the band name onto the back cover I would try and solve, because I think it should be on there but I would need to alter the photo underneath first. 

What album covers can I compare mine to

Wire- the chairs missing

The Wire's album cover may not look linked but I find

 it has that empty estranged look to it that ties in a little 

with mine.

Howlin' Wolf-

Howlin' Wolf out of all of three of these album covers 

I think is most like mine because of the way it is not 

detailed with the artist and what they are like, but more

about the music that is going to be coming from the album. 

Also it is that look of antique that is both used in this album 

cover and mine.

The Drums-

The main reason I chose this album cover was for the

style of writing they have used for it. They have tied 

it in with the imagery; using shadows of the words to

 reflect onto the dirty floor, the way I used my writing to 

add to the image (through being engraved onto the table).
It's not the reason they are reflected onto it, it's more the

 way it has been done with the blurry affect, which

 is how it would be on a dirty floor.