Yesterday at C&T productions, I’ve been given the opportunity to create an album cover for an up-and-coming musical artist named Alexus Rose. Her music video was recently featured on MTV and the prolific headphone brand Beats by Dre is working on sponsoring her. It was made very clear to me that she needs to look her best in any promotional material because she’s what’s “in” right now. My supervisor handed me nearly 100 high-resolution photos taken in a photoshoot session specifically for the album cover.
Above is her logo, which I must use in order to remain constant with the rest of her branding. Initially, I was given her logo in an AI file. I had to open it and export it as a PNG file. In my opinion, any professional company or brand needs to have their logo in PNG format when sending it to designers. The reason I’d prefer PNG formats to AI formats is because when opening an AI file, it’s susceptible to run into errors. For example, if the logo was saved in Adobe Illustrator CC, it may cause problems when opening it in Adobe Illustrator CS6 or less. Meanwhile, PNG files finalize the design and locks it in, much like a PDF (just with added transparency).
Below is the final design for her album “23”. Luckily, her photos were taken with a white backdrop, which made it extremely easy to mess around with colors and gradients. I increased the sharpness of the photo while slightly softening her face and legs. Moreover, I’ve increased the photo’s brightness and contrast while messing around with simple gradients that matched her soothing voice. When my design gets approved, it should be on Itunes, Spotify, and various promotional items.
