Problem: I did research on the most popular magazines and e-magazines in the music genre. I narrowed my research into the indie magazine genre. Jamsphere and Under the Radar were the two magazines that I chose as my competitors. One of my goals was to make magazine design better than my competitors.

Solution: I did some research about the layout of Magazines. Jamsphere did not have a good layout and the typography on the front wasn’t legible. Under the Radar had a good focal point for the magazine with the artist being the subject. The typography on the front is legible, but very minimal. So, I decided I was going to make an artist my focal point, and use typography that was legible. Also, putting more cover lines will make the reader want to purchase my magazine.

Result:

I combined a smoky background behind my subject using the mask tool and I chose bold typography. The color scheme of my typography matches the smoke that is placed behind my subject.