𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝘆𝗹𝗲 𝟮

Hey guys!

I know I just recently uploaded a part but it seems I'm noticing a lot and I'm on a roll so I thought, 'Why not do an update on my previous style article?', and here it is.

A brief recap:

In Finding Your Style part one, we spoke about how diversifying the art you absorb and realizing that art has no limitations can really help broaden your scope and assist in helping you find your common penchants that make up your unique style in graphic design, independent of the swipe file.

Today, I'll be discussing how those penchants can reflect in your art – and how it can quickly spiral into a bad thing.

Every graphic designer wants to be known for a unique element in their work. Some are subtle while others are more noticeable.

For example, and this is complete speculation, Rebecca Frank of Bewitching Book Covers seems to enjoy model covers more than symbolic ones since the sheer number of model covers featured online outweighs that of the symbolic ones she has done. She's awesome at both and I'm in awe of her skills but her model covers are yummier to look at. 

Though she has a healthy amount of covers in each, her model covers just seem to draw more attention so that is where I'll probably pinpoint her flair.

They are more prominent. They show up everywhere and are extremely eye-catching. The model covers span most of the results if you look her up on Pinterest.

Hell, her covers (symbolic and model) are in my swipe file guide so I can learn how to do better covers.

And she's excellent at it. She has a flair for making stock image models look so realistic, her lighting and shadows are on point, her backgrounds always hit hard and there is always a burst of magic somewhere. Usually consuming the model's hands. Did I mention the epic lighting and shadows?

That's her unique composition; it's the template you see if you look closer at all her model covers. They all look different and unique due to the stock used, among other things, but they're all the same.

It's a common template, yes, but there are few designers who can make their model compositions look so droolworthy.

This is what I notice when I see this particular designer's work.

Personally, I think typography might be my greatest strength (jury's still out on that) but that's a subtler type of flair that will be difficult pick up on because there are tons of awesome covers out there with excellent typographical arrangements.

However, choosing the correct font to indicate genre and tastefully arranging it on a canvas are very difficult for some so I consider it a blessing that I find it easy enough.

Speaking of which, the more I'm learning about design, the better I'm getting at critiquing my own work and how I can improve moving forward. Which is what should happen when you know you are practicing what you learn.

Now, you might be wondering...

How can having a unique style affect your artwork?

It's your flair! It's what you're known for, right?

That's true but there are some designers who toe the line between subtlety and complete repetition.

Remember how I said above that despite Rebecca's book covers following a common template, they all still look different?

She uses different colour schemes, different subjects, different settings, because she's designing for different authors and their different book series.

I think it's imperative that beginner designers understand this because I have seen lots of them use:

- the same colour scheme/grading for the book covers they make, no matter the genre

- the same fonts (calling myself out here because I'm currently obsessed with Desire)

- the same model for differing standalone books, with no variation on the photos (which is not as bad because, as a beginner, they might not know how to cut and paste models from different stock photos. Even I struggle with that.)

But it is noticeable...and kinda jarring.

Especially if these covers are being made for writers. You really don't want to have two different authors look like they copied each other's book covers.

The obvious, visual commonalities can definitely make someone identify it as your brand/design but you need to ensure that your book design is not only a reflection of you but that it is also fits into the author's genre and indicates the tone of their story. (We'll talk about this further in another part because this is a completely different story.)

Creating covers is not just about slapping text on a photo and using a signature colour scheme to let everyone know that it's you who did the cover. Even simple covers should have some sort of variation so that it fits into the genre of the book you're designing for.

Design should be subtle, your flair should be subtle but stand out in the way you arrange things on the canvas. It should stand out in why you make the creative choices you make.

But when the covers you make all look identical to each other, then more work needs to be done.

Don't be afraid to play around with colours. Don't be afraid to throw your ultimate vision out on a canvas. No matter how ugly it may seem afterwards. Just do it (heh).

It's important to push yourself out of your comfort zone and take a chance on trying something completely new. Wade into uncharted territory. Get your hands dirty. Play around with elements as if it's the last time you'll ever design.

Additionally, there are tons of YouTube videos on different effects and they show you how to create it on your own.

Just recently, I tried to create a glow effect using the Linear Dodge and Gaussian Blur method. It didn't work out. Looked like absolute crap. The bad quality of the image I used it on probably didn't help matters but...

I'm gonna try to do it again with better quality images and better adjustments and see where it takes me.

Finding your style will always be a never-ending process because the more you learn, the better you get and your approach to design will always evolve in some way. Staying in the corner too long is going to hinder your progress, if you're serious about graphic design.

And even if you're a hobby designer doing free covers for writers, it's still good to learn these things.

Take what I say with a grain of salt and some self-reflection AND before you start that next cover...

Remember if your vision leads you to somewhere new, then go forth and create it without worrying about the result.

Thanks for reading.

If you liked this update, do let me know your thoughts and opinions in the comments.

If you have any topics you'd like an article on, then feel free to comment them inline and I'll see what I can do :)

- HEAVEN