Jake Armerding, new business card layouts 2

My main beef with the old front layout was that the black box at the bottom (while helpful for setting off the type) arbitrarily broke up the layout, ruining any cohesion it might have. Secondly, the cream-colored letters didn't relate strongly enough to any element in the image, thereby missing out on repetition, one of the basic design principles and an easy way to create continuity in a layout.

For my first take on the front of the card, I kept the centered design, but zoomed in on the photo so we could eliminate the low-rent arbitrary box. Given the white windows and darker overall image, I thought white text would work best, but to make it easier to read I added a subtle brown gradient at the top and bottom of the photo:



I thought that option worked well, but wanted to give Jake another possibility for comparison, so I tried a flush-left layout as well. I liked this one even better, because as Matthew Frederick points out (note 52), asymmetrical balance is more interesting and advanced.



For the back of the card, the text was basically set so it was a question of bringing some simple graphical flourishes to make it less boring. After looking at various glyphs, I noticed that the bullet and dagger characters looked cross and nail-like, which was appropriate for a religious album, and the contrast of scale created a pleasing background without detracting from the text.



Given the more traditional arrangement of the music on the album, Jake ultimately went with the centered arrangement for the front, but still appreciated being given the choice. It was fun to work with a friend, and do a little to support a quality musician.