A Clockwork Orange - Final Image

Uncropped Version

Cropped Version

I've tried to steer clear completely of cliché imagery, I've not included the eyelashes or the bowler hat that is normally used. Though the colour scheme could be seen as cliche since I have used orange but it looks good and suits the tone of the image. I think using an off white instead of bright white gives it a dull vintage feel and also doesn't overpower the background with contrast. The black linework against this background is striking and gives the design the modern feeling that the brief asked for. Though I have tried to keep a bit of an old-timey edge by using a typewriter style font for the blurb and quotes. Which also works well with the hand-drawn text I have done for the title and author name. I particularly like how the smoke trails off onto the back and I've managed to fit "A Clockwork Orange" into the shape it makes on the spine. I enjoy the fact that there's still a handcrafted quality to the image despite the digital arranging it went through. 

The main thing I think that could be improved is the position of the text. I think the quote on the front cover could definitely have been better placed, especially as when the image is cropped it is SO CLOSE to the edge. I like the way the text looks but I think I could have experimented more with the text, the reason I didn't is because I started to run out of time on this brief and just wanted to get it finished. A problem I had while creating any design for this was working to the crop marks as I just kept forgetting about them - so I made a lot of stuff too big and had to change it later on, the best way I found of combating this was to block out the areas that would be cropped. A learning experience for if I do book covers again, which I would like to. 

I like my design a lot more now I see if on a mockup, I've been staring at is as just am image for too long but now I can see it as a product I appreciate it a lot more. Though it does bring to light some spacing issues, seeing it in this mockup makes me realise I should have made the writing smaller and brought the imagery down more so it's not nearly scraping the edge of the book. I will definitely consider the importance of mockup's in the future and try to do one as I go so I can see the design in practice before submitting - as I did this after I submitted and it's made me see things I should have changed. 

I really enjoyed doing this brief, it was fun exciting and new and I would definitely like to do more book covers in the future, though I think I need to work on the speed that I complete brief's like this - as it was a smaller brief I chose to do and I should have taken less time on it!