Alright it is now time for the final instalment of this 3 post series on Rolling Stone Magazine Covers.

Just as a quick recap part 1 was a collection of the covers that best represented the change of the Rolling Stone brand on the covers of the magazine. The images also demonstrated the evolution of their powerful brand over the past 40 years.

Part 2 “Iconic” was all about the iconic covers that have come out of Rolling Stone. It showcased the edginess of the magazine and how they push limits with who they choose to be on the covers, as well as how the person is portrayed.

Now for Part 3, “Epic Design”.

In the first 2 parts of this series I talked about the power of the Rolling Stone brand, and the iconic nature of some of their covers, as they will be remembered for many years. With all this brand power and substance comes amazing leading edge design and top notch photography. Some of these covers were even shot by Annie Leibovitz. [who was one of their chief photographers for about 10 years]

Going through these covers from the past 40 years one of the most interesting design notes was the typography. They were using techniques in the 70’s that are still very much used today.  Another interesting thing was the covers from the 80’s look very much like some of the web design being created today. So hopefully everyone can pull some inspiration from these amazingly designed covers from the past and present.

Well, that’s a wrap on Rolling Stone Magazine Covers and hey, if you like this kind of thing, then DIGG it and Comment so we know to do more!

Andrew.

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I hope everyone enjoyed Part 1 of this 3 post series about Rolling Stone Magazine covers.

Moving on…

Now as I mentioned in the first part of this series, Rolling Stone magazine started in the 1970’s as a politically charged publication. When dealing with a topic such as politics, content can tend to be a little edgy and can push some limits. The magazine’s cover design was no different.

This image set explores some of the more controversial covers over the years. It was this sense of edge and riskiness that has led some of these covers to become iconic. You will also notice that the covers became much more sexually provocative as time went on.

So enjoy part 2 of the Rolling Stone Magazine series, and coming tomorrow is the final post in the series, Best Cover Designs.

Andrew.

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So mentioned in yesterday’s post I have put together a 3 post series of Rolling Stone Magazine Covers.

Here lies the first post, which displays the vast evolution of the brand, and how it has been used and displayed.

Now every “brand guru” preaches that it is vital to keep consistent with your brand image and design. This is to ensure maximum impact and ’stickiness’ to remain in the desired target audience’s mind. Rolling Stone has done things a little differently, almost right from the start. As you look through this image set it is evident that the title font has changed a few times since the 1970’s. This isn’t totally uncommon with a brand, as it is sometimes done to coincide with a directional change. ( in this case from a political content based magazine into a pop culture resource)

 One fascinating change that occurs is that they move the logo around the top of the cover page. Sometimes it is aligned right to the top, other times it is underneath a headline. The most interesting change that takes place throughout these magazine covers is that Rolling Stone often (especially in the newer editions) covers up part of their logo, at times almost ALL of their brand. This demonstrates the astounding strength of the brand. They are able to reveal a small piece of their logo, yet the consumer still knows exactly what magazine it is.

So browse these covers and notice the change in the Rolling Stone title brand image. They are a great example of something I like to call ‘Brand Consistency Evolution’.

**Coming up next in Part 2 of this 3 post series is the power of the Rolling Stone Magazine Cover, and how they push limits and create iconic magazine covers.**

Andrew.

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Rolling Stone Magazine has been in production for over 40 years. The magazine started as an outlet for controversial political coverage in the 1970’s but has transformed into a highly recognizable brand, full of pop culture icons, while still incorporating in-depth political content.

I have put together a 3-part series of posts showcasing 3 different categories of Rolling Stone Magazine Covers from the past 40 years. The first category will showcase the “Rolling Stone” brand that appears on the cover of every magazine. Nearly every edition of the magazine displayed the brand differently. The second showcase will show the covers that have became iconic and also how much Rolling Stone Magazine pushed the boundaries and limits in the media. The third post in the series will show off the best design covers from the past to present through amazing photography, design techniques and typography.

So check back tomorrow when we kick off this 3 day cover shoot. You will not be disappointed.
Andrew.

As the economy spirals out of control, more and more designers are emerging in the industry. We will find that there will be more freelance designers, reasons why; easy to start-up, can work from home (looks tempting for people that get laid off, or their hours cut back), can make extra money on the side, and its a fulfilling career choice.

After posting the Industry leading web studios last week… I turned the other direction to look through designer portfolios. These portfolios are not just good they are great… a good portfolio isn’t just a few good projects, it’s a relation between the portfolio itself, and its content or projects.. and in most cases quality before quantity.

So if you are looking to redesign your portfolio or give it the extra something it needs…. I encourage you to look through these great portfolio pieces.

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