What makes a banner worthy... A few suggestions

Kalium · Post by **Kalium** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 2:02 am

dokidoki wrote:

You know, I've seen someone with that attitude before...

shiraijunichi · Post by **shiraijunichi** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 2:14 am

Nan da?!

Anyway... I thought that banner that gave a formula for itself (and is used by countless others) was pretty amusing. I would've voted for it- it looks well done.

My banner ALMOST made it through, but almost isn't good enough. 86 votes... only 5 votes off...

I think the idea of the banner was pretty good, and it was soooo close, I really don't like the idea of just scrapping it. Plus the source image I used was one that's very special to me, so it would mean a lot to me if I could get it accepted. So I decided to improve on it, and send it in again. Before I actually upload it, I'd like to ask others opinions on it, so I have the opportunity to improve it more, if I can.
So, here's the old image-

And here's the new image-

I changed the font to something more readable, increased it's size, and gave it a black border. People should have no trouble reading it right away now. I used stronger contrasting colors so things were more defined. Made the logo a little smaller so it wasn't scrunched. Edited out some pink lines in the image on the left. Gave a nice white and pink cloudy background on the right. And finally, ommitted the heart- mostly because there wasn't enough room for it. I thought about using hearts to dot the eyes, but...

So what do you thinkg? Is it an improvement? Any other suggestions? Thanks-

Sepuki · Post by **Sepuki** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 1:32 pm

shiraijunichi wrote:

Red + random emboss + stroke = much less pretty than the original.

The original had a sense of continuity to it. The red and "boldness" of the text in the new one just seems over the top.

(Regardless,

the concept mightily.)

-Li- · Post by **-Li-** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 2:53 pm

i think that they should be more final fantasy banners, i'm thinking of making one myself but i dunno...

shiraijunichi · Post by **shiraijunichi** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 3:10 pm

Sepuki wrote:Red + random emboss + stroke = much less pretty than the original.

But before I had complaints that the text was unreadable- that it blended too much with the white background... That's why I made the text bigger, outlined it in black, and made it a simpler font.

I see what you mean about the text being red... it does detract from the continuity. I intended for the text to be the same color as the "AMV" in the logo- but I guess that didn't work. The emboss also wasn't random- it's the same as that used for the logo... but you think that should go too?

And I don't know what you mean by "stroke"- you mean the pink and white background maybe? Perhaps you think it shouldn't be used?

Thanks for your comments. I'll start working on version 3 soon ^_^;;; Please, keep the opinions coming-

-Li- · Post by **-Li-** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 3:13 pm

cool yea they're nice, very pink.

)v(ajin Koji · Post by **)v(ajin Koji** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 5:11 pm

At least they're oringinal in their "campness".

shiraijunichi · Post by **shiraijunichi** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 5:20 pm

-Li- wrote:cool yea they're nice, very pink

You think they're too pink? Should I tone it down a bit?

)v(ajin Koji wrote:At least they're oringinal in their "campness".

Campness? What are you talking about

Sepuki · Post by **Sepuki** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 7:36 pm

My opinion is that a banner shouldn't be designed "to win." When you start designing to get Worthied, you start losing the integrity of the piece. Focus on making a banner that you like, something you can be proud of.

shiraijunichi · Post by **shiraijunichi** » Sun Apr 17, 2005 7:42 pm

Ok- I finished my next edit. To me, it seems flawless- I don't think it can really get much better.

Went back to original font, because I thought it better reflected the mood of the banner. Enlarged the text, outlined it in black, and put the words together nicely. My only problem may be that "fans" may be a little hard to read. Anyway, I got rid off all the special styles- they were just cluttering up the pic, destroying it's simplicity. And I stuck with only two different shades of pink, to give it a solid continuity that's pleasing to the eye. Brought back the heart, and gave it a friend ^_^. I think it really adds to the mood. Being the same colors used in the rest of the image makes sure it doesn't detract from the mood at all- and it takes up the blank space that was there, making full use of the space I'm given. Finally, I erased the pink marks in my source image I used at the left. They make a good effect in the original image, but when it's secluded to that side of the image only, it just looks a little messy.

All in all, I feel perfectly confident with this one. But, an artist can have problems seeing flaws in his own work. So I still welcome comments and suggestions