How to Become a Photo Cover Graphic Designer

Build your design portfolio.

If your passion is to design the covers for major magazines, incorporating photographs, text and graphic elements, you have your work cut out for you. It’s never too soon to take your graphic design education seriously and start climbing the ladder that leads to your dream job.

Things You'll Need

• Graphic design certification or degree
• Former design experience in print media
• Portfolio

Instructions

1. Research graphic design programs and schools. Luckily, this is still one educational area whereby a talented student can take night classes or independent courses and enter in a graphic design career. However, an exhaustive education in advertising and design will strengthen your chances of landing the big jobs. (See Resources)

2. Start with an entry level graphic design position. Accepting an in-house illustrating or drafting position, gets your foot in the door of the advertising agency. Since most graphic design firms promote from within, performing well in these positions can launch your career as a cover designer. Depending upon the scope of the agency, jobs in print production and website design are also stepping stones to cover design.

3. Freelance your services. Although most photo cover designers are on staff, some smaller magazines hire contract designers and advertising agencies to provide them with covers. If you go the freelance route, be prepared to show prospective clients the best samples of your work.

4. Build an impressive portfolio showing your best work. Include designs you sold that were a part of a successful advertising campaign and others you've designed, even if they did not sell. You may also include designs where you worked as a part of a team but you should clarify your role to prospective clients. Create a PowerPoint presentation of your portfolio and send a disk to advertising agencies and individual companies.

5. Develop a signature style and approach print media houses that use designers with a similar style. When something works for you, stick with it and promote yourself as an expert in that style.

Tips & Warnings

• Branch out into the study of photography if you want to use photos in graphic design. The cover of a magazine is a major project and the photograph that appears there will be one that catches and holds the reader’s eye.

• Include some copywriting in your educational repertoire. Copywriters successfully bring the essence of the product or service to the attention of the consumer with the use of text, in such a way as to encourage purchasing the item.

• Nearly all photo cover design today is done with graphic software. Sketch by hand but learn to scan your images into your computer for the final touches.

Resources

• Read reviews of online and resident graphic design programs.