New Business Card Critique...

[FleurdeLisArts]

Greetings to all!

So I am designing my new business card and I wanted to get some feedback from y'all...on design etc.

I also wanted to know what everyone's experience is with card printing...who do you use? do you use a bleed or just keep everything from the edges with the white border?

A couple of notes on the jpg of this....it is vertically orientated, left side is front/right is back...and the black is a true black, not the lighter grey color...don't know why when I went from illustrator to psd it went dark grey?? random...so...anyway, the card matches the tux in the upper photo, no difference in those blacks in the real product!

Thanks in advance...
Bonnie

[alwoodruff]

Hi Bonnie! I've used whcc for printing in the past and love them. I recently became acquainted with blossom publishing (blossom-publishing.com I believe). I ordered a sample packet (at no cost) to see their quality & was pleased. They recently implemented a policy that with any order you place, you get 250 two sided/full color business cards. Pretty awesome, huh?! You might check it out.

On design. Thanks for explaining the jpeg. That made so much more sense. I like the dress picture, but think for the bottom right image, you might want to choose a more stunning/dramatic image like the other two. I like the top picture- it has an old timey feel to it. But maybe it's my computer, but the bride seems out of focus. Is the focus on the groom? If so, since the bride is the main focus, you might consider another image for that spot. hopefully it's just my computer b/c it's a dramatic shot.

Nice font;) What's the other font?

[J Eddington]

Nice design.

[FleurdeLisArts]

Thanks!

The other font is a handwriting font...I think its "Handwriting - Dakota"...I found it the same place that Carole found the download for the King and Queen font. I used it together to make it more readable and also to do the contrast of both fancy/froo froo and casual. I loved how it turned out...it might be a little unprofessional looking for some but I wanted that Elegant/Grungy contrast going on...

the top photo is slightly oof, purposefully...it was an artistic representation of that shot. and basically I just did a soft focus overall, made it more dramatic and it was what that bride was asking for. She was fun...she just said "get crazy, get artistic...do whatever you want to do and I'll be happy!" ...its like, the PERFECT bride!!! lol...its one of my favorite shots...even being oof. Again, its something not everyone would be comfortable with but I like that it has that super dramatic feel, old timy (like you said) and at the same time is very casual and in the moment. I think it LOOKS like a memory...at least...my memories are always slightly fuzzy ;-)

I had lots of problems choosing the bottom right shot (kissing on the beach) and I don't really know why. I tried putting several other vertical shots in there but none of them looked great overall. Also tried putting a different angle on both the lower photo's to incorporate a more dramatic horizontal image but it made them both too small, I thought. if you have any thoughts on this please let me know.

Great info about whcc...that is an awesome offer and I might just grab a few prints, or a sign-in album example... in order to take full advantage of it!

[alwoodruff]

Originally Posted by FleurdeLisArts

Thanks!

Great info about whcc...that is an awesome offer and I might just grab a few prints, or a sign-in album example... in order to take full advantage of it!

Just to clarify.. the awesome offer is with blossom publishing (as opposed to whcc).

I've been looking for a handwriting font just to have for random projects. I'll def check out the one you used!

alwoodruff added 1 Minutes and 29 Seconds later...Double Post Merged Below

Oh. One thought. On the kissing on beach shot. Maybe if you really jazz it up with crazy PS work, it'll put that pizzazz in it that makes it pop. You might check out totally rad actions for some cool stuff. I think the beach, water & sky could look really cool.

[toverman]

Please note that I'm not intending to sound harsh here, just a little "bad cop" opinions in the hopes that it will help.

I'm trying to envision the card as black ... I guess if you like how the tux and the groom's hair in the first shot would fade into the background, that's OK. The purposeful softness of the first image may not translate well to a card ... I would think the average person looking for a photog equates blurry with low quality (but that's just a guess). I'm not real sold on the gown shot, either ... is it in black and white? You're using color images but there's no color that really pops out. If you have one stunning shot, I think that would be better than three that are good but not "great." Make it big and strut your stuff. Overlay your business name/logo as a watermark.

On the back side, I'd recommend grouping your text together, and adding an e-mail address. That way you're adding a method of contacting you without them having to visit your Web site first. Maybe even add a graphic element to add interest.

[PhotoByLeal]

Not a bad start, but I would look for different images. Unless you really have to use those images. Why do you ask, IMO I have not been a fan of pictures taken up people's noses and the lady looks like she has a bump on her neck. I guess from the angle she is at and the background has nothing to POP. The dress needs something around it, like adding a vignett around the dress. The beach picture, needs some color some kind of POP.

I am not a big fan of pictures on BC, but you have to keep in mind...... what would you say if your were the client and some photographer handed you this BC? IMO just looking at different angles.....


angel m. leal jr.

[mrdepew]

I like the Fonts you have chosen, The picture of the wedding dress on a plastic hanger is not your best foot forward. I always carry a wooden or padded hanger to add class.

[FleurdeLisArts]

Excellent input from all!! I'm going to do some more work on it and post an update in the morning! Thank you very much...

and no I don't take it too harshly at all, I want as much help as I can get and I can only see from my perspective as I am all too aware so any other perspectives are greatly appreciated!

[paul48503]

To much on card. Are you planning to do a standard 2" x 3 1/2" card? if so card doesn't look to scale. Images would be really small and show very little detail. I would recommend using just 1 image.

[FleurdeLisArts]

Originally Posted by paul48503

To much on card. Are you planning to do a standard 2" x 3 1/2" card? if so card doesn't look to scale. Images would be really small and show very little detail. I would recommend using just 1 image.

The card pictured is the front and back view of a 2x3.5 card side by side vertically oriented. So that might be why you are not seeing it to scale, it is in actuality...4x7...pictured.

I am trying a couple of things with 1 image and a few with none...I'll post again soon. Working on a couple other things this weekend!
Thanks for the feedback!!!