New Business Cards, Website Matching and Overall Design

Hey there,

first - I don't think that the business card and the website have to match 100%. In fact as long as the logo and the style of the card / website are similar you will be fine.

Love the photography on the site, good work.

Regarding the card itself - I really like the stripped one. Patterns in general are really appealing to me on business cards.

Sometimes it's helpful to have the email address on your card since you want to give people a direct way of contacting you, not just viewing the site.

other than that I can't really pick on much else - it's pretty crisp, nice typography, etc.

I too am a fan of spot varnish. It is a cool feature, but adds expense to your business cards for the sake of cool factor. Are your business cards such a big part of your outreach plan, or just a vanity? Either way, from a design standpoint, I like the second version best. It's hard to really get a true sense of the look and feel from the screen, and I looked at this on two different monitors to see if there were any subtle differences. If you're going to go for it, why not use the diagonal lines shown in version 4, (and just the lines, no text) in white, on the back side of the card?

i would prefer number 4 with the positioning of number 3. also, i believe the spacing between both the lines could increase a bit..

Black is really the most beautiful color. I would definitely go for the first with the positioning of the 3rd.

I think that the fourth concept is more a webdesign than a businesscard.

Hi Nick,

As far as the design of your card goes, it is nice. You can use nice spot varnish effects with the spot varnish just used alone on white maybe with the spot varnish making up the diagonal stripe alternate stripes. Then use a lovely subtle shade of warm grey for your type.

Would like to see the website address line made a little larger so the beginning of www aligns with the beginning of the 'l' of 'lovell' - just think it would help neaten and tighten it up a bit - also your kerning needs sorting out on your name. It's tighter on the 'll' than on the 'ov'

Have read the comments and things on other reviews and your thoughts on photographs on your card etc...

I worked as a designer and then an Art Director in glossy women's fashion magazines so have seen my fair share of photographers' cards.

Generally a small format business card is type only. A few photographers I've seen use photographs on small scale cards but mostly photographers cards that they send in or hand to me are large postcard format with a large image on one side and a few smaller ones on the other with their name and contact details on. Normally the photograph is some gorgeous thing - these postcards sometimes are spot varnished but mostly not. Generally I use photographers cards as visual prompt of their work and would keep a file of them. Type alone is useless for this as I saw lots of photographers every week and just wouldn't be able to remember the work from the name alone unless I knew of their work already.

Using a full bleed image on the back of this card would be a little strange and just wouldn't work at all for me as it's so out of keeping with the front style wise. Maybe three squares on the back with crops of some of your images as a visual prompt to your work.

Again though for me you have to go with white if you want to tie in with your website and a nice heavyweight white card with a spot varnish and tasteful type beautifully set is hard to beat. I think people get carried away with the black because it works so well visually on screen - in print it is a different story. You'd have to go registration black so four colour or a special and getting the white type so it is nice and sharp out of it when it is small and v fine is a hard thing to pull off plus it's out of keeping with your site.

Hope this helps - any questions, just fire away :)

I love black in design, it can be elegant, formal, or even sinister. By far my favorite color to work with....but.

I'm of the school that your branding should always remain consistent, always without exception. It's the whole point of branding! This includes color choice across all your media, web, print, video, any advertising.

Consider why you chose white as the main color for your website, why that particular shade of gray for your logo. For these same reasons you should be using them in your cards.

Yes the black is very slick with a gloss overlay, but it works on white as well, and it can give your card a kind of subtle design detail that can still be appreciated without being too obvious. The use of white space on your website will work just as effectively in your card.

Arrange your logo exactly as it is on the website, use the rule of thirds and place it to the left of center, and move the info (web address, number and email) to the back of the card, bottom third. Then you can also place your best shot on the back to showcase your unique approach to photography. (I'd even consider going with a black and white photo too).

I hope this helps!

i like the third sample.. its nice and professional ..

ya please don't play with black or grey if your website does not consist of these colors..
try to design something related to your business as well as a touch of your website.. it will look really nice :)

I love simple, understated design. So well done there.

Agree with some spacing issues mentioned: too much kerning around the 'v'. Need more space between logo and contact info.

I also think the contact info should be bigger. It's a primary purpose of the biz card and seems like it could be hard to read.

I'd like to see the placement be similar to #3, but maybe at 2/3 instead of all the way to bottom. In which case the 3 photos on the back would be best suited in the same bottom-aligned placement.

Have you considered doing a reverse color scheme to your site? Gray background, white type. You'd get more interest than with standard white card, but still keep to web site design/colors.

Good luck!

I agree with everything that Aurimas said, including concept #4 being the frontrunner.

But I propose a small adjustment (see attached mockup): switch the content block out with the one used in #2. The content blocks in #2 and #4 both have black backgrounds, but the text in #2 is lighter. The diagonal stripes in #4 have a slight camouflaging effect on the text, making it tougher on the eye. Using a lighter text color will fix that, and #2 has the perfect shade of gray (not too dark, not too light.) Anyway, that's my suggestion for a "#6."

I don't think there'd be a significant brand disconnect between any of these business cards and your website. It sounds like you may be considering a site revamp (good idea - the current site has issues and isn't doing you justice), which would be a good opportunity to incorporate elements from the business card - assuming that's where you see your brand evolving. Personally, I think that's a good direction for you.

And by the way... As the lone UF grad in a family of Bama, LSU and Auburn alumni - I can totally sympathize with your football story. ;-)

-Tom