Utah Postcard

-Design process


Contrast: The main contrast in this design comes from the layered text on top of the background. With only one image on the design, the text really had to pop so I added a black and white gradient overlay on the backdrop and lowered the opacity. To give the text some depth, I added an inner and outer glow and a black drop shadow with the opacity lowered.


Colors: The colors are pulled from the image and used to create an orange to yellow gradient which highlights the stunning colors of Bryce Canyon.


Proximity: The decision to center the text was arrived at after a couple of variations that didn't look as good. I initially wanted to add the words "visit" at the top right, similar to the Las Vegas sign, but I couldn't find the right text to pair with the main text on Utah. After that, it made the most sense to put Utah in the middle because it's the only image on the design.


Photoshop: The main tools I used are listed below.

  • Clipping mask

  • Layer effects panel

  • Gradient tool

  • Type tool

  • Move tool


Font: Bababoom BB, regular.

Photo Credits: Nathan Smith, Bryce Canyon.

Original Design

Revised Design

Revisions: Based on the suggestions of my peers and professor, I changed a few small details that I feel made the design better. It was suggested that the opacity be lowered on the gradient overlay to make the colors pop more and not become so "muddied". Secondly, to allow the text to pop off the background more I switched the outer glow from white to gray and changed the blending mode from screen to multiply to allow the glow to hang over all of the edges a bit more. This still looked too dark in my opinion, so I increased the opacity on the inner glow and increased the size and spread just a bit. Overall, I think these changes have added more depth to the image and the text appears to have more dimension than the original.