Are Pics still too cluttered?

Question

(If you've already seen this question and these pics, I apologize. I'm trying to get a wider variety of responses)

Are these pics still too cluttered?

**If so (or if anything seems off or wrong to you) what should I move/delete/add/change color or size of to make it look best?**

Pic A:

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x101/baimbi984/Untitled-2-1-2.jpg

Pic B:

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x101/baimbi984/Untitled-2-1.jpg

Pic C:

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x101/baimbi984/Untitled-q.jpg

Pic D:

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x101/baimbi984/Untitled-2-3.jpg.

Also,

For Pic A and B, Is the top left corner to empty? If so, then what can I put there? I was thinking stars, but they'd be so disconnected from the rest of the images

Which is better out of A and B?

Which is better out of C and D?

Best of all?

One last thing:

Does the gun in Pic A make it seem like I am going to shoot myself, or that I'm suicidal or anything remotely negative in that manner?

Thank you!

Answer 1

Hmmm. D isn't showing. i think you need to remove the extra '.' at the end of it.

First things first, I'm not digging C and D just because the cloud over the model's (your?) face isn't flattering.

As for the rest, well, short answer: Yes.

Long Answer: I'm not sure what sort of an aesthetic you're going for here. Cluttering up a design can be justified if you want to add tension to your photograph. Or if you wanted to make a cluttered frame around your face so that the eyes have no choice but to seek solace in the middle where the face is.

There aren't any hard and fast rules in design. Good design communicates well (in addition to looking cool). Bad design is, well, the opposite, I guess. :)

I guess to help your situation here... ask yourself, what's this photo for? is it going to be a wallpaper, or an avatar? what's more important - your mug, or the graphic elements that surround it? what size are you going to show it at, etc. etc?

once you have that figured out, i guess focus on making that important element stand out. and have the other graphic elements support it.

(so in this case, I'm supposing that you want to decorate your mug with an interesting frame of graphic elements. if i were you, i'd focus on placing just enough elements around your face so that it's interesting, balanced - and nothing more.)

hope this helps!

and good luck.

Answer 2

c and d are kind of cool i like the clouds but it doesn't go together very well.

a and b would look better if you centered your face and put that design in all the corners... and take the x away..

you look lost or dreamy not suicidal...

Answer 3

i like a and i like c

Answer 4

They all look tacky and horrible..the picture by itself would look nice tho.