Role
Timeline
Project Summary
For this project, I designed a complete LP cover, front, back, and spine, for an original album concept called Headspace, shooting and directing all original photography rather than relying on stock imagery. The goal was to translate an abstract, introspective mood into a cohesive physical product: something that could sit on a shelf next to real vinyl and hold its own.
Phase 01
Concept & Direction
I wanted the cover to feel private and a little uneasy, someone turned away from the viewer, partially obscured, caught mid-thought rather than posing. Album art from artists like Juice WRLD and Powfu informed the tone I was chasing: minimal color, heavy reliance on silhouette and body language, and typography that stays out of the way of the image. I leaned on cool blues and soft, overcast lighting to reinforce the "headspace" idea, a mind that's foggy, closed-off, somewhere else.
Process
I served as photographer, art director, and designer for the shoot. Working with natural window light, I directed a series of portraits built entirely around posture and concealment — hood up, face turned, hands covering — to communicate withdrawal without needing a visible expression. I shot dozens of variations to find the exact angle and light balance that read as contemplative rather than staged, then brought the strongest frames into the final layout, building out track listing typography, spine text, and parental advisory placement to match real commercial LP conventions.
Reflection
This project pushed me past designing around photography and into directing it. Every earlier project in this portfolio uses someone else's imagery as a starting point — here, the photography itself was the design decision. I learned how much a subject's posture alone can carry emotional weight, and how restraint (turning away from the camera, hiding the face) can be a stronger storytelling choice than showing more.
Next Steps
NBHD was one of the most challenging and rewarding projects of my academic career. The research process was thorough and grounding, with insights gathered from several participants, business owners, and designers that validated the platform's core purpose. But the honest truth is that the scope of this project grew beyond what one person could fully execute in a single semester for the UI/UX development, and that tension shaped every phase of the work. What surprised me most was how impactful the concept became. What started as a throwaway idea in my notebook turned into something I genuinely believe has real potential with more development time. I have already outlined the next steps I would take if I were to revisit and continue this project.
