This cover for Billboard magazine features U2 front man Bono mid concert in a cool action shot. Both designs use the photo for several reasons, first Bono’s head fits perfectly into the “o” of Billboard and his arms not only lead our eyes to the title of the magazine but they frame it as well. The only major difference between the two layouts is the horizontal layout crops Bono’s legs out of the picture. This is ok as all of the action, emotion and intensity of the image comes from his top half. Also the typeface of the deck head on the horizontal version is slightly smaller than its vertical counterpart but is still big enough to draw attention and generate interest.
I liked the way that this is cropped. Though you do lose the entire bottom part of the picture, you can still see the crowd in the background and the emotion on this face. this photo cropped very well for this magazine cover.
I have found the importance of the choice of cover images in this design. Clearly, Billboard magazine chooses a terrific photo. The cover photo could be used both vertically and horizontally. However, the horizontal design is always more difficult than the vertical design especially on a photo fit for the vertical version. So the designer moves the content, change the word size and cut half of the pictures. It works very well for the magazine.