I think the first one is quite nice.
Not sure about its "lodown" though - maybe try something distressed.

hhp

> www.lodown.com/shop/index.php?page=front_shop&action=view_product&pid=100

i know

mines suck compared to the actual one!

I don't know.
The photo in the original seems to be just an excuse to grab attention through skin. It has nothing to do with boredom, no matter how hard that waif is trying. As for the blackletter title, it could be good, but it depends on the what the magazine is about. If it's just an attempt at being hip then that's merely a cheap shot in the same way as the photo is. Man, this is why I love graphic designers - their navels are the core of the world...

hhp

Ive seen previous issues of 'Lodown' and they were quite nicely designed.. Back then they were all about life, surfskatesnow, style, music and what I would like to call 'alternate arts'.. A tad too trendy sometimes, maybe, but nice nonetheless..

'Die Gestalten' released two books, 'Lodown' + 'Schizophrenic', dedicated to the design of 'Lodown'.:
> www.die-gestalten.de/display.php?template=verlag.php&usetmpl=71&cat=1&sub=3&item=132
> www.die-gestalten.de/display.php?template=verlag.php&usetmpl=71&cat=1&sub=3&item=131

The first one is indeed the best, in my opinion. And the reason for that is the way the photograph gets the message across. It is an interesting image which makes you wonder - always a good thing.

Since this image works well, I think you shouldn't let typography get in the way too much. As it is, all kinds of fonts and typographic treatments compete for attention, and the end result lacks uniformity because of this.

So some suggestions:
- Try using one font for all the lettering; this may feel slightly boring, but isn't that exactly what this cover is about?
- Try moving 'not with' lines to the bottom, to maximize the effect of the photograph
- Treat the title of the magazine more like a logo instead of two fonts next to each other.

Good luck!

thanks Bart.v.d.G

do you think Compacta Italic would work well or shall i stick to a normal font like Ariel?

im also thinking of removing the background and megering an illustration on to cover... any tips on how i should go about doing that? i need to have a mixture of photography and illustration on the cover you see

Well.. You are not legally owning your 'copy' of 'Compacta', as it seems, so I wouldnt use it..
( You even publicly declared that.. )

So, yea, stick to your 'normal' fonts, or why not create a custom logo / masthead, for your cover.?

i cant, it has to be Lodown 38 and the Bored issue... anyway, heres some other ideas i just worked up...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/abdulrehman/Untitled-51-3-2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v260/abdulrehman/Untitled-51-3-1.jpg