Steven's Top 5

Steven Banks: I've been the Design Director at Los Angeles magazine for the last 8 years. Working at a city regional magazine really helps one hone their chops on a multitude of subjects such as Food, Fashion, Culture and more. I wanted to showcase some of these themes to show the expansive topics we cover.

Top Doctors | April 2018

We liked the emoji as a modern way of communicating the idea of Top Doctors without utilizing the classic image of a doctor in a lab coat. Plus, we knew it would really pop on newsstands. I worked with illustrator Eddie Guy through multiple facial expressions and variations on the ice bag till we had the right “I’m feeling better” emoji face.

Crime Issue | July 2013

L.A. has it all! Televised car chases, murder mysteries and the ubiquitous LAPD helicopter hovering overhead. I worked with illustrator Sean McCabe to create the look of a well read detective paperback. Sean dipped into his bag of vintage fonts to nail the true crime vibe. Jason Lee provided the helicopter and fleeing suspect. A real team effort on this cover. Suspect still at large.

Food Lovers Guide to L.A. | November 2011

We wanted some real California light on this Food Lovers cover so we shot this on my back porch on a sunny afternoon in Venice. I painted the wooden table top for photographer Cedric Angels and food stylist Liesl Maggiore to create a bountiful wreath of local LA farmers goods. Pretty sure we were blasting Fleetwood Mac on repeat.

Jump Into Downtown | July 2011

Capturing sunny Downtown LA shouldn’t be a problem but Mother Nature can have other plans. Cover shoot day: 55 degrees, drizzling with dark overcast skies. This was the first cover shoot I ever had to cancel due to inclement weather. Luckily the entire crew was available 2 days later for the warm and sunny reshoot. At the end of the shoot the models were game to jump into the still frigid water for one last shot. That last frame was all we needed.

How L.A. Works | October 2014

Our L.A. take on the Swiss Army knife. This one started out as a blurry eyed Sunday morning thumbnail sketch on the back of an envelope. CGI illustrator Comrade applied his amazingly hyper real details to make it come to life.