Lee is the 26-year-old designer behind SDOTHD. Since 2024, he has been creating thumbnails for YouTube creators, helping them attract more viewers and improve click-through rates. Alongside strong design skills, he focuses on understanding what catches attention and encourages people to click.
Featured design
Overview
I’ve teamed up with Jay Fourty for a few thumbnails now, so we’ve officially developed a rhythm. Thanks to that shared experience, the brainstorming session for this project was a breeze. We bounced a few ideas back and forth and quickly landed on this concept below.
Concept direction
My game plan for this thumbnail was basically to just start creating and see what happened. I ended up making a handful of different versions to see what my client liked best. I’m pretty picky with my work, so even though I was experimenting, I made sure every single option I sent him was a banger.
This concept was heavily inspired by Nick DiGiovanni’s “How To Cook The Perfect Steak” thumbnail. We loved how he showcased the meat, and since that video pulled in massive numbers, we knew the layout had serious potential. We used it as a baseline, put our own spin on it, and it absolutely crushed.
Fun fact: I actually recycled this thumbnail together using some old assets. I grabbed a kitchen background from a past project I did for Andrew Fox and used AI to warp the camera angle.
Then I found an octopus image on Google, brought it into Photoshop, and shifted the colors to a striking red and purple. It really makes it the focal point of the image and hooks the viewer's attention.
We used the rule of thirds for this layout to keep the composition clean. Just like the Nick DiGiovanni reference, we wanted the octopus to be the main focus. I made that happen by keeping the background elements dark and desaturated, allowing that bright red-purple on the octopus to completely pop and command the screen.
Rule of thirds compostion
Editing
Editing this thumbnail was honestly the easy part. The real work was in crafting the concept and making sure the image stayed clean without the kitchen background distracting from the main subject. That was the biggest priority from the start, because it’s really easy to overcrowd a composition like this and lose the focus. To avoid that, I lowered the saturation in the background so the main elements would stand out more.
Breakdown:
Started with a strong, high-quality photo from the client
Reused a kitchen asset from an older thumbnail
Adjusted the perspective of that asset to fit the new layout
Used AI to expand the octopus image because the original stock photo didn’t match the vision
Brought everything into Photoshop to refine the colors and push the final look
Added smaller details, like ingredients, to make it feel more authentic - almost like a real screenshot from the video
Overall, the goal was to make the concept feel polished, intentional, and believable without letting the background compete for attention.
Unlayered
Software & Tools
Photoshop & AI for editing
Discord for communication
Freepik & Google for gathering assets
What's the best part of making thumbnails?
Honestly, the best part of making thumbnails is getting to help a creator absolutely crush it and pull in a ton of views. Plus, every project is completely different, and I’d get bored out of my mind if I was doing the exact same thing every day.
Best thumbnail you've ever made?
My top thumbnail is definitely the one I did for Andrew Fox's "I Ate Only "0 Calorie" Foods For 50 Hours" video. It was a massive headache to design and I really had to fight for the concept, but that’s exactly why it’s my favorite. The struggle paid off because the final asset is just pure clickbait in the best way possible.
Best thumbnail you've ever seen?
If you want to see the best thumbnails on YouTube right now, just look at Hangtime. What I respect most about them is that they build everything from the ground up instead of just copying trends. Their creativity is on another level, and they’re consistently setting the standard for what a great thumbnail should be.
If you found this edition of Unlayered helpful, please consider sharing it with someone who might benefit from this workflow too! 💙