Tested on a live channel
Real upload history, real CTR swings — not just a design-school portfolio.
Thumbnail Designer — YouTube CTR Specialist
I don't just design clicks I've grown channels myself.
I'm Gedalias Andrade. I run and edit my own documentary channel, so I don't design thumbnails from theory — I've watched CTR move up and down on my own uploads. That's the lens every thumbnail below was made through.
20+ styles across 6 niches · Own channel in active growth · Open to new, challenging concepts
Most designers pick a style. I test what works.
A lot of thumbnail work I see online is one look, repeated on every video — the designer found a style once and never left it. That's comfortable, but it's not how CTR actually behaves: what pulls a click on a true crime channel falls flat on a business biography, and what works for gaming would look out of place on a history documentary.
I approach it the opposite way. I've run a documentary channel myself, so I've had to notice — in my own analytics, not a course — which composition, contrast and text treatment actually stopped the scroll. The portfolio below isn't 20 versions of one template; it's 6 different niches, because that's how many angles a real CTR problem can have.
Tools Photoshop · Midjourney · After Effects · Premiere Pro
Comfortable switching niches
History one day, gaming the next — same eye for what earns a click.
Built for a new concept
Give me an unusual angle or a style you've never tried — that's the fun part.
Selected thumbnails
Hover any thumbnail to bring it into the spotlight.
How I approach a new thumbnail
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01
Understand the audience
Who scrolls past this, and what actually makes them stop — not just what looks nice.
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02
Concept and hook
One clear idea per thumbnail. If it needs a caption to explain it, it's not working yet.
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03
Design pass
Composition, contrast, expression and type — built to read in a second at thumbnail size.
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04
Iterate on CTR
If it's not performing, I treat that as data, not a failure — and design the next version around it.
Fast turnaround · Direct communication · Open to A/B variants
FAQ
True crime, history and biography, business, gaming and geopolitics — all in this portfolio. If yours isn't listed, I'll treat it as a new concept to build, not a reason to say no.
Either works. A short brief with the hook and the target emotion is enough — I don't need the full script to design something that reads clearly at a glance.
Open to any of the three, depending on how it fits with the channel work I already run. That's a conversation, not a fixed rule on either side.
Photoshop for final composition, Midjourney for base imagery when needed, and I edit video too (Premiere Pro, After Effects) — useful if a role ever needs both.
Yes — fast feedback loops are part of how I already work on my own channel's upload schedule.
The portfolio shows the range. Let's see if it fits.
No long form, no lengthy intro required. If a role needs someone who's actually watched a channel grow — not just studied one — send me a message.
Prefer email? gedaliasand@gmail.com · @gedalias.andrade