view on taking a picture that some one else took

What I have done in the past is looked at pictures and thought thats a good idea and then tried and add in my own bit to make the image even better prob would take days of thought and rough ideas

I do it all the time. I'm not stupid enough to try to re-invent the wheel.

i wouldnt exactly copy the pictures itself, but try to gain ideas from it. like one said, maybe shoot it at a different angle.

You did not copy the image, You captured it with YOUR vision of what you saw. All the cover shot did was inspire you.You have no reason to feel guilty. How many times have you taken a shot and as soon as your done some one who was watching you gets into the same position to thake the "same" shot?, There is only a slim chance they would look the same.

There is no difference between this and multiple students in a class taking the same shot.

I have also been inspired by shots I've seen and wanted to recreate/put my own spin on them. It extends beyond using the same composition of the same subject, though. I'm often inspired by the use of lighting in a composition that I'll try to recreate in a completely different environment. I'm inspired by the balance in a composition that I'll try to apply to a different subject. I'm inspired by a certain subject, or the way a photographer looks at that subject. The list could go on and on...

As long as you're not taking a picture of a photographer's picture, or trying to pass your work off as the work of someone else, I can see no negatives and a slew of positives to your effort.