“Every day, we take many of the subtly artistic things around us for granted. But hidden in every magazine corner, exit sign or textbook lies a set of design ideas that influence our perceptions.”

If there’s an occupation that is 100% linked with the public’s idea of what design is all about, it’s graphic design. From the familiar golden arches of the McDonald’s brand to the typography and colors of movie posters, graphic designers create some of the most iconic and ubiquitous designs around us.

The biggest benefit for graphic designers is that they can make things attractive. A very common misconception about designing is that good usability trumps aesthetics. On the contrary, good aesthetics have been found to improve the overall user experience of the product—by making users more relaxed, creating a positive first impression, and generally just showing that you care.

Alignment creates a sharper more unified design

Alignment is one of the most basic, but most important principles of design, as it allows our eyes to see order, which is quite comforting to a reader.

Ever viewed a design and not known where to look? Left, right, centered? Having a strong point of alignment within design allows our eyes to seamlessly flow through the visual message. Aligning elements with one another so that every item has a visual connection with something else on the page, tightens a design and eliminates the haphazard, messy effect which comes from random placement of elements.

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Repetition strengthens a design by tying together otherwise separate parts, and as a result, creates associations. 

Think of repetition as consistency. By repeating elements of a design, you immediately create a familiarity or identity.
Repetition is a major factor in the unity of multiple-page documents. eg. when looking at a publication, it should be immediately obvious that p.5 and p.10 belong to the same publication either by the grid, typestyle, font size, color, spatial relationships, etc.
Repetition can also be used to create graphic elements, such as patterns, as long as it doesn’t become overwhelming; be conscious of contrast.

 

Contrast is the most effective way to create emphasis and impact with your design. 

Contrast is created when two elements are total opposites. For example: big/small size, classic/contemporary fonts, thin/thick lines, cool/warm colours, dark/light, smooth/rough textures, horizontal/vertical, etc. 

Contrast plays a crucial part in the organization of information on a page. It gives the reader a guide on where to look first; What is the most important point? What stands out the most? 

In contrast to work, it must be strong and obvious. Our eyes like contrast; don’t make differences look like a mistake. To have an impact, the differences must be obvious and extreme

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Hierarchy creates organization

Think about it—hierarchy is usually something we think about when describing ranking in a business, or organizations like politics and the Church. It’s a system in which people or things are arranged according to their importance.

In design, hierarchy creates a visual organization to a design and gives the reader an idea of where to begin and finish reading. Each element that is part of the design can be given a ranking of priority. eg. 

1. Headline

2. Image

3. Subhead

4. Website call to action

5. Body Copy

A designer can then make decisions around position, size, contrast, color, etc. to ensure that the desired hierarchy is achieved

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Balance provides stability and structure to a design, either through symmetry or tension of elements.

Balance is the weight distributed on the page by the placement of elements.

Let’s look at some good examples of balance—both symmetrical and through tension—in graphic design.

At its simplest, symmetrical balance can be created with an invisible centerline where the weight of the elements on both halves of the page is even. For example, symmetrical balance can be seen in the ying/yang symbol or in Leonardo da Vinci’s famous The Last Supper painting. 

This form of symmetrical balance generally has a very traditional and harmonious feel even though, at times, it can seem stilted and boring.

Balance through tension is used to good effect in the visual identity for Made For designed by Christopher Doyle & Co. The positioning of the strong left aligned copy at the top of the page plays against the imagery positioned at the bottom right. There is tension between the two elements and the negative space in between. The effect is has a dynamic and bold quality.

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There’s nothing “basic” about great design.
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