| |
| |
|
Web Design Information |
|
|
|
Basic Graphic Design
Wether you design your business brochures, flyers, web page, or ads there are some things that you need to know. There are some basic graphic design principles that those of us trained in the commercial art/graphic design field don't always share. Here's a short list of elements of graphic design that you can use today. Color This is the first and most important. Color is everything. It's why we buy HDTV sets to get better color. You want to consider your product first. Is there a color that fits the item? Are you selling beach items, chose a sand color. Are you selling electronics, chose a metallic color. Next make sure the color is eye-catching but possible to look at. If you can't stare at the color for at least the minimum amount of time that you'd want your customer's attention, then don't use it. Line And I don't mean "a line" I mean the line of the elements in your project. Stand back and squint at your creation. Notice the line of the text and the images. Where are the lines moving? They should all direct your customer's attention from the top of your page to the bottom in a seamless movement. If you notice an out of place line the directs your eyes back to the top of the page or stops it all together then you need to rearrange a few items. Form Related to line. Squint again and notice the text as a block, or rectangular form, instead of individual lines. Notice the images or art as shapes. And notice the entire piece as a form. All of the forms should flow from one to another. Each form should direct your eye to the next form on the page from top to bottom, again in a seamless flowing line. Movement I've already touched on this but this is very important. You want your customer to start at the top left corner and end in the bottom right corner. The traditional form of movement is a "Z" meaning the eye should start in the top left, go to the top right, make a diagonal to the bottom left, and end up in the bottom right. This form is ideal for advertizing and web pages with a lot of graphics or images. The exception would be a page with all text, where you would want the reader's eye to move left to right on each line. Space (Negative space) We all pay attention to the amount of space that we use on our projects. What about the space that you don't use? Do you notice that? Well it's just as important. Stand back and squint again. Notice the percentage of items filling up your project, what is the percentage of negative, unused space? While you want to make the most of your space available, you don't want all of it used up either. Using too much makes an ad look busy too little it looks empty. An appropriate percentage can be anywhere from 60% to 80% used space and 40% to 20% negative or unused space. Keep your percentages in that range and you'll have a nicely balanced ad, web page, or project. Texture This is becoming important again with web design. All of the really cool and interesting textures that you can use for anything from backgrounds to text is amazing. Remember one thing that a texture carries almost as much weight to the eye as a photo. Just as you would not place a lot of photos on your page don't use too many textures. Also watch your placement of these they can pull the eye away from where you want it to move. Remember one thing, when it doubt simplify. About The Author Copyright 2004 Kelly Paal Kelly Paal is a Freelance Nature and Landscape Photographer, exhibiting nationally and internationally. Recently she started her own business Kelly Paal Photography (www.kellypaalphotography.com). She has an educational background in photography, business, and commercial art. She enjoys applying graphic design and photography principles to her web design.
MORE RESOURCES:
Web-Design - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Recipe For A Good Looking Web Site We've all surfed the web and seen some awful web sites. Sites that never completely loaded. Basic Graphic Design Wether you design your business brochures, flyers, web page, or ads there are some things that you need to know. There are some basic graphic design principles that those of us trained in the commercial art/graphic design field don't always share. The Next Marketing Tool: Deisgn Design sells. It's something that all of us know, but few of us consciously acknowledge. 5 Ways To Improve Your Website Immediately If you are reading this, I assume you either have your own website or planning to get one. Either way, these 5 tips can help you create a better business website immediately. Build It And Build It Cheap! There are several very good reasons why you should consider building your own web site versus having someone do it for you. It's more cost efficient, you can make it much larger in content, you are more involved in how you want the pages to look, and I have actually enjoyed learning the dos and don'ts of website profiling. Choosing A Color Scheme When you begin the design of your Web site, one of the first things you need to do is decide on a color scheme. Although choosing colors seems like a relatively easy proposition, it's not easy at all. Are Web Templates Worth It? First off, I am a designer. Now you're thinking, here's this guy trying to convince me to hire a designer costing a few hundred to a few thousand dollars instead of buying a pre-made web template for about $60. Increase Your Credibility With Web Site Awards Web Site Awards are given from other sites to reward your site for a specific reason. They will usually give you an award graphic or text link to include on your site if you win. Ten Steps to a Winning Home Page There's no doubt about it - the first page your site visitors see is the most important page of your website. If your home page isn't appealing, chances are the rest of your pages will never even be seen by your visitors. Sales Versus Customer Oriented Websites Should Generating Revenue From A Website Be The Prime Motivator? A pure sales site has only one purpose.. Cheap Web Design If you think it's simply a case of who will do it for the best price, think again.As with many things we buy there are several important factors to take into account. 5 Website Design Tips to Make Your Site More Attractive The question that I most frequently hear from people is "How can I attract thousands of visitors to my site each month?" Well, driving high traffic to your site is important, but what's even more important, is designing a website that makes them stay.After all, what's the use of spending all your time and money on creating a unique product that many people want, building a 100-page site, winning top rankings on search engines, and spending $5,000 in advertising if visitors don't stay once they arrive?In this article, you're going to learn 5 important website design tips to make your site more attractive. Website Design Info - Part 1 What Will My Site Do?This is the first of eight articles about website design. Our discussion will deal with some of the issues which need to be considered when developing a new online presence. Choosing Form Over Function Kills Your Site Never put form over function. Why? Because it's crucial that visitors actually be able to USE your site. Why Content is King of Website Design If there's one thing that most web site developers can agree on, it's this: content is king.That's not, of course, to say that good design doesn't matter. Creating a Compelling Headline for Your Private Practice Website Your home page is the most important page of your website. It is the one that will determine what your potential client or customer does after they arrive (i. Website Design - Choosing Your Colors Wisely Colors convey emotions and emotions heavily influence the decision-making process. Your choice of colors for your website should mirror the message and feeling you to hope to communicate to the viewer. When Your Graphic Designer Costs You Money So how do you know when your graphic designer costs you financially and emotionally?When a file is not prepared correctly? When you go to press and have your media material produced in prints, and find out that the file was built incorrectly, then that's the time when your graphic designer will cost you money.Many pre-press operators have complained about having to correct graphic designers work. 8 Tips for Designing a Great Website Square buttons, round buttons, flashy buttons ? will they match my shoes, my handbag or my tie? Are you stuck in a maze of buttons, headings, bullets, sub-headings and colour schemes?STOP!!!!Take a deep breath and read some practical tips for professional looking websites.1. How To Boost Your Sales Dramatically Using Dynamic Back-end Strategies Getting a customer is not easy.Getting a visitor to decide that he or she wants to buy the product or service you're offering, getting out their credit card and giving you their hard-earned money is not a piece of cake.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
