Four Design Principles

FOUR BASIC PRINCIPLES Contrast Repetition Alignment Proximity Although each design principle is discussed separately, they are really interconnected Rarely will you apply only one principle

CONTRAST Created when two elements are different If two items are not exactly the same, then make them different . . . REALLY DIFFERENT

BASIC PURPOSE OF CONTRAST Basic purpose is two-fold: One purpose is to create an interest on the page The other purpose is to aid in the organization of the information

HOW TO GET CONTRAST WHAT TO AVOID CONTRAST Add contrast through Typeface choices Line thickness Colors Shapes, Sizes, Space WHAT TO AVOID CONTRAST If you are going to contrast – do it with strength. Avoid contrasting a sort-of-heavy line with a sort-of-heavier line, brown text with black headlines

HEATH HAWKS CONTRAST CONTRAST

REPETITION Repeat some aspects of the design throughout the entire place The repetitive element may be a bold font, a thick rule (line), a certain bullet, color, design element, particular format, spatial relationships. It can be anything a reader will visually recognize.

BASIC PURPOSE OF REPETITION To unify and to add visual interest

WHAT TO AVOID REPETITION HOW TO GET REPETITION Think of repetition as being consistent Use a 1-point rule at the bottom of each page or under the headline Use a distinctive font or a reversed number WHAT TO AVOID REPETITION Avoid repeating the element so much that it becomes annoying or overwhelming

Mickey Mouse Employment Education Favorite Activities Favorite Quote Walt Disney Studios Anaheim, California 58 years old, no children Employment Walt Disney Studio Various television studios Education Favorite Activities Driving steamboats Roping cattle Favorite Quote Everybody can’t be a duck. Repetitions: Bold Typeface Light Typeface Round Bullets Indents Spacing Alignments

ALIGNMENT Nothing should be placed on the page arbitrarily Every item should have a visual connection with something else on the page

Center text, make it obvious. TEXT ALIGNMENTS This text is centered. If you are going to Center text, make it obvious. See, in this paragraph it is difficult to tell if this text was centered purposely or perhaps accidentally. The line lengths are not the same, but they are not really different. It you can’t instantly tell that the type is centered, why bother? This text is flush left. Some people call it quad left, or you can say it is left aligned. This text is flush right. Some people call it quad right, or you can say it is right aligned. This test is justified. Some people call it quad left and right, and some it blocked – the text lines up on both sides. Whatever you call it, don’t do it unless your line length is long enough to avoid awkward gaps between the words.

BASIC PURPOSE OF ALIGNMENT To unify and organize the page Strong alignment creates a sophisticated look, or a formal look, a fun look, or a serious look

HOW TO GET ALIGNMENT Be conscious of where you place elements Always find something else on the page to align with, even if the two objects are physically far away from each other

WHAT TO AVOID ALIGNMENT Avoid using more than one text alignment on the page (don’t center some text and right-align other text) Try to break away from centered alignment

PROXIMITY Group Related Items Together Move them physically close to each other As in life, the proximity, or the closeness, implies a relationship Items or groups of information that are not related to each other should not be in close proximity (nearness) to the other elements When several items are in close proximity to each other, they become one visual unit rather than several separate units.

BASIC PURPOSE OF PROXIMITY Basic purpose of proximity is to organize

HOW TO GET PROXIMITY Squint your eyes slightly and count the number of visual elements on the page by counting the number of times your eye stops. If more than 3 to 5 items on the page see which of the separate elements can be grouped together into closer proximity to become one visual unit

WHAT TO AVOID PROXIMITY Avoid too many separate elements on a page Don’t stick things in the corners and in the middle Avoid leaving equal amounts of white space between elements unless each group is a part of a subset Don’t create relationships with elements that don’t belong together! If they are not related, move them apart from each other.

Lessons from hitchhiking What Goes Around Comes Around Lessons from hitchhiking Across the country Robin Williams January 1, 2003

Lessons from hitchhiking What Goes Around Comes Around Lessons from hitchhiking Across the country Robin Williams January 1, 2003 PROXIMITY

What Goes Around Comes Around Lessons from hitchhiking Across the country Robin Williams January 1, 2003 ALIGNMENT

What Goes Around Comes Around Lessons from hitchhiking Across the country Robin Williams REPETITION

Comes AROUND What Goes Lessons from hitchhiking across the country CONTRAST Robin Williams