news design
TRANSCRIPT
How to Design Successfully
What is Design?
http://flickr.com/groups/designerwallpaper/pool/
10 Tips for Better Design
1- Readability
Design should be:
Easy to readEasy to find
Content DrivenVisually attractive
2- Dominance/ Hierarchy
Dominant HeadlineDominant photo or graphic
Everything else gets smaller in order of importance as it goes down the page. This
gives the readers’ eyes something to follow.Dominant photo/ graphic should be at least twice as large as anything else on the page.
3- Paper First!
Sketching or planning on grid paper before hand IS important and CAN
help create better layouts!
4- Keep it Simple
Less is more is probably the best design philosophy ever thought of-
thank you minimalists! Seriously though, just like with good writing- use fewer elements but make sure
they are strong ones.
5- Use White Space and EyeLines
It makes the designs easier to read, which helps readers focus on what is important- the content!
Make sure white space is limited to the outside corners of the design. White space that is placed towards the center of the design looks unplanned, or “trapped” and limits readability.
An eyeline is a line of white space that flows uninterrupted from one side of the design to the other. It creates visual
movement across the design and helps draw the reader into the content.
6- Contrast and Variety
Easy can also mean boring. Whether it is contrasting colors, size of elements,
fonts, etc. give the reader visual variety to keep their interest.
7- Alignment
Everything MUST align with something! This translates into USING
COLUMNS AND/OR GRID DESIGN!This also MEANS PACKAGING!
8- Look at What others are doing
There are tons of amazing things happening in the design world right
now. Check out some of the following news design and magazine design
resources.
9- Be Content Driven!
Always be thinking about what the BEST way to tell the story would be.
The best way is NOT always a story…
10- Have Fun
If you enjoy what you are doing it will be evident in the quality of your
work.
Sources: • http://www.visualeditors.com/• http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages/default.asp• http://newspagedesigner.org/• http://www.slideshare.net/chrissnider• http://www.economist.com/node/21556991• http://www.studentpress.org/nspa/winners• http://visual.ly/• http://www.nylonmag.com/?section=digitalissue• http://www.economist.com/• http://insider.espn.go.com/insider/espn-the-magazine/• http://www.spin.com/magazine/• http://www.rollingstone.com/