Design Principles: Keys to DTP Success

1. Design Principles:Keys to DTP Success

2. So What Is Good Design? • There are certain qualities that every printed document must have, regardless of its purpose or form • Use what we learn over the next two days as a safety checklist, not rules • I’ll also expect you to start explaining items using the terminology and design skills we discuss

3. Design Concepts • Proportion • Balance • Restraint* • Contrast • Rhythm • Unity • Detail* * Not in Lichty

4. Proportion Design Principle #1

5. Proportion • How well does each piece ofthe puzzle relate to the other pieces • Hold the layout at a distance and concentrate on the Total Picture • is it pleasing to your eye? • Proportion Obtainers • Importance • White Space • Margins • Grids

6. Proportion - Importance • The size of an element should be determined by its relative importance to its environment. • The larger an element, the more important it seems to the reader • Works with graphical or textual elements • Stair-stepping elements • Like this • Or even this

7. Proportion – White Space • Areas of a page without text or graphics • Structured Order White Space • gutters, leading, indents, etc. • Less Structured White Space • drops, empty left/right column, bands of white • White Space is very inexpensive to use • Readers welcome it as a place to rest their eyes (or a place to take notes)

8. HOW TO REPEL READERS How to attract readers Proportion – White Space • Too little • Can look hard to read • Overwhelming & confusing • Enough • More inviting • Less intimidating

9. Proportion – White Space • Plan for it - Treat white space as an element on the page • equal in importance to text and graphics • shouldn’t be seen as “leftover” space • should be organized • Use it along the outside edges of a page • Use it in unequal concentrations • Margins, drops, etc.

10. How to avoid creatingtrapped white space Proportion – Trapped WS • Space trapped on all 4 sides • Fails to realize its potential • One of the biggest no-no’s in DTP • Distracts the reader’s eye • Seems to push away other elements on the page • Looks like a mistake

11. White space, White space, White space White space, White space, White space Proportion – Equally Divided WS • When you have an item that doesn’t fill the space, don’t “float” the item by splitting the space evenly • Group WS together

12. Proportion - Margins • Defined by the grid, which describes the proportion and placement of the margin • Should occupy about 50 percent of the page • Margins should always be unequal – equal margins breed monotony • Should use progressive margins

13. 1 1 Proportion – Margins (Simplex) 2 = 3

14. Proportion – Margins (Duplex) 2 3 1 4

15. Proportion – The Grid • A series of non-printing horizontal and vertical guidelines on the page. • Guarantees consistency throughout the document • Identifies margins • Determines orderly placement of columns and illustrations on the page • Using the golden section

16. Proportion – The Grid Birds of Paradise Polly the Parrott The Norwegian Blue

17. 1 2 Proportion – Page Structure • Laying out various text columns that account for appropriate white space • You can interchange the page structures, but remember to keep consistent margins throughout a document • Roughly 8 ways to structure a page

18. 3 4 5 Proportion – Page Structures

19. 6 7 8 Proportion – Page Structures

20. Proportion – Columns in Grids

21. Balance Design Element #2

22. Balance • The weight of the objects on the left side of the page equals those on the right • Unbalanced objects make us uneasy • Balanced objects look proper and secure

23. Balance – Optical Center • To obtain balance, youwork with the optical center • The spot the eye sees when it first encounters a page • Slightly above the mathematical center of the page • Similar to where we look on the face when we talk to others:the eyes

24. Balance – Formal Balance • Symmetrically formatted • Balance is evident along the optical center • Provide feeling of formality, precision, and reserve • Examples: wedding invitations, title pages, business cards, etc.

25. Balance – Informal Balance • Asymmetrical format • Balance is dynamic instead of static along the optical center • Reader adjusts the balance in own mind • More energy, more vigor, more enthusiasm • Adds interest to the page and sparkle to the presentation

26. Restraint Design Element #3

27. Restraint • Strive for simplicity in design • DTP gives you so many tools • Straight-forwardness is a virtue • Effective design is invisible to reader • Restraint is achieved by sticking to a few carefully chosen typefaces, styles, and sizes • A good carpenter doesn’t use every tool in his kit on a single task; neither should you

28. Restraint • If you draw attention to too many items on the page, the result is nothing will stick out • Excessive use of emphasis weakens your publication to the point of losing all impact • Overuse of graphic gimmickry results in a cluttered look

29. References • Looking Good in Print, Roger C. Parker • The Non-Designer’s Design Book, Robin Williams • Desktop Publishing Design, Kristine Moore • Design Principles for Desktop Publishers, Tom Lichty