Basic Principles of Graphic Design — There are many designers who are unable to understand how to make a good design. Have you ever imitated the style of professional designers before but somehow made the outcome different in a not-so-good way? Why couldn’t you make the design as desirable as what you want?
A good design can’t be seen only by the visuals. You need to follow some principles in order to make it good and look pleasant. These basic principles are a must for designers to understand.
The principles of graphic design are a standard rule you need to follow in order to make an effective and attractive design composition. By applying all those principles, your design will automatically become appealing on its own.
Furthermore, it also becomes the benchmark for designers to make a good design according to the standard rules. So, what are the principles of graphic design you need to know?
Without further ado, let’s go jump right into it!
Table of Contents
This is a principle for organizing the focal point. Knowing how to put each element in the right sequence and determine which element should be the focal point is significant.
For example, if you want to make a design poster for a concert, you need to ask yourself first about what you want to show your audience: the name of the band, the time, or the organizer. You need careful planning before you start designing.
You need to remember that every element you incorporate into your design has its own space and weight. The weight of an element can come from its color, size, or texture.
A good design has a good balance of content. Balance doesn’t mean that everything needs to be equal, as there might be an uneven element on the right or left of your design, but you need to make sure that it still looks proportional when being seen.
There are two standard rules for maintaining balance: symmetry and asymmetry. Symmetry is when equal weights are on equal sides of a composition. Meanwhile, asymmetry is when contrasting elements are unequal on both sides but still have a sense of balance.
Symmetrical design is indeed neat, but sometimes it looks monotonous and boring, while asymmetrical design, which looks stout with its contrast, creates a sense of balance that looks so good.
Contrast creates distinctness in each element of design. So, you can make the design contrast with color, texture, size, or shape.
Take the use of different colors between the background and element as an example; that will create a contrast. In layouts, utilize hierarchy in letter size, making sure that a larger font will be read first.
If you look closely, many designs use only one or two fonts. That is because a contrast will be very effective with the use of two strong fonts, as using too many fonts will only distract audiences from the focal point.
The connected elements in a piece of content will create a sense of unity. Long story short, applying colors that are in harmony with the contents’ elements will make them relate well.
Additionally, you need to connect all design elements to create a balanced unity. Achieving unity will help you produce an interesting design, as each element will bring its own personalized contribution to the design, thus, resulting in a harmonious outcome.
By using a limited number of elements, we will be pushed to repeatedly utilize the existing ones. Having repetition in our design gives a certain energy and uniqueness. For example, the limitation of the color palette, instead of mixing all colors into one, will bring out a sense of consistency in design.
Repetition is not only about color; it can also apply to the type of letters used, design elements, logos, brand slogans, and more.
A pattern is a repetition of more than one element. While repetition repeats only one or two elements and is not made into a standard, pattern can be the trademark of a design and can be used in many design products. Generally, we use pattern for website or mobile application backgrounds.
Remember to consider the pattern complexity we use in the background to ensure the readability of the content is clear and good.
In music, rhythm is a recurring beat that produces a certain tempo that enlivens a song. Well, graphic design also has rhythm; however, instead of a tempo, rhythm in graphic design organizes how elements in a composition produce a certain level of consistency. This principle affects the way our eyes see and interact with artwork.
The rhythm concept in design has the purpose of elevating the aesthetic vibe of a composition.
Proportion is an ideal size comparison from one object to another, be it by its definition or the visual. It arranges elements’ size and weight in a composition and how they correlate to each other.
Sometimes, though, proportion may not be shared evenly, as there might be some parts that are more prominent than others.
In the design world, we are able to direct audiences’ eyes to see the main element first, then continue to the next element, and end up seeing the complementary elements. Good movement allows the audience to easily comprehend the meaning of the message we want to deliver.
Movement in design compositions makes our design more dynamic and interesting to see.
Harmony is a sense of connection and regularity among all elements in a design composition. The use of correlated and organized elements will make the design look more pleasing.
To create harmony, you don’t have to use the same exact elements. Use elements that you think are good and fit the design theme.
Variety adds something alluring to your design composition, creating contrast and tension. You can apply variety through colors, letters, shapes, and other design elements.
The purpose of variety in design principles is to make a fascinating and engaging display for the audience.
In graphic design, following design principles is very important to creating effective and attractive artwork.
Those principles above are all essential; however, the first important principle you need to really pay attention to is unity, where every element in a design needs to connect and function harmoniously. Just like when making a design for a poster, make sure that the texts, images, and other elements are clearly connected and do not clash.
The second is balance. Ensure regularity in your visual elements to make them aligned and balanced.
Well, those above are some principles in graphic design, along with some examples of how to apply them. Hopefully, it will be useful in helping you design.
Greetings to you all, creative souls!
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