Design principles for designers

of

Must to Know for All Designers www.admecindia.co.in

A Workshop by Ravi Bhadauria at ADMEC Multimedia Institute

of A Presentation by: Ravi Bhadauria

R

ADMEC MULTIMEDIA INSTITUTE Leader in Animation & Digital Media Education ISO 9001 : 2015 CERTIFIED www.admecindia.co.in | www.graphic-design-institute.com Phones: +91-9811-8181-22, +91-9911-7823-50

Preface & Acknowledgment Dear Reader, ADMEC Multimedia Institute is a growing institute which provides industry oriented training to the world at large. Being a multimedia institute we offer training for designing content for the advertising and publishing on various medias also.

This presentation is one of the best presentations from our study material for our weekly workshops which ADMEC conducts every week at the center. We want to share this with the world so that everyone can take benefits from our efforts.

This presentation contains all the points helpful in my lecture on “Design Principles for All the Designers� in the classroom whether they are graphic, web, animation, video editor, multimedia designer or from any other design discipline e.g. fashion, interior, architectural designing.

We express thanks to many books and websites, specially Google for making it one of the best presentations of all the time.

Thanks Ravi Bhadauria, Instructor (Web and Visual Designing) Director ADMEC Multimedia Institute www.admecindia.co.in

What are you going to learn today?        

Why principles of design are very important?

Essential design elements Common design principles Gestalt design principles of visual perception Space and the figure-ground relationship Use of Contrast and Similarity in designs Visual weight and visual direction Projects

www.admecindia.co.in

The Design Principles are proven concepts useful to arrange the structural elements of a design. www.admecindia.co.in

1. Elements of Design Design elements are the basic units of a painting, drawing, design or other visual piece and include:  Line  Shape  Direction  Size  Texture  Value  Space  Text www.admecindia.co.in

Elements of Design

Elements of Design

Elements of Design

2. Principles of Design The most intrinsic principles are:  Balance  Gradation  Proportion  Rhythm  Emphasis  Unity or Proximity  Repetition  Contrast  Alignment www.admecindia.co.in

Principles of Design The descriptive principles of how we visually perceive objects begins with the principles of gestalt, because many of the design principles we follow arise out of gestalt theory.

www.admecindia.co.in

Principles of Design Gestalt psychology is a school of thought that believes all objects and scenes can be observed in their simplest forms.

Sometimes referred to as the 'Law of Simplicity’, the theory proposes that the whole of an object or scene is more important than its individual parts.

Gestalt psychology proposes a unique perspective on human perception.

According to Gestalt psychologists, we don't just see the world, we actively interpret what we see, depending on what we are expecting to see. www.admecindia.co.in

Principles of Design A famous French author, Anaïs Nin, who was not a psychologist, framed that idea in an interesting way: 'We do not see the world as it is; we see it as we are.'

Gestalt psychology encourages people to 'think outside of the box' and ‘look for patterns’.

www.admecindia.co.in

The gestalt principles are about perception and what is visually communicated by objects. www.admecindia.co.in

3. Gestalt Theory The Key Ideas Behind Gestalt Theory

“The whole is other than the sum of the parts.”

There are several key ideas behind gestalt. 

Emergence (the whole is identified before the parts)



Reification (our mind fills in the gaps)



Multi-stability (the mind seeks to avoid uncertainty)



Invariance (we’re good at recognizing similarities and differences)

Gestalt Theory Emergence (the whole is identified before the parts) Emergence is the process of forming complex patterns from simple rules.

When designing, keep in mind that people will identify elements first by their general form. A simple well defined object will communicate more quickly than a detailed object with a hard to recognize contour.

www.admecindia.co.in

Gestalt Theory Emergence (the whole is identified before the parts)

www.admecindia.co.in

Gestalt Theory Reification (our mind fills in the gaps) Reification is an aspect of perception in which the object as perceived contains more spatial information than what is actually present.

www.admecindia.co.in

Gestalt Theory Multi-stability (the mind seeks to avoid uncertainty)

Multi-stability is the tendency of ambiguous perceptual experiences to move unstably back and forth between alternative interpretations.

www.admecindia.co.in

Gestalt Theory Invariance (we’re good at recognizing similarities and differences) Invariance is a property of perception in which simple objects are recognized independent of their rotation, translation and scale.

www.admecindia.co.in

Gestalt Theory Invariance

4. Gestalt Principles 1. Law of Simplicity (Law of Prägnanz)

8.

Continuation

9.

Common Fate

2. Closure

10. Parallelism

3. Symmetry and order

11. Similarity

4. Figure/Ground

12. Focal Point

5. Uniform Connectedness

13. Past Experiences

6. Common Regions 7. Proximity

Gestalt Principles Law of Prägnanz (Good Figure, Law of Simplicity)

“People will perceive and interpret ambiguous or complex images as the simplest form(s) possible.”

Gestalt Principles Law of Prägnanz

Gestalt Principles Law of Prägnanz

Gestalt Principles Closure “When seeing a complex arrangement of elements, we tend to look for a single, recognizable pattern.�

Gestalt Principles Symmetry and Order “People tend to perceive objects as symmetrical shapes that form around their center.�

Gestalt Principles Figure/ Ground “Elements are perceived as either figure (the element in focus) or ground (the background on which the figure rests).�

Gestalt Principles Uniform Connectedness “Elements that are visually connected are perceived as more related than elements with no connection.�

Gestalt Principles Common Regions “Elements are perceived as part of a group if they are located within the same closed region.�

Gestalt Principles Proximity “Objects that are closer together are perceived as more related than objects that are further apart.�

Gestalt Principles Continuation “Elements arranged on a line or curve are perceived as more related than elements not on the line or curve.�

Gestalt Principles Common Fate (Synchrony) “Elements that move in the same direction are perceived as more related than elements that are stationary or that move in different directions.�

Gestalt Principles Parallelism “Elements that are parallel to each other are seen as more related than elements not parallel to each other.�

Gestalt Principles Similarity “Elements that are visually connected are perceived as more related than elements with no connection.�

Gestalt Principles Focal Points “Elements with a point of interest, emphasis or difference will capture and hold the viewer’s attention.”

Gestalt Principles Past Experiences “Elements tend to be perceived according to an observer’s past experience.”

5. Space and Figure-Ground Relationship If you see graphic design as a process of arranging shapes on a canvas, then you’re only seeing half of what you work with. The negative space of the canvas is just as important as the positive elements that we place on the canvas.

Design is an arrangement of both shapes and space. To work more effectively with space, you must first become aware of it and learn to see it — learn to see the shapes that space forms and how space communicates.

“White space is to be regarded as an active element, not a passive background.”

Space and Figure-Ground Relationship

Space and Figure-Ground Relationship What is the depth?

Space and Figure-Ground Relationship What is the depth?

Space and Figure-Ground Relationship There are three types of figure-ground relationships: 

Stable (down left)



Reversible (down center)



Ambiguous (down right)

Space and Figure-Ground Relationship Figure-ground is not the only gestalt principle in which space plays a prominent role. Two others are these: ď Ź

Proximity

ď Ź

Closure

7. Space As A Design Element Space can do the following:  establish contrast, emphasis, and hierarchy;  generate drama and tension;  provide visual rest between groups of elements.

One of the more important functions of space is to improve readability and legibility. Macro-space makes text more inviting. Micro-space makes it more legible.  Micro-space  Macro-space

Space As A Design Element Space can also convey attributes other than quality, such as: 

sophistication



simplicity



luxury



cleanliness



solitude



Openness

Don’t be afraid to use space. View it as an important design element under your control.

8. Connecting and Separating Elements Through Contrast & Similarity A few characteristics, however, are most often used to show similarity and contrast. In no particular order, these are: 

size



shape



color



value



texture



position



orientation

Connecting and Separating Elements Through Contrast & Similarity Contrast and Gestalt ď Ź

Figure-ground

ď Ź

Focal points

Connecting and Separating Elements Through Contrast & Similarity Similarity and Gestalt 

Closure



symmetry and order



uniform connectedness



common regions



Proximity



Continuation



common fate



parallelism

9. Visual Weight and Direction Every element in design have a visual force that attracts the attention of the readers. The greater the force, the more the user is attracted.

These forces also appear to act on other elements, imparting a visual direction to their potential movement and suggesting where you should look next.

We refer to this force as visual weight and to the perceived direction of visual forces as visual direction. Both are important concepts to understand if you want to create hierarchy, flow, rhythm and balance in your composition.

Visual Weight and Direction Visual Weight

Visual Weight and Direction Visual Direction

Visual Weight and Direction How Do You Measure Visual Weight?

Although there is no device to measure it yet you can use your experice to manage and judge it. Followings are few feature to manage it. 

Size



Color



Value



Position



Texture



Shape



Orientation

Visual Weight and Direction How Do You Measure Visual Weight?

You don’t have to limit yourself to the primitive features above. You can use additional characteristics to control visual weight. 

Density



Local white space



Intrinsic interest



Depth



Saturation



Perceived physical weight

Visual Weight and Direction Visual Weight and Gestalt 

Figure-ground



Proximity



Similarity and contrast



Focal point



Past experience

Visual Weight and Direction Visual Direction You can think of direction as real or imaginary lines that point from one element to another or that connect different elements. The lines don’t need to be visible.

If visual weight is about attracting the eye to a particular location, then visual direction is about leading the eye to the next location.

Some useful characteristics to manage the visual direction. 

Shape of elements



Movement



Location of elements



Structural skeleton



Subject matter of elements

Visual Weight and Direction Visual Direction and Gestalt 

Uniform connectedness



Continuation



Common fate



Parallelism

Visual Weight and Direction The Overall Direction of a Composition One more concept of visual direction is that every composition will be seen to have a dominant direction, whether horizontal, vertical or diagonal. 

A horizontal direction makes the composition appear calm and stable.



A vertical direction adds a sense of formality, alertness and balance.



A diagonal direction suggests movement and action.

Projects Write your views on the following topics (Minimum 600 Words) •

Design Elements – Types and Uses in Designing

•

Gestalt Theory – The Key Ideas for a Better Design

•

Gestalt Principles – Must to Know for Every Designer

•

Visual Weight and Direction – Role in Designing

•

Negative Space – Smart Designers Use it as an Active Element

Thanks ADMEC Multimedia Institute www.admecindia.co.in Phones: +91-9811-8181-22, 9911-7823-50

R

ADMEC MULTIMEDIA Helpline 1: +91 9811-8181-22 Helpline 2: +91 9911-7823-50 Web: www.admecindia.co.in

Click to Read More on Visual Designing: www.admecindia.co.in/blog-tags/graphic-design www.graphic-design-institute.com/blog