Get familiar with the overarching visual concepts that make something visually appealing.
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The principles of design are a set of primarily visual concepts that designers use to make aesthetically pleasing work that works in an organized and functional way. These principles are often interrelated, complementing and influencing each other. The list varies depending on the speaker and what branch of design is being considered. Here we’ve compiled a guide to principles that we think will strengthen your compositions in Adobe Express.
Emphasis and Hierarchy
Emphasis refers to drawing the viewer to a focal point by manipulating an element of a design to make it stand out. Distinguished aspects of a design will naturally attract a viewer’s attention. By adding visual weight to an aspect of a design, you are emphasizing it. This can be done in a number of ways including with color, texture, font, or scale. You can also achieve emphasis by manipulating other principles of design, like scale or contrast.
Often treated interchangeably, emphasis relates to hierarchy, which concerns strategically giving visual important to each element of a design. It asks you to consider the most pertinent information within a design and to organize the elements accordingly. One way to approach hierarchy is outlining aspects of a design from most to least important. Visual hierarchy can be created through emphasis and other principles. This creates a natural order a viewer approaches a design.
Scale and Proportion
This principle refers to the size and weight of the elements included in the design and how they relate to each other. Adjusting the scale of one element impacts its relationship to the other elements and thus the rest of the composition. This is because scale is a considerable factor in visual hierarchy. Typically larger elements will be considered more important and smaller elements will be considered less so.
Contrast
Contrast deals with how elements in a design differ or are opposed to one another. By using contrast, you can make aspects of a design more distinct. It can also be a point of emphasis that communicates difference in a narrative way. In that way, it can importantly figure into visual hierarchy. High contrast often makes things pop. Color is one important consideration here, as proper color contrast enables a clearer and more legible visual experience.
Repetition and Pattern
Repetition simply refers to elements of a design being repeated. Some repetition is not highly noticeable because it is simply the repeated use of something like font or color. Some repetition is more apparent because it exists as an intentional pattern, like a checkerboard. Other usage serves to create emphasis. By repeating elements of a design, we can create familiarity and understanding, uniting elements together. Repetition also can be a factor across designs, in the case of logo or color. A motif is established, uniting disparate pieces as connected, whether it be for a body of work or to forge a brand identity.
Movement and Rhythm
Movement and rhythm are concerned with the flow of a composition and how the eye is encouraged to move. How does the composition impact visual attention? Rhythm can be created through repetition, as well as how things are spaced. There are numerous ways elements can exist at a given interval, whether that be regular, random, organic, or more clearly progressive.
Balance and Alignment
Two dimensional visual designs have both a horizontal and vertical axis. Each element in a design adds visual weight and thus, a successful composition requires balance. Alignment refers to the placement of elements along the axes and is used to create balance. Balance can be achieved both symmetrically and asymmetrically. Symmetrical balance requires that weight be applied equally across axes. Asymmetrical balance uses mismatched placements that have equal visual weight. As an example, a title on a poster flushed left may require an image to appear on the right side to create asymmetrical balance.
It might be helpful to consider a two-dimensional design in a three-dimensional form, on a flat form like a plate or canvas. Elements that are out of balance due to their visual weight will lead the composition to tip.
White Space or Negative Space
White space or negative space is a unique principle in that it is about what you don’t add. It importantly cushions and gives lightness to a composition, clearly distinguishing elements and giving them room to breathe. It provides organization and order to a composition, as well as makes balance more readily achievable. It can also be a way to emphasize and create rhythm.
Unity
Unity refers to how various elements of a design work when put together. It concerns designs having visual harmony in which all the disparate elements exist in relationship to each other in an organic and cohesive way. In other words, the parts create a clear and effective whole. Within unity, there is both the concerns of visual unity and conceptual unity. Visual unity is about making visual sense. Conceptual unity is about the purpose of visual elements and the effectiveness of a composition’s message.
Considering if a design is unified is often done at a later stage in the design process and can be a final step before something can be called complete. If a design does not feel unified, it may be helpful to revisit the aforementioned principles when working to tweak aspects of a design. Regardless, it may be useful to review the principles in order to create the most effective final product.
