10 things
DESCRIPTION
graphic designTRANSCRIPT
DGRAPHIC
ESIGN
THINGS
YOU NEED
TO KNOW
ABOUT
GRAPHIC
DESIGN
GRAPHIC DESIGN
as a discipline“Graphic design is a broad discipline that encompasses many different aspects and elements. It takes ideas, concepts, text and images
and presents them in a visually engaging form through print, electronic or other media. A designer achieves this goal through the conscious
manipulation of elements;
a design may be philosophical, aesthetic, sensory, emotional or political in nature.”Gavin Ambrose/Paul Harris
D
The theories that we apply to graphic
design are taken from a study of the
general science of signs known as
“Except for the immediate satisfaction of biological needs,
man lives in a world not of things but of symbols.”
Von Bertalanffy L.
vwww
There are three main areas that form what we understand as
semiotics: the signs themselves; the way they are organised
into systems and the content in which they appear.
Symbolises an apple
A sign for Apple Mac Computers
Signifies quality, creativity, lifestyle,
independence….
Each individual letter is called a
character. A standard set of terms is
used to describe the constituent parts
of a character, often referred to as
Capital Height
Crossbar
Ascender
Terminal
Tittle
Loop
Link
Serif
Stem
Bowl
Ear
X-Height
Baseline
Descender
Counter
There are four fundamental fonts that designers should know
Block fonts are designed to be used on a large scale
Roman fonts are standard serif fonts
Script fonts attempt to reproduce calligraphic forms Gothic fonts are sans-serif and simple in form
The letters, numbers, and symbols that make up a
design of type. A typeface is often part of a type family
of co-ordinated designs. The individual typefaces are
named after the family and are also specified with a
designation, such as italic, bold or condensed.
One weight, width, and style of a typeface.
Before scalable type, there was little distinction
between the terms font, face, and family. Font
and face still tend to be used interchangeably,
although the term face is usually more correct.
A good rule when working with type is to use a
fonts
aaz
Available colour systems are dependent on the medium with
which a designer is working. (C)yan(M)agenta(Y)ellow(K)ey/
black is used when printing and (R)ed(G)reen(B)lue is used
to generate digital media.
aaz
When we mix colours using paint, or through the printing process, we are using the subtractive colour method. Subtractive colour
mixing means that one begins with white and ends with black; as one adds colour, the result gets darker and tends to black.
If we are working on a computer, the colours we see on the screen are created with light using the additive colour method.
Additive colour mixing begins with black and ends with white; as more colour is added, the result is lighter and tends to white.
Red, yellow and blueIn traditional colour theory (used in paint and pigments), primary colours are the 3 pigment colours that can not be mixed or formed by any combination of other colours. All other colours are derived from these 3 hues.
Green, orange and violetThese are the colours formed by mixing the primary colours.
Yellow-orange, red-orange, red-violet, blue-violet, blue-green & yellow-greenThese are the colours formed by mixing a primary and a secondary colour. That’s why the hue is a two word name, such as blue-green, red-violet, and yellow-orange.
The split-complementary colour
scheme is a variation of the
complementary colour scheme. In
addition to the base colour, it uses
the two colours adjacent to its
complement.
V
These are some basic techniques for
creating pleasing colour harmonies
Analogous colour schemes use
colours that are next to each other
on the colour wheel.
A triadic colour scheme uses col-
ours that are evenly spaced around
the colour wheel.
The rectangle or tetradic colour
scheme uses four colours arranged
into two complementary pairs.
The square colour scheme is similar
to the rectangle, but with all four
colours spaced evenly around the
colour wheel.
ww
Complimentary colours are any two hues positioned exactly opposite each other on the colour wheel.
ww
These pairs on the Basic Color
Wheel have a special relationship.
When they are placed next to each
other, they make the other appear
more intense and brighter. This is a
phenomenon in Color Theory called
Simultaneous Contrast.
With this in mind, complementary colours are
best to avoid using together, particularly when
using type as it strains the eye and affects
legibility
The Pantone Colour Matching System is largely a standardized colour reproduction system. By standardizing the colours, different manufacturers in different locations can all refer to the Pantone system to make sure colours match without direct contact with one another.
Solid Colour FORMULA GUIDES:
One flat colour
FORMULA GUIDE Solid Coated
FORMULA GUIDE Solid Uncoated
COLOUR BRIDGE Guides:
To determine how a PANTONE Colour
will appear when reproduced in CMYK
or to create optimal display of PANTONE
Colours on monitors and Web pages
COLOUR BRIDGE Coated
COLOUR BRIDGE Uncoated
COLOUR BRIDGE® Supplement Coated
COLOUR BRIDGE® Supplement Uncoated
CMYK Guides:
Four colour process
(cyan, magenta, yellow, black)
CMYK Coated
CMYK Uncoated
PANTONE METALLICS Guide
METALLICS Coated
PREMIUM METALLICS Coated
PASTELS & NEONS guide
PASTELS & NEONS Coated & Uncoated
Pantone contains everything you need to select, specify and match solid
and process colours for accurate solid colour specifying and matching