DESIGN

• TEXTURE

  • adds realism and depth
  • links a design together with a theme
• COLOUR

  • signifies emotions and feelings
  • links features of a page together (colour scheme)
  • can be warm/cold/advancing/receding/contrasting or harmonising
• MASS

  • how heavy a product looks
  • achieved using deep colours & thick lines
  • helps balance a layout
• SIZE

  • implies importance
  • big = importance
  • small = disguised
• LINE

  • seperates items
  • connects items
  • emphasises words

  can be dashed, wiggly, zig-zag etc
• VALUE

  • how dark or light a colour is
  • differences create contrast
  • similar values harmonise
• WEIGHT

  • indicates how much visual impact something has
  • small important items can hold a lot of weight
  • utilise white space and positioning to achieve
• SHAPE

  • send messages to viewer
  • stimulate thought
  • link a layout
  • tidy information

  geometric, abstract and natural are common
• DEPTH

  • page is made to look 3D
  • can be achieved using drop shadows, blur, advancing/receding colours and layers
  • creates visual impact
• DOMINANCE

  • where an objects size/weight/mass make it dominate the surroundings
  • create effective focal points using dominance
• UNITY

  • colours, themes, patterns & repetition work together to send the same message
  • ties a layout together
• CONTRAST

  • an obvious difference between shapes, sizes, colours and angles.
  • creates visual impact
• WHITE SPACE

  • the absence of objects
  • used to simplify a layout and emphasise objects by seperation
  • does not need to be white
• ALIGNMENT

  • where objects in a layout line up with one another
  • creates a neat, professional look
  • unalignment can look unprofessional
• RHYTHM

  • the use of repetition to create a sense of movement
  • leads a viewers eye around the page
• BALANCE

  • the positioning of elements
  • balanced layouts are appealing and neat
  • unbalanced layouts create intrigue through irregularity