Design and its principles

Design is about progress. It is the conceptualisation and creation of new things:

ideas, interactions, information, objects, typefaces, books, posters, products,
places, signs, systems, services, furniture, websites, and more.

Designers imagine and make. They also research and think. Skilled in one or more
specialties of the discipline, designers use their abilities in collaboration with
others. Designers want to make ideas real and to make a difference.

A career in design is more than a job. It is a way of seeing; a way of interacting

with the world. It is a way of life.

Design is the creation of the products and the services that people use. Design
makes technology usable for people. Design connects people with technology.
Design solves the problems that people have, focusing on: Usability, Ergonomics
and Aesthetics Materials and Manufacturing Processes, Science, Engineering and
Technology, Manages Innovation and Sustainability.

A design is an arrangement of elements based on some principles of design.

Design in communication is for the purpose of transferring, effectively and
pleasing way meaning of any message from one mind to another.

Designers use the vocabulary of point, line, shape, and tone, along with syntax of
proportion, balance, rhythm, harmony, contrast and unity, to communicate with the
target audience. The design vocabulary helps choose and shape the design
elements while the syntax helps in the orderly presentation of design elements.

In the world of visual and multimedia communication, visual design elements are
a big part of your vocabulary, and form the building blocks of your images,
presentations or graphic design layouts. In this part of the module we'll talk about
various visual design elements in detail.
Learning to tell visual stories is very much like learning to speak a foreign
language. To be an effective visual communicator, you must learn a new visual
design language. You begin by learning the vocabulary.
In a foreign language, you would first learn new words to describe objects in your
environment, for example “person,” and “chair.” These are the building blocks or
elements of the new language.
The next thing you would need to master when learning a foreign language is the
grammar. You would learn how to put words together into sentences to express
complete thoughts. For example, “The person sits on the chair” provides
information about the relationship between the person and the chair. It tell us more
than just the two words “person” and “chair” by themselves. In design, the visual
equivalent of grammar are called visual design principles.
Once you master use of the visual elements (vocabulary) and visual design
principles (grammar), you can weave together unique visuals and multimedia
components using your own voice and perspective. Much like what happens when
two different people write completely different stories about the same event, we
each have a unique perspective on the world that comes from our own personal
history. We do not see the world the same way. Different designers,
photographers, filmmakers or artists will create unique visual compositions or
works of art with unique messages for their audiences, even if the subject matter is
the same.
You can start learning this new language of visual design by examining three
visual design elements - light (including colour and tone), lines and shapes - and
how they can be used to convey clearer messages, reinforce concepts and make
your presentations or instructional materials more memorable.
Vocabulary is the language of designers in which they communicate their message
through point, line shape, tone and colour.

POINT: really is the starting point for the visual progression. This is also known as
the optic or focal point of any design. Whenever you look at anything, there is
always a point where the eyes get riveted. That is known as the optic centre. It is
not the dead centre, geometrically, but slightly above it. A structural or real point is
a position in space which attracts the eye and it could be an imaginary point in a
frame, a letter on a printed page or even a contrasting element of a design.

LINE: A line represents a "path" between two points. A line can be straight,
curved, vertical, horizontal, diagonal, or zigzag. Lines imply motion and suggest
direction or orientation. A line can also be implied, that is filled in by the mind
when several points are positioned geometrically within a frame. Placing four dots
on a page in the shape of a square can imply the points are linked as the mind
searches for recognizable patterns.
A line is an effective element of design because it can lead the viewer's eye. Our
eyes can’t help following lines; our brains are hard-wired to do it. As a visual
designer, you can take advantage of this to guide your viewer’s eyes through your
image and toward your subject matter.
With respect to storytelling, the direction and orientation of a line can also imply
certain feelings. Horizontal lines imply tranquility and rest, whereas vertical lines
imply power and strength. Oblique lines imply movement, action and change.
Curved lines or S shaped lines imply quiet, calm and sensual feelings. Lines that
converge imply depth, scale and distance - a fence or roadway converges into the
distance provides the illusion that a flat two-dimensional image has three-
dimensional depth.
SHAPE: Shape is the final visual design element that we will study as a building
block of your visual images. When we say "shape", we aren't necessarily referring
to the shape of each object in the image or composition, but rather the shapes that
form the overall structure of the image. Shapes may be present in your subject
matter. They are also frequently created by how you layout, crop or frame your
image. Finally shapes can be created or made visible by light, which produces
colour or tonal contrast.
There are primary shapes, which include all the regular-sided shapes like a
square, circle, equilateral or isosceles triangle. Using one or more of these shapes
in your image gives a sense of order, strength or unity.
There are also secondary shapes. These are the “squashed,” or elongated versions
of the regular shapes, like a rectangle, oval or scalene triangle. Using these shapes
creates an image that is a little less orderly, but possibly more dynamic or organic.
Like lines, shapes too suggest mood or a meaning, circle symbolises security, the
world, a square is something dull, we even use this term in English, “don’t be a
square” meaning thereby don’t be a bore. The triangle means both safety, strength
and tension especially when it is used as an arrow head.
TONE: Tone is simply the lightness or darkness of an object. Sometimes referred
to as value, tone is one of the most powerful design elements. In any painting,
photograph or design, the area of highest contrast between light and dark will
always demand maximum attention.
 Every visual has three ingredients – tone, light and colour. Light is a visual raw
material. For example, light is the physical means by which a photographic image
is made. Light reflects off objects in the world, through the camera lenses and onto
the film or sensor, to create a photograph. The human eyes are much like little
digital cameras. They also contain lenses that gather incoming light and focus an
image on the back of the eyeball. This area contains light-sensitive cells called
cones that record the light's pattern of three different colour values - these values
are eventually transmitted to the brain and interpreted as an image.
The quality of the light is also the magical ingredient that can influence the quality
and perception value of an image; light during the "golden hour" around dawn and
dusk is warmer in color and creates softer shadows, which can result in more
pleasing images.
When analysing a two-dimensional image, implied mass and light are often
described together. In the real world, light serves to reveal the world around us and
help us understand forms and spatial relationships. Light and shadow model an
object—give it a three- dimensional appearance.
The range of lights and darks are referred to as tonal values. During the Italian
Renaissance, painters learned how to model mass in two dimensions through value,
a technique called chiaroscuro, a word meaning literally "light/dark". While colour
refers to the different hues like blue, red, green or brown., tone, or brightness,
refers to the degree of lightness. So “light blue” expresses both a tone and a
colour.
Placing contrasting colours or contrasting tones next to each other creates shapes,
lines, and textures. When we place a blue object next to a red one, it is the very
juxtaposition of the colours that is perceived as a line. A dark object silhouetted
against a light one creates a shape that’s defined by the tonal contrast along the
edges.

SYNTAX: A good arrangement of words or visuals that either creates well formed
sentences or a fine visual. Thus an orderly display is very important in the world of
design and even language. If the syntax is disorderly, the sentence or the visual
will also be gibberish or will not communicate what is intended.

PROPORTION: Proportion refers to the relative size and scale of the various
elements in a design. The issue is the relationship between objects, or parts, of a
whole. This means that it is necessary to discuss proportion in terms of the context
or standard used to determine proportions. Our most universal standard of
measurement is the human body; that is, our experience of living in our own
bodies. We judge the appropriateness of size of objects by that measure. For
example, a sofa in the form of a hand is startling because of the distortion of
expected proportion, and becomes the center of attention in the room. Architectural
spaces intended to impress are usually scaled to a size that dwarfs the human
viewer. This is a device often used in public spaces, such as churches or centers of
government. The same principle is often applied to corporate spaces through which
the enterprise wishes to impress customers with its power and invincibility.

BALANCE: Balance is the concept of visual equilibrium, and relates to our

physical sense of balance. It is a reconciliation of opposing forces in a composition
that results in visual stability. Most successful compositions achieve balance in one
of two ways: symmetrically or asymmetrically. Balance in a three dimensional
object is easy to understand; if balance isn't achieved, the object tips over. To
understand balance in a two dimensional composition, we must use our
imaginations to carry this three dimensional analogy forward to the flat surface.

Symmetrical balance can be described as having equal "weight" on equal sides of

a centrally placed fulcrum. It may also be referred to as formal balance. When the
elements are arranged equally on either side of a central axis, the result
is Bilateral symmetry. This axis may be horizontal or vertical. It is also possible to
build formal balance by arranging elements equally around a central point ,
resulting in radial symmetry.

Asymmetrical balance, also called informal balance, is more complex and

difficult to envisage. It involves placement of objects in a way that will allow
objects of varying visual weight to balance one another around a fulcrum point.
This can be best imagined by envisioning a literal balance scale that can represent
the visual "weights" that can be imagined in a two dimensional composition. For
example, it is possible to balance a heavy weight with a cluster of lighter weights
on equal sides of a fulcrum; in a picture, this might be a cluster of small objects
balanced by a large object. It is also possible to imagine objects of equal weight
but different mass (such as a large mass of feathers versus a small mass of stones)
on equal sides of a fulcrum. Unequal weights can even be balanced by shifting the
fulcrum point on our imaginary scale.

RHYTHM: Repetition. Repetition is the simplest way to attain rhythm and can be
achieved by repeating any of the elements of design (line, colour, texture and
pattern, light, and scale and proportion) or other design concepts in an organised
and regular way. Rhythm is defined as a strong, regular, repeated pattern of
movement or sound. It's created when one or more elements of design are used
repeatedly to create a feeling of organized movement. Rhythm and
movement are two principles that almost always coincide in design. Like
repetition can be dull, so also unending monotonous rhythm can also be boring. So
rhythm is a design tool that has to be used very judiciously and carefully.

HARMONY: Visual harmony is achieved through a balance of unity and variety

among the various design elements. That can mean choosing complementary or
analogous colour schemes to achieve colour harmony, or choosing typefaces that
are concordant or contrasting but not conflicting. A common trait between
elements could be texture, patterns, colour, shape or size.Harmony is of
utmost importance in design. Every design element found in a given space affects
its counterpart elements, whether it be colour, furniture or accessories. ...
Homeowners tend to perceive colour as the determining factor of a
successful design and leaving out the not so obvious elements such as an texture.

CONTRAST : Making a specific element stand out or draw attention to the eye.
Emphasis can be achieved in graphic design by placing elements on the page in
positions where the eye is naturally drawn, by using other principles such
as contrast, repetition, or movement. Bold and italic type provides emphasis for
text. Contrast helps organiSe your design and establish a hierarchy—which
simply shows which parts of your design are most important (and signals viewers
to focus on those). But more than emphasiSing the focal point of your design,
good use of contrast adds visual interest.

UNITY: When each element has a clear visual relationship to one or more other
elements, the composition is unified. When unity is achieved: a composition does
not become cluttered or confusing. a concept can be communicated more clearly.
A design evokes a sense of quality and organization. Unity exists when
your elements agree. Unity can be seen as the single most important goal of
any design; to make your whole design more than the sum of its parts. Use the
the design principles of repetition, alignment, and proximity to add visual unity to
your design and use contrast to add variety and interest.