· Format

· the outer edges

· to relate

· balance

· visual weight

· stability

· visual hierarchy

· superordinate elements

· subordinating elements

· to emphasize

· a flow

· isolation

· placement

· scale

· contrast

· direction

· pointer

· diagrammatic structures

· tree structures

· rhythm

· unity

Before we examine the basic principles, let’s understand the role of the format. Format is a term that means two related things. The format is the defined perimeter as well as the field it encloses— the outer edges or boundaries of a design. No matter what shape or type of format, each component of the composition must form a significant relationship to the format’s boundaries. That page, where you make your first mark, not only has all that blank space/white space, but it also has edges to which each mark and graphic element should relate when applying the principles of design.

Balance is stability created by an even distribution of visual weight on each side of a central axis, as well as by an even distribution of weight among all the elements of the composition. When a design is balanced, it tends toward harmony with the viewer feeling level. The average viewer is adverse to imbalance in a composition and reacts negatively to instability. Balance is only one principle of composition and must work in conjunction with the other principles

One of the primary purposes of graphic design is to communicate information, and the principle of visual hierarchy is the primary force for organizing information and clarifying communication. To guide the viewer, the designer uses visual hierarchy, the arrangement of all graphic elements according to emphasis. Emphasis is the arrangement of visual elements according to importance, stressing some elements over others, making some superordinate (dominant) elements and subordinating other elements. Basically, the designer determines which graphic elements the viewer will see first, second, third, and so on.

The designer must determine what to emphasize and what to de-emphasize. It is important to remember that if you give emphasis to all elements in a design, you have given it to none of them; you will just end up with visual chaos.

To establish a visual hierarchy, decide on the importance of the graphic elements that are the component parts (visuals and type) of your design. Create a flow of information from the most important element to the least. There are several means to achieve emphasis:

Emphasis by Isolation

Isolating a shape focuses attention on it (focused attention = more visual weight).

Emphasis by Placement

Placing a graphic element at specific positions in a composition, such as the foreground, the top-left corner, or the center/middle of a page attracts most viewers’ gaze most easily.

Emphasis through Scale

The size and scale of shapes or objects play an important role in emphasis and creating the illusion of spatial depth. Used effectively, the size of one shape or object in relation to another—what we call scale—can make elements appear to move forward or backward on the page.

Emphasis through Contrast

Through contrast—light versus dark, smooth versus rough, bright versus dull—you can emphasize some graphic elements over others. Of course, contrast also depends on and is aided by size, scale, location, shape, and position.

Emphasis through Direction and Pointers Elements such as arrows and diagonals use direction to point viewers’ eyes to where they should go.

Emphasis through Diagrammatic Structures Tree Structures.

By positioning the main or superordinate element at the top with subordinated elements below it in descending order, hierarchical relationships are created. Another tree structure looks similar to a tree trunk with branches; subordinate elements stem out from the main element carried by lines.

In graphic design, a strong and consistent repetition, a pattern of elements can set up a rhythm, similar to a beat in music, which causes the viewer’s eyes to move around the page. Just as in music, a pattern can be established and then interrupted, slowed, or sped up. Rhythm—a sequence of visual elements at prescribed intervals—across multiple-page applications and motion graphics, such as book design, website design, and magazine design, is critical to developing a coherent visual flow from one page to another.

There are many ways to achieve unity where all the graphic elements in a design are so interrelated that they form a greater whole; all the graphic elements look as though they belong together. An ideal layout might be viewed as a composition of graphic elements so unified as a whole that it cannot be described merely as a sum of its parts. Most designers would agree viewers are able to best take in (understand and remember) a composition that is a unified whole.