Response to Willams 1-6

The reading for today was from Robin William’s Non-Designer’s Design Handbook chapters 1-6. The first chapter when over some basic principles that are very important to keep in mind when designing the appearance or layout of a visual document. The four basic principles that were highlighted were contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity. All of these elements are interconnected and are used together to make up the easy to remember acronym CRAP.

Contrast is a very important visual element because the use of contrasting elements is what initially draws our eyes to the details. The main purpose is to create initial interest in whats being presented. Contrast is also a very effective way of organizing information, assuming that the contrasting elements are unique and meant to be separate from one another. Contrast can be implemented in a number of different ways including changing typeface, font size, color or a variety of other methods.

The use of repetition in visual design is also very useful and effectively strengthens or unifies the main ideas. The main idea being repetition is consistency, so that things that are related appear related and the overall flow or design of a piece doesn’t seem scattered and arbitrary. Repetition of key elements on a page effectively unifies those ideas, connecting them by their importance.

Alignment can be a very useful tool in visual design by creating a visual connection between seemingly unconnected data. The idea of unity is very important in visual design and utilizing effective alignment can connect various elements on a page making them more organized and of seemingly greater importance. The main goal of alignment is effective organization of related materials, while continuing to create contrast between unrelated materials.

The last basic principle that was discussed was the importance of proximity. The idea behind proximity is that elements that are in close proximity to one another become representative of a larger picture or idea, rather than being small individual elements. Items that are related or are of equal importance should be grouped in proximity to each other so that the info is quickly expressed and readily understood. A lack of proximity between related objects can cause confusion and a sense of disorganization. The idea is to organize related elements so that they can be quickly visualized as a whole and more readily understood.

I think that it is important to consider the design of something when creating a document or a visual piece because the difference between something that is well designed and something that isn’t could be the difference between your piece being interesting and understandable, or boring and confusing. I think that when it comes to professional writing design is even more important because often the information that you are trying to get across is of greater importance or significance. In my field of audio production and music design is extremely important because I am often trying to expose people to something that is unfamiliar, and if it doesn’t appear interesting or understandable then people wont take the time to process or understand it.