|
|
| |
|
|
 |
|
 |
| |
It is often times difficult for people to be able to pick out "good" design from "bad" design. The personal
aesthetic standards of one person are often very different than those of another.
However, it is shocking to me how many pages are out there that are flat-out useless because of how poorly
organized or, frankly, ugly they are. There are some certain basic concepts that, if followed, will at least
keep your visual design "decent."
Use a grid. This has worked for print designers for centuries. Think of the page visitors will be looking
at as being comprised of invisible rows and columns of units of equal size. Make each "chunk" of the page be
bounded by the natural lines this grid creates.
Use simple shapes. In some fashion, using a grid will force a designer into this, as a grid-designed page's
constituent elements will all be rectangular. Regardless, it is wise to keep this principle in mind. If you
remember the shape from geometry class, it's probably okay.
Symmetry. Think of the page as a balance, with equal sides to the left and to the right. Two photographs and
several lines of text on one side with a single button on the other is likely to make the page off-balance.
Color. Don't use too many. If you find yourself using green, red, yellow, black, and blue at once on the same
page, rethink your approach. Establish a background color (that which your text or information will sit upon), a text
color (this should be as close to the inverse of the background color as possible), and a highlihgt color for other
background elements like buttons, lines, etc.
Consistency. This is really part of asking whether the site works or not, but
it is overlooked often enough that it bears mention. A site, from page to page, and from section to section, is,
really, a single "thing," and should look like it. The visitor should know they are on the same site as they
venture through different sections of it. The color scheme, the layout, and the language should remain consistent.
It might be allowable for any one of these to change (with a valid motivation), but any more than that is
unforgiveable.
|
|
 |
|
 |
| |
|
|
|
|
