GRAPHIC DESIGN
VOCABULARY
Quarter 01
Week 01
balance - the placement of elements on the page so that the text and graphic elements are distributed in one of several methods but are visually pleasing.
symmetrical balance - when graphics and text are distributed equally using a central line or point
asymmetrical balance - when graphics and text are NOT distributed equally using a central line or point
radial balance - elements radiate from a central point, creating balance
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.
repetition - the process of repeating elements throughout a design, or several pieces of design collateral to give a unified look.
you can think of it as adding consistency to a design.
alignment - the position of text or graphics, whether left, right, centered or full justified
new designers often try to align everything in the center, but this produces a result that’s lacking visual appeal and is often considered amateurish or jejune.
proximity - the way in which design elements are grouped or spaced on a page. related items should be grouped together. items that are not related should not be close to each other. the process of grouping related information creates visual cues.
Week 02
line - used alone, lines can be rules or leaders used to separate, organize, emphasize, or provide a framework for the page. alone or as part of another graphic element, lines can create patterns, set a mood, provide visual texture, create movement, and define shapes
white/negative space - White space—sometimes called negative space—is the part of the design that is unmarked by imagery or text
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This is also called The Gestalt Theory. "Gestalt" is a principle of psychology that means "unified whole." In other words the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
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white/negative space - White space—sometimes called negative space—is the part of the design that is unmarked by imagery or text
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This is also called The Gestalt Theory. "Gestalt" is a principle of psychology that means "unified whole." In other words the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
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Similarity occurs when objects look similar to one another. People often perceive them as a group or pattern.The example above (containing 11 distinct objects) appears as as single unit because all of the shapes have similarity. Unity occurs because the triangular shapes at the bottom of the eagle symbol look similar to the shapes that form the sunburst.
When similarity occurs, an object can be emphasized if it is *dissimilar* (not like) to the others. This is called anomaly. The figure on the far right becomes a focal point because it is dissimilar to the other shapes.
This image uses complex figure/ground relationships which change upon perceiving leaves, water and tree trunk.
Similarity occurs when objects look similar to one another. People often perceive them as a group or pattern.The example above (containing 11 distinct objects) appears as as single unit because all of the shapes have similarity. Unity occurs because the triangular shapes at the bottom of the eagle symbol look similar to the shapes that form the sunburst.
Rule of Thirds - The rule of thirds is a technique that designers use to determine focal point. Using a grid of three rows and columns, focal points are indicated where the lines converge. Designers use this as a guide to determine where to place important elements in their designs
Rule of Thirds - The rule of thirds is a technique that designers use to determine focal point. Using a grid of three rows and columns, focal points are indicated where the lines converge. Designers use this as a guide to determine where to place important elements in their designs
grid - A grid is a series of intersecting vertical, horizontal, angular or curved lines used to organize graphic elements on a page, as well as in relation to one another.
hierarchy - In design, hierarchy is the organization of elements by level of importance. Newspapers, magazine spreads and movie posters are good examples of the use of design hierarchy. Headlines are usually placed at the top, while subheads and body copy fall underneath.
scale - Scale is the size of an object in relation to another object. Scale can be used to create interest and grab a viewer’s attention.
thumbnail sketch - When conceptualizing, a designer will often create small, rough drawings—thumbnail sketches—to explore many ideas.
mock up - A mock-up is a real or digital model used to test early design ideas and see how they could look in the real world
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Sadly the internet did not render the results I had hoped so you will have to endure looking at some hands-on in class.
mock up - A mock-up is a real or digital model used to test early design ideas and see how they could look in the real world
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Sadly the internet did not render the results I had hoped so you will have to endure looking at some hands-on in class.
Week 03
COLOR & COLOR THEORY
Primary Colors
Red, Yellow & Blue
Colors that cannot be made by mixing other colors together
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Secondary Colors
Orange, Green & Purple
Colors achieved by mixing two primary colors together
Warm Colors
Red, Yellow & Orange
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Cool Colors
Blue, Green & Purple
Saturation
Color intensity
The more saturated the color, the brighter it appears.
The more DESATURATED the color, the more pale it appears.
Hue, Tint, Tone & Shade
Hue is pure color.
Tint is a hue with white added.
Tone is a hue with gray added.
Shade is a hue with black added.
Analogous
Colors that are adjacent to one another on the color wheel (i.e. red violet, red and red orange) are analogous.
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Complementary
Complementary colors are opposites on the color wheel. This relationship will produce visual tension and “shock.”
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Triadic
Triadic colors are three colors evenly spaced on the color wheel. One colors dominates, the second supports, and the third accents.
CMYK
Cyan, Magenta, Yellow & Key (black)
Used for printed pieces. ANYTHING printed uses a CMYK color process.
Also called Subtractive Color because the color must bounce from the object to your eye in order for you to see the color.
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RGB
Red, Green, Blue
Used for anything backlit. Like your phone.
The computer. Your TV set.
Also called Additive Color because the only thing needed to be added is your eyes.
COLOR THEORY
The chart provided only addresses how color is perceived in Western society. In other places, colors mean different things.
Notice how colors can mean very different things - it is not that the colors themselves have meaning, it is that we have culturally assigned meanings to them.
For example, red means warmth because of the color of fire. It also means anger because of the increased redness of the face when it flushes with blood.
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(The emotions listed are not the ONLY emotions associated with these colors, this chart serves as a guide, not an absolute.)
COLOR SYSTEMS USED IN GRAPHIC DESIGN
Hue
The color itself.
The whole, entire freaking rainbow.
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Saturation
Color intensity
The more saturated the color, the brighter it appears.
The more DESATURATED the color, the more pale it appears.
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Brightness
(Best expressed with a light bulb)
0% brightness, the bulb is off = black
100% brightness, the bulb is on = very bright color
Hex
These are web-specific colors that use an HTML code to define their shades.
We will not be learning these but you are welcome to learn them on your own.
There are thousands.
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Pictured are the RGB colors and their immediate intersecting colors with codes.
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Gradient
Gradient is a gradual change from one color to another. (For example, blue transitioning gradually to green).
Opacity
Opacity is synonymous with non-transparency. The more transparent an image, the lower its opacity.
Monochromatic
Mono, meaning one
Chroma, meaning color
Monochromatic color schemes involve only one color but many variations.
Grey Scale
Uses mainly shades of grey but can include black and white, with black being the most intense grey and white being the least intense grey.
Week 04
Resolution - The detail of an image based on the number of pixels is known as resolution. A printed image looks more clear when it has a higher resolution.
DPI - DPI stands for “dots per inch,” which is a measure of a printer’s quality. For high-quality printing, 300dpi is recommended. For example, a 300dpi image at 1200×1800 pixels will become as a 4×6 inch print.
PPI - PPI stands for “pixels per inch,” which is a measure of pixel density used by electronic image devices. You’ll likely see this used with scanners, cameras, TVs or monitors.
Pixels - Pixels are square-shaped dots that make a digital raster image. The more pixels an image has, the higher its resolution.
Steve Jobs. Founder of Apple Computers. RIP 2011
The image on the left is what we call "pixelated" because you can see the squares of colors/shades that comprise the image.
The image on the right looks normal to our eyes because its resolution is higher.
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The lower the resolution, the fewer pixels that occupy a space.
The higher the resolution, the more pixels that occupy a space.
Bleed - Bleed is when a design actually extends past its printed edge so there’s no chance of white borders when it’s trimmed down after printing.
Trim - Trim size is the final size of a printed piece after it has been trimmed from its page. Trimming is executed along crop marks that show where to cut.
IT IS THE SIZE OF YOUR ART BOARD / PAPER.
Crop - A designer can cut out or crop unnecessary parts of an image to improve framing, highlight a specific subject or alter the image’s aspect ratio.
Week 05
Typeface & Font - A typeface comprises a family of fonts such as Garamond Regular, Garamond Italic, Garamond Bold, etc. A font is a specific weight or style within a typeface family, such as Garamond Italic.
Leading - (pronounced "ledding") refers to the space between lines of type in a body of text. It plays a major role in providing readability.
Kerning - Kerning is the adjustment of space between pairs of letters in the same word. Certain pairs of letters create awkward spaces, and kerning adds or subtracts space between them to create more visually appealing and readable text.
Tracking - Not to be confused with kerning, tracking is the adjustment of space for groups of letters and entire blocks of text. Tracking affects every character in the selected text and is used to change its overall appearance.
KINDS OF TYPE
Serif - Based on hand lettering with a wedge-tipped pen. The serifs of lower case letters are always at an angle. Because of the pen, the curved strokes in the letterforms have a "thick/thin transition". The thinnest parts of the curved strokes is called the stress.
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Sans Serif - The word "sans" means "without" so sans serif typefaces are those without serifs on the ends of the strokes. The idea of removing the strokes wasn't wildly popular until the early part of the twentieth century. They are "monoweight" meaning there is no stress.
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Script - Includes all typefaces that appear to have been hand lettered calligraphy pen or brush. Some connect, some do not, some look hand-printed, some look very fancy. We are going to lump all of those into the category of script for the purposes of this class.
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Decorative- Easy to identify because the thought of reading an entire document in that font makes you want to technicolor yawn, you can pretty well figure its a decorative font. They are great for limited use items depending on the font but you want to use them sparingly, not liberally.
Widows & Orphans - No. Not ladies who's husbands have passed away nor parentless children.
They are poor, lonely words at the beginning or end of a paragraph left dangling at the top or bottom of a column and separated from the rest of the paragraph.
Week 06
Lossy Compression -
Lossy file compression results in lost data and quality from the original version. Lossy compression is typically associated with image files, such as JPGs. The "lossyness" of an image file may show up as jagged edges or pixelated areas.
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Because lossy compression removes data from the original file, the resulting file often takes up much less disk space than the original. For example, a JPEG image may reduce an image's file size by more than 80%, with little noticeable effect.
The JPEG compression removes data from the original file, which may be noticeable upon close examination. The compression algorithms allow for various "quality settings," which determine how compressed the file will be. The quality setting involves a trade-off between quality and file size. A file that uses greater compression will take up less space, but may not look or sound as good as a less compressed file.
Lossless Compression -
In short, it loses nothing in compression because the pixels are not reinterpreted by the application generating the file type. Produces no artifact.
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Lossless compression basically rewrites the data of the original file in a more efficient way. However, because no quality is lost, the resulting files are typically much larger than image files compressed with lossy compression.
Week 07
Anchor Point - allows the user to manipulate a path’s shape or direction by clicking the point and moving it in a direction. They appear along the beginning of a path, at every curve, and at the end of a path. You can also add or subtract anchor points on a path.
Canvas Size - Allows you to change the complete size of the document without adjusting the contents of the document
Drop Shadow - a visual effect added to an image to give the impression the image is raised above the background by duplicating the shadow
Focal Point - where you want to draw the reader’s or viewer’s eye
Gutter - space between 2 or more columns of text
Header - text which appears at the top of a printed page
Margins - Guidelines in a page layout software that shows a user the body copy areas. It also allows the user to indicate the dimensions. Margins are not supposed to be printed.
Rasterize - to change a vector graphic to a raster graphic, in most cases for the purpose of uploading it to the internet
Text Wrap - way text can be shaped around the edges of images
Week 08
REVIEW - We are going to have a week long review of ALL of the vocabulary words we have studied. Be prepared to have a quiz then a 2-part exam in Week 09.