Understanding Colour

Colour theory: it's a powerful design principle that helps us understand why some colours
work together and others just don't. Think of colour as a wheel. Analogous colours are
adjacent on the wheel, complementary colours are opposite. Monochromatic colour
schemes involve one colour made lighter or darker. But things get interesting when we mix
it up; split complementary schemes, for example, involve three colours and tetradic
schemes four. Colour has a profound effect on the user experience. It can attract and focus
attention, convey meaning and influence what we think and how we feel. You can use
colours from nature and design or experiment with unusual combinations to tell unique
stories. Colour theory means anyone can master hue in everything they do. So, whether
you're designing shoes, book covers or buildings, having a basic understanding of the rules
that govern colour could leave your audience, tickled pink.

 Color can attract and focus attention, convey meaning and influence what we think
and how we feel.
 Color theory is a powerful design principle that helps us understand why some colors
work together and others just don’t.
 If we ignore color and we do not pay attention to the way we use color, what we
may tend to do is to exclude certain people.

Understanding Visual Balance

Balance, it's when things aren't too big or too small, but just right, making it obvious which
elements of an image, or a song, or a plate of food are most important. Balance is an
important design principle because the things we see or hear, or taste have weight so how
they're distributed matters. The dynamic interplay of shapes, colors and type elements
influences how we view and absorb information. Balance makes the message clear.
Designers achieve balance through symmetry, the even distribution of objects on either side
of an axis. And asymmetry, or informal balance, the offsetting of a dominant form by smaller
complementary forms. Balance is aided by space because objects have greater impact when
given the room to breathe. Balance is a design principle that's present in all areas of design.
It transforms the lopsided into the perfectly poised.

composition plays a big part, framing, distance. All these have to work with each other to
create balance within an image.

balance is important in photography and design because it has to be readable. Without

balance, there is nothing to focus on. You're making it clear what to focus on. You're giving a
bridge between the viewer and how you want to see your work.

 Balance makes it obvious which elements of an image are most important and which
elements to focus on.
 Designers achieve balance through symmetry, the even distribution of objects on
either side of an axis, and asymmetry or informal balance, the offsetting of a
dominant form by smaller complementary forms.
  Balance is aided by space because objects have greater impact when given the room
to breathe.
 Composition, framing, and distance have to work with each other to create balance
within an image.

Understanding Proportion
Proportion is the relationship between design elements; text and images, glass and steel.
The size and placement of objects within a design can make them seem larger or smaller.
But when proportion is applied, the result is a pleasing sense of equilibrium. Proportion
impacts the user experience. Architects create large imposing structures to inspire awe and
reverence. But people who design playgrounds, install scaled down vehicles, to give children
a sense of empowerment. Cartoonists play with the proportions of the human body for
comic effect. Anyone can master proportion, using math and the Fibonacci sequence with
each number the sum of the previous two. Or geometry, creating shapes or objects that fit
perfectly into the golden ratio. Proportion can also be achieved in design by choosing a
consistent visual style or color palette. But if proportion as a design principle teaches us
anything, it's that size really does matter.
Proportion guides the relationship between elements in design and helps to create an
equilibrium resulting in a positive user experience. Once a design is proportional, you can
modify the elements like scale and color to change how the viewer or user perceives your
work.
Proportion relates to a sense of visual hierarchy, selling points on your mobile app, website,
product or service are generally bigger. So, if you really want to get someone's attention,
you will make that bigger.
Proportion, as a design principle, is imperative for any good user experience. It consists of
the measurements, dimensions and proportion, especially in terms of how much white
space you want to use. The colors, UI elements, specific iconography, which you want to use
throughout and getting all those right and not having too much of one thing over another
and ensuring that it's a clear layout for your end users. So, consistency, transparency and
personalization. They all interlink with proportion. You don't want every single page looking
the exact same in terms of its overall layout. You want it to be consistent, but still let people
know that they're on a different page and they're interacting with a different service.
Proportion is so important in design, because without it, how can you build a usable
product, service, website or mobile application? Someone would look at your particular
product and just be like, whoa, where do I go? None of this makes sense. You have to
ensure that it's consistent and you have to ensure that it will obviously mean something to
your end users.
https://app.sophia.org/tutorials/design-in-art-scale-and-proportion
https://visscom.wordpress.com/2013/04/14/principle-of-proportion/
Understanding the Rules of Thirds
Rule of thirds is a design principle that applies to composition. By composing an image using
the rule of thirds, designers draw the viewers eye to a point of interest, even if there's lots
of things going on around it. Rule of thirds is easy to follow. Designers use a grid structure to
divide images into nine parts. The points where the vertical and horizontal lines meet are
where your focal point should be. Artists have been using rule of thirds for centuries,
because things that come in threes just work. Three characters create conflict, three acts
complete a play. We see rule of thirds in oratory, architecture and advertising. You can use
rule of thirds as a guide to compose images, create interest and engage the viewer. But
remember, it's not a hard and fast rule. Rules after all are made to be broken.
https://blog.thepapermillstore.com/design-principles-rule-of-thirds/
https://www.companyfolders.com/blog/rule-of-thirds-graphic-design

 Pixabay
 Unsplash
 Pexels
 The noun project

Alignment, the positioning of elements relative to each other and proximity, the distance
between those elements are design principles that go hand-in-hand. Alignment and
proximity bring order to design. They help us consume information, because text that is
arranged in columns is easier to read. Alignment and proximity aid aesthetics. The look and
feel of a design and functionality.

https://www.edgee.net/the-principles-of-graphic-design-how-to-use-proximity-effectively/

https://blog.thepapermillstore.com/design-principles-alignment/

Understanding Repetition

Repetition. It's common in nature and in design. Artists use repeated motifs in their work to
create patterns. Patterns make a design seem active and engage viewers with multiple
points of interest. Repetition also creates emphasis by drawing the eye toward a focal point
and can be useful in presenting consumers with lots of information. There are two styles of
repetition in design, regular or irregular, even or uneven. We see these styles in fashion and
interiors, branding and even music production. Repetition can unify a body of work by
creating harmony and cohesion across design elements and can help users to build up visual
associations, as they navigate their way through a document or interface. Repetition and
pattern are powerful design principles, that can make even the most mundane objects stand
apart. But repetition should be handled with care, only the bravest mix and match.

https://www.edgee.net/the-principles-of-graphic-design-how-to-use-repetition-effectively/

https://www.johnlovett.com/repetition

Consistency

 Consistency is an important design principle. When a product looks, acts, and

functions as it should every time, that inspires confidence in viewers and keeps them
coming back for more.
 Consistency ensures that every part of a design looks, feels, and operates the way it
should. It’s the invisible thread that ties a successful design together.
  Consistency is about patterns and rhythms and establishing those in a way that lets
people that are viewing your design or using your design understand how to get
through it and understand how to use it. Simply, it’s making sure it makes sense to
them.

https://designshack.net/articles/graphics/7-tips-for-designing-consistency/

https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/article/principle-of-consistency-and-
standards-in-user-interface-design