Basic design lessons

„Once you can name something, you’re conscious of it. You have power over it. You own it. You’re in control!“ 
Robin Williams

No, I am not talking about magic again (see last post), although most magic in novels follows exactly this principle:

„If you know the true name of XYZ you can command it to change form or to show where it is hidden, etc.“, whispered the wise beyond the limits of the Earth wizard <insert your favourite wizard’s name> in a gravely voice.

A few months ago I read the book „The non-designer’s design book“ by Robin Williams and recognised just what Robin described in the introduction. Since I know about design and typographic principles I cannot stop noticing where those principles are being ignored or violated. I also think I began to better design documents and presentation. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but (basic) design can be learned.

As the book is for „all the people who need to design pages, but have no background or formal training in design“ it was a perfect introduction for me. I learned about C. R. A. P. 🙂

• Contrast—Make elements, that are not the same very different.
• Repetition—Repeat visual elements of the design, thus, strengthening the unity of the piece.
• Alignment—Make elements visually connect with each other on the page.
• Proximity—Group related items close together.

Robin Williams illustrates the principles in great detail and—this is the most important part—with lots and lots of examples. The book has now its regular place on my desk where I can grab it easily when I need to be reminded or when I look for some ideas.