VISUAL DESIGN

BASICS

What: product, service or event 
When: launching soon, happening now or an exact date 
Where: venue or location 
Who: Brand 
Why: Value 

INTERESTING  
Who are you 
What's your story
When did you start 
Where do you work 
Why do you do it   ​
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BOOKS AND LINKS
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​​Create your Adobe Creative Cloud account HERE, it's Free.

​Non Designers Design Book

Usability Basics 

Instagram Designers 

Behance Designers 

​PiktoChart Templates 

GIMP 

PIXLR

SumoPaint 

Krita 

Pixelmator 

More Templates 
Canva online 
Canva iOS 

Adobe Spark 

Adobe Spark Video 

Adobe Photoshop Mix 

Adobe Photoshop Express 

Adobe Comp CC 


​STOCK PHOTOGRAPHY 

​Pexels

Unsplash

Life of Pix

SplitShire

73 Best Stock Photo Sites



ARCHETYPES  

12 Types 

Principles

1. BALANCE – Balance in design is similar to balance in physics. A large shape close to the center can be balanced by a small shape close to the edge. Balance provides stability and structure to a design. It’s the weight distributed in the design by the placement of your elements.
2. PROXIMITY – Proximity creates relationship between elements. It provides a focal point. Proximity doesn’t mean that elements have to be placed together, it means they should be visually connected in someway.
3. ALIGNMENT – Allows us to create order and organisation. Aligning elements allows them to create a visual connection with each other.
4. REPETITION – Repetition strengthens a design by tying together individual elements. It helps to create association and consistency. Repetition can create rhythm (a feeling of organized movement).
5. CONTRAST – Contrast is the juxtaposition of opposing elements (opposite colours on the colour wheel, or value light / dark, or direction – horizontal / vertical). Contrast allows us to emphasize or highlight key elements in your design.
6. SPACE – Space in art refers to the distance or area between, around, above, below, or within elements. Both positive and negative space are important factors to be considered in every design.

Elements

• LINE – The linear marks made with a pen or brush or the edge created when two shapes meet.
• SHAPE – A shape is a self contained defined area of geometric (squares and circles), or organic (free formed shapes or natural shapes). A positive shape automatically creates a negative shape.
• DIRECTION – All lines have direction – Horizontal, Vertical or Oblique. Horizontal suggests calmness, stability and tranquillity. Vertical gives a feeling of balance, formality and alertness. Oblique suggests movement and action
• SIZE – Size is simply the relationship of the area occupied by one shape to that of another.
• TEXTURE – Texture is the surface quality of a shape – rough, smooth, soft hard glossy etc.
• COLOUR – Colour is light reflected off objects. Color has three main characteristics: hue or its name (red, green, blue, etc.), value (how light or dark it is), and intensity (how bright or dull it is).

extra visual design tips: 

​1. Stop using so much text

Text can get really overwhelming really quickly.

​The point of using visuals is to let colors, shapes, and textures do the heavy lifting. 
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​As seen in these examples, when designing with images always place your text within empty copy space.

​This will make your type easily readable, easily digestible, and ultimately more sharable.


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2. Use high quality stock photography

The quality of graphics you promote on social media are are a reflection of your brand itself. 

​A good stock image not only grabs you consumers’ attention, but it can also boost your brand’s credibility and professionalism.

​Not that many people are going to trust a brand that uses grainy, awkward and cheesy images, especially not when competitor brands use stunningly cheese-free stock images.

3. Use a range of visual content

There’s no doubt that visual content is the most powerful way to engage fans on social media. But they don’t want to see the same thing over and over again. How to solve this problem? Create a variety. Here’s four types of strategy:

Quote graphics
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Quote graphics help your fans connect with the meaning and message of your brand – not just your product.

Infographics
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Storytelling is one of the most compelling ways to engage your audience with your brand, and infographics allow you to do this in a visually captivating way.

Screenshots
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If a customer has a question about doing something, why not take a screenshot to answer a FAQ on your social media page? Or use screenshots to give a sneak peek on something you’re working on. It makes the fan/ follower feel like they are getting exclusive information.
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Photography
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Show off your photography skills. Whether you’re on Instagram or Twitter, a great way to bring people into your world is through your own photos that you snap. With all of the great apps available through smartphones, you’re able to take photos on the fly and share them with your audience just as easily.

4. Tap into visual trends

Are you afraid that your visual content won’t look hip enough? Pinterest research.

​You can also use Pinterest to discover what graphics are resonating with the audience by its number of re­pins.
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​Notice how the middle pin has almost 18,000 repins. It’s simple black and white, with no background image, and it works because of the message is about not sugar coating. Also take note that “but never” is visually emphasized.
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Remember graphics don’t need to be complicated to be impactful. In fact, the simpler the better. The current trend is to strip away any elements that compete with your message.

5. Brand your graphics
The point of creating highly shareable social media graphics is to drive people back to your site. There’s nothing worse than finding an informative graphic, and wanting to get more information from the publisher, but not knowing where it came from.

Make sure that you always, without a doubt, add a watermark to your graphics. And no, it doesn’t have to be an obnoxious, full color logo sticker. A simple link to your website towards the bottom of your graphic will answer the need for branding.

Also, don’t forget about templates. No matter if you’re using quotes, infographics, photographs, or other elements, be sure to create a template for the sake of consistency. When you follow a graphic template, your followers will instantly know it’s you without having to see your name (but you should still add your name anyway).
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Consider using the same font type and size, the same emotional message (happiness, silliness, charity), and similar filters for all of your visual content. With a template, you won’t forget what font you used, and you’ll have a stronger visual impression with your audience.

Color Palettes: What is your brand about? Is it young and friendly? Consider vibrant colors like orange or yellow. Is it about trust and dependability? Make blue your stand out color.
Define and use these colors in your fonts and your image borders. Here’s a few color palettes to inspire you:

Font Combinations: Take two or three fonts and mix them up for visual interest. There’s no right or wrong font combination, unless you use Comic Sans (which is always wrong), but try to go with a combination of Serif and Sans Serif fonts. Here’s what I’m talking about:

Filters: If your color is wonky or you just want to add a romantic flair to your photos, filters can enhance and elevate. Adding some carefully selected filters can highlight and add a nice touch to your original images, making them twice as appealing and shareable. Take a look at what we’re able to do with one photo using four filters:

Want More?! 
Ok, I got you. Here's a Cheat Sheet Infographic on the minimum image sizes for social media. Check it!