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1 THSPA November 25, 2013 Topic: Basic Design Tips and Photoshop Helps 1. Layout Page layout is one of the most important graphic design disciplines. laurengregory laurengregorydesign.com Before you start laying out a paper or design project, be sure to read the copy or at least know what the main point is. Check with your printer on how he/she would prefer you to set up your document. Many printers will have a check list of how they would like for files to come to them. Remember to ask questions about bleeds, margins, color, etc. As a designer, your most important task is to help the viewer understand the information you re giving make sense. Whether it is a newspaper or another type of publication, the information must be given an order that allows the viewer to navigate it. This ordering is called Hierarchy. Layout Checklist - Hierarchy What are the parts of information to be designed? What part should be the reader s main focus of attention? Does the reader need to see a certain grouping of words before focusing on the main part? How do the parts that are the main focus relate to the part that is? Spell Check - Always use it!!!! On a Mac in InDesign and Illustrator with live fonts, the short cut is command(apple)+i. After you ve laid out your design, take the following steps to insure quality control. Print it out. It will be easier to notice problems or get a new perspective once it is printed. Have someone else review it. Time Saving Tip For quick layout ordering, rank your information as 1st, 2nd, and 3rd by numbering each item before you insert it into the design. Take some time away from it and come back to see it with fresh eyes. Full Bleed is when designers create pieces with color that goes right to the edge of the page, the document is actually designed for a larger page and then the final piece is trimmed by the printer. Whatever the piece is, get the specs from the printer or publisher because standard sizes can be much more affordable than custom work. Less is more. If you have some kind of idea that there s too much on your page; there is indeed to much on your page. Define what s really necessary and remove any visual noise. It may sound cliche but it s true: less is more. Stick to a grid. Working with grids is the key to any good design. Using it s proportional relations, composition guidelines for the base of your design is a good idea.

2 The Grid Continued...Don t always go for the standard 3-column setup. A 7 column setup offers a lot of playful combinations 2 column overlaps, a 3/3/1 setup with a sidebar and so on 2. Typography Choose a (one or two at maximum) type face that you can use consistently from cover to article. Remember to choose a font family with a variety of typefaces. Examples of font families with a variety of faces, Helvetica or Helvetica Neue. These include more than just regular, bold, italics. Do not stretch fonts Fonts become hard to read Look sloppy Use leading and kerning to adjust fonts as needed Leading - the space between letters Kerning - the space between the lines of type Creating Drop Caps Drop caps can be two, three, or four line drops. They usually mark the beginning of a new section. The drop cap s baseline sits one or more lines below the baseline of the first line of a paragraph. Here s how to create the drop cap: With the cursor anywhere in the paragraph, use the Control or Paragraph Panel to type a number in Drop Cap Number of Lines for the number of lines you want the drop cap to occupy. To drop cap one or more characters, type the number of enlarged characters you want. Point Size Kerning InDesign CS4 Mac Platform Note: If you want more control over the position of your drop cap, you can place it in a separate frame and then apply a text wrap. Leading

3 3. White Space White Space is the absence of text and graphics. Breaks up text and graphics Provides breathing room for the eye Lines of type are a lot closer together in newspapers than in other publications. Be sure to create the correct amount of space between lines of type in order to give the eye a visual rest. Add white space to make a page less cramped, confusing or overwhelming. Ideas for adding white space Increase paragraph spacing - Use a line of space or a deep indent (but not both) to put white space between paragraphs Increase space between columns of text - Alleys or gutters that are too narrow cause the eye to skip over to the next column. Put space at the end of the lines of text - Use ragged-right alignment to white space between columns and at the of lines Put more space around outer edges of page - use margins and gutters Leave room for graphics - do not run text right up on the graphic, leave plenty of room. By using the text wrap option in InDesign, you will be able to avoid your image and your text overlapping or colliding. Increase space around headlines Increase space between lines of type and individual characters - add space by increasing the leading of the body text, using a lighter type, avoid using tight kerning, and avoiding unending condensed or heavy type Don t be afraid to think outside the paper. The human mind fills in gaps and will see the bigger picture if you aim for it. Using the border of your paper can be great fun and another tool to work with. See the examples below: Obviously, this is not the final solution to all your design problems. It should help you to see that your work doesn t end at the edge of the paper.

4 4. Color Many times color within newspapers, color is reserved for photos. When there is an opportunity to use color within type, be sure to limit your color usage to two colors. Remember that black is the easiest to read on white or newsprint backgrounds. Overprinting can be a fun way to maximize your limited color pallet. Is your budget limiting you to only 2 Pantone(PMS) colors? No problem. Try to experiment with overprint options to get a look with more depth with a limited color palette. You can even work with photographs with only 2 Pantone s, just do them in duotone or monotone. There is a connection psychologically between colors and how they connect to the human experience. Black / Death White / Purity, Cleanliness Violet / Luxury, Authority Red / Hunger, Anger, Energy Blue / Water When choosing a color for specific words in comparison can add meaning by linking its association to the verbal message. Example: McDonald s Logo - Would it be as effective as Purple and Pink? When adding color to a piece, remember that there is such as thing as too many colors. The fewer colors used the better. If you have the opportunity to use a variety of colors. Here are some simple things to remember: Start with a limited color pallet Select just two or three complementary colors that work together. From these you might generate some lighter and darker shades of the same colors. Maybe an additional accent color can be added too. If you work within this pallet the overall page will be more coherent. You might reserve one color to call attention. If you use it sparingly, when you do use it, it will be stronger. It is important to remember that basic software programs often offer very bright, saturated colors by default. Selecting slightly darker, faded or less saturated colors can make your designs appear more sophisticated and reduce the electric appearance of the brightest colors. Remember that the color on screen and the color on paper vary, so do not be surprised when the color is not as you had it on screen. A way to try to fix this problem is to collaborate your screen with your printer.

5 5. Resolution - Photoshop Helper Be sure to ask your printer what size images are preferred before placing images. Typically for newspapers, the resolution is between dpi (dots per inch). You can change the setting of the image in Photoshop. To change you setting, go to the top bar to Images, then scroll down to Image Size and change your resolution to your desired size To resize an image with out distorting it, be sure your links are shown like the above example. This is the best way to reduce your images size without adjusting the image by hand. To change increase the size of your image, go back to your tool bar at the top and choose Image. Then select Canvas Size. This is where you should add more to your overall canvas. This is a great way to increase space without distorting your image. Here you can also check the Relative box to add space all the way around the image. You can also select and move the dark gray box to the corner you wish to remain the same and then apply all of the additional space to only three sides.

6 Be sure to ask your editor before layout if an image needs to be color (CMYK - Cyan Magenta Yellow Black) or gray scale (variations within black). To change an image from RBG, what most digital cameras and scanners produce, to CMYK, simply go to your top bar and select Images, then Mode and finally CMYK Color To change an image from RGB to Black and White, also known as Grayscale, follow the steps before but this time select Grayscale If you start with a low resolution image and make it larger, it will look blurry or pixilated. You should start with a high resolution image. 6. Cropping- Photoshop Helper Cropping is an easy way to make your image exactly the correct size and insures you are showing exactly what you want to in your piece. To crop an image, open it in Photoshop by either dragging a file directly into the icon on your desktop or going to the tool bar at the top to File and then Open. Select the image and press enter. Select the crop tool from the bar. It will look like this image. Next, take the tool and wrap it around the area you wish to see once the image is cropped. Press Enter and you ll see that you ve got a preview of the area. If you need to make any adjustments, drag one of the boxes in or out to change the box s shape. Once you ve got the crop your looking for, press Enter again. Now you ve got your image! TIP: Be sure to save this as another name than the original image, just in case you need the whole image or a different crop in the future.

7 7. Creating Duo or Monotone Images - Photoshop Helper Sometimes making gray scale images have a little color to them, changes the whole feel of an image. Open your image in Photoshop. Change it to a Grayscale image (see #5 for instructions). Next, go back to the same menu and you ll see Duotone as an option. Select it. First you will see a box come open with a black box. Above this box is a drop down menu where you can select Monotone, Duotone, etc. Select Duotone. Then, you will select either a Pantone color or a swatch. Either are ok for use, but check with your printer to see which one is most appropriate for your piece. Once you select this and your Preview Box is checked, you ll see your gray image have the color you selected. Click ok and you ll have your Duotone image. 8. Consistency With colors, type, and layout, consistency is key to creating design that holds together. Newsletters, newspapers, magazines or other publications are serial. Each issue is a single object, but the visual look of the publication must be consistently recognizable to its readership.

8 Learn to stay consistent through your piece by making style sheets. Below are instructions: Create Style Sheets (Go to WINDOW on your tool bar, select Type & Tables, select Paragraph Styles and/or Character Styles) Paragraph Styles - keep sections of type the same Character Styles - keep your fonts the same (By making these, your headings, subheadings, captions, etc. will be handled the same way throughout your document and look uniform.) By using your style sheets, you ll save yourself a lot of time laying out your piece. It will also help you in future issues of your publication. Another cool fact that can be learned in the Style Sheets are Shortcuts. Those are essential to saving even more time during the layout phase. For example, when you select your particular style, there is a box listed as Shortcut. Be sure to pick a combination of command /apple button + a numeral. This will allow you to quickly change type up without using the drop down menus. 9. Definitions Grids - the visible lines imposed on a layout that help bring coordination by providing guides for alignment or scale Gutter- the space between columns or text Hierarchy (visual hierarchy) - the arrangement of elements to guide viewers through them in a specific order Masthead - the credit box on the front of a publication, headed by the publication name and listing selected information such as publishers, editors, writers, and others, along with the publication s office address, subscription details, etc. San serif - a style of typeface without serifs, i.e. without ornamental strokes on the ends of characters. Common examples are Arial, Helvetica, Century Gothic and Verdana. Serif - a style of typeface with ornamental strokes on the ends of characters. Common examples are Times New Roman, Trajan Pro, Bookman Old Style and Garamond. Kerning - the space between lines of type

9 Leading - the space between letters Resolution - a measurement of the sharpness or amount of detail held within a digital file White Space - the absence of text and graphics Ragged-Right Alignment - refers to lines of text that are allowed to end naturally, leaving varying amounts of white space at the end of the lines rather than forcing it to line up flush with the margin Overprinting - the process of printing one color on top of another color