Three basic design principles to help you create stunning visual content.
So you want to create awesome images that get attention and, more importantly, get shared?
You’re not a designer though? Is that right?
Well strap in, because you’re going to get a crash course in visual design without any fluff. Plain, simple, practical design principles to get you creating fast.
I recently was the guest for #BufferChat where I was asked what the most important “design rules” to follow were. My answer was balance, framing, and contrast.
If you understand these three fundamental concepts you can create stunning visual content that people will love.
Balance is Beauty
Our brains are programmed to see symmetry as beauty. But when it comes to visual design both traditional symmetry and asymmetry can both be beautiful as long as a balance exists.
Let’s apply this concept to creating social visual content.
When creating a piece of visual content you usually have a combination of the following elements:
- background image/photo
- text/title/tagline
- logo/watermark/branding
Assuming your background image/photo was obtained from a high-quality source (like the ones mentioned in my Best Places to Find Free Images), the photographer has probably already taken the time to balance out the shot. All you need to do is position your text and/or branding in a way that doesn’t unbalance the visual aesthetic.
Start by imagining (or use a visual creation tool to impose) guidelines marking out where the center of the image is.
Then you’ll be able to see where the subject or focal point of the image is and add your text in such a way as to balance it out.
Example:
Okay, that one is pretty easy because the image is already perfectly symmetrical. So all you need to do is put your text in the center and call it a day.
But what happens if your background image isn’t perfectly symmetrical?
I’m glad you asked!
Asymmetry can be just as beautiful as symmetry as long as you balance it all out. Think of it like a set of scales. If the subject or focal point in the background photo are on the left side, then when you add your text you’ll want to put it on the right side.
In the example above, you see that the car is the subject of this background photo. The subject covers the top-left portion of the image so to balance it out with our elements we put them in the bottom right.
Here’s a few more examples to help you get the hang of it:
It doesn’t always have to be an exact science, but just remember to try and maintain the illusion of visual balance.
If the image isn’t balanced it can give the impression of instability making the on-looker feel like something is wrong. If you’re trying to evoke a feeling of instability or something similar, then go ahead and throw balance out the window.
But if you want your image to communicate beautifully, create visual balance between the photo/background and the text/logo elements.
#VisualContent #ProTip: Create visual balance between background & text elements.Click To TweetMake sense? Good, let’s move on.
Framing the Photo
What I call framing is essentially creating an invisible frame around the outer most part of your image in which no elements are touching. Think of this as your non-negotiable white-space.
In the image above I’ve made my framing area red so you can see how I’ve applied it to the templates you’ve already seen.
Framing is especially important when you’re placing elements close to the edge of an image. If everything is in the middle you usually don’t need to worry.
In order to process imagery, our brain immediately looks for structure— something we can grasp on to. If our brains can instantaneously identify the structure we can interpret what we’re seeing quicker and with more ease.
This also ties back into balance.
Consistent spacing of elements (or in other words, framing) displays a set structure.
Notice how when you first see the image without the frame, your brain has already identified where the frame is.
When you place text or watermarks too close to the edge (or right against the edge) of an image it feels constricting. For people who are claustrophobic (or overly OCD designers like myself), it can cause tension.
When the framing is inconsistent it can also throw off the balance which takes us back to square one.
#VisualContent #ProTip: Frame your images and text, giving clear-cut and consistent spacing for all text elements.Click To TweetIf you’ve already downloaded my social media image templates then you’ll notice I’ve included the guidelines for the framing area for you. You’re welcome. 😉
Contrast is Key
Contrast is probably the hardest concept to explain. So let me start with a visual:
Contrast is most easily explained as the difference between two or more things. When it comes to visuals, we’re talking about the visual distinction between the background and the subject matter. The closer the two elements are to blending in, the lower the contrast. The lower the contrast, the harder they are to distinguish.
In the context of visual content and social media images your goal is to communicate a message. If that message is difficult to read, you’re shooting yourself in the foot.
When working with photo backgrounds though, it can sometimes be easy to accidentally position your text in a way that makes it difficult to read.
Before finalizing your images always be sure that they’re fully readable. You may need to play with the text color a bit or even move the text around to ensure it doesn’t disappear into the background.
Bonus tip: One of the easiest ways to create good contrast is to add a semi-transparent layer of black (or any dark color) between the background image and text.
Conclusion
If you manage to create an image with balance, framing and good contrast then your message will not only be effective, but beautiful as well.
As always, practice makes perfect so give it a go. Have some fun. Use one of my recommended mobile apps for visual content or one of the desktop apps that I’ve recommended as well.
In the comments below, share some visual content pieces you’ve created! You can leave a comment by clicking here.
Adaeze says
01.13.19 at 6:12 AMThanks for making this post and sharing of this knowledge
Dustin W. Stout says
01.13.19 at 10:49 AMYou’re very welcome!
Mike Jackson says
09.08.18 at 4:57 AMThis is a great post about visual content design. I love your post so much and many many thanks for sharing with us.
Dustin W. Stout says
09.08.18 at 11:02 AMYou’re welcome, Mike!
Kim says
01.11.17 at 12:51 PMD’oh! There’s a typo in your opening header graphic. Flip the c and the i in Principles. 😀
Nice content. Thank you!
Dustin W. Stout says
01.11.17 at 1:57 PMGah! Thank you! I recently changed up the title for some SEO split-testing and didn’t catch that.
Cat says
11.15.16 at 11:28 AMHi Dustin,
This is great, thank you! I was just wondering if you think that pictures included in a more casual piece like a blog e.g., should follow these rules as well. I’m just starting to get serious about creating mine and I also love photography and would probably use mostly my own images, but nevertheless, I don’t know if you think it calls for it. Thanks for your advice! Cat
Dustin W. Stout says
11.15.16 at 5:47 PMWhat I’m mostly talking about here is visuals that have text and/or CTA elements. And these principles are the basis for good visual design, regardless of whether it’s casual or not. So if you’re just posting a plain image, then I guess these rules wouldn’t apply.
Harry says
05.09.16 at 12:20 AMGreat tips Dustin, It’s like magic mantra for visual & graphic designers. You have explained “Balance, Framing and Contrast” is super cool way with perfect example. The people with artistic background certainly have ideas of all these techniques, but for a designer, who doesn’t have any art background will be benefitted from your post. Thanks a lot. Keep it up.
Dustin W. Stout says
05.09.16 at 6:23 PMGlad you liked it Harry! What are you working on where you’ll be applying these principles?
Dawn Metcalf says
10.14.15 at 1:05 PMThanks for sharing these simple but important aspects of design in a way that most anyone can understand!
Dustin W. Stout says
10.21.15 at 7:53 PMYou’re welcome Dawn! 😀
Shameika says
10.06.15 at 1:18 PMThank you for this, especially that tip of a semi-transparent dark layer!
I have started as a digital marketing manager with a small start up, and am expected to use my knowledge from college and I alone am the entire marketing department, so there is plenty of pressure. This has helped a lot! Thanks!
Dustin W. Stout says
10.06.15 at 2:15 PMHaha! I’m so glad you found it useful Shameika! 😀
Donato Esparrago says
08.19.15 at 3:42 AMThank you for sharing your knowledge.
Dustin W. Stout says
08.19.15 at 10:13 AMYou’re welcome Donato!
Ina says
06.27.15 at 4:26 PMGreat tips Dustin! This is going to help me out so much since I’m still trying to create a logo for my blog Chictales.com.
Dustin W. Stout says
06.27.15 at 9:51 PMAwesome Ina! You may want to check out my post on Choosing Your Brand Colors. I haven’t yet written a post about logo design, but I have a loose idea drafted for it.
Sylvia says
05.16.15 at 11:39 AMAwesome! Very Helpful and clear!
Bravo
Sylvia
Brown says
02.10.15 at 3:21 PMBookmarked this post. I struggle sometimes with balance so your tip on breaking up the image really helps.
In the hangout, you talked about if the text is still hard to see on the image, to use a brown or black semi-transparent layer over an image then add the text over it. I sometimes use a semi-transparent shape over the background which doesn’t cover the whole image. Wha’s your opinion? Should the transparent layer be over the entire image so it wouldn’t be distracting to the eye?
Here’s an example of mine:
https://www.canva.com/design/DABHvv0nP3c/Uhbzqimpopz-OYiwsBeGxw/view?&utm_content=DABHvv0nP3c&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link&utm_source=sharebutton&cc_from_uid=UABCXaLTt8I
Dustin W. Stout says
02.10.15 at 11:55 PMI think that works great Brown! Shapes are a great way to frame the text to further separate it from the background.
Brown says
02.11.15 at 12:11 AMThanks Dustin for your help. You cleared that up for me.
Steve Chavis says
12.29.14 at 2:45 PMDustin, this may be beyond the scope of your great article and I’m no designer, but I have been playing with perspective and using GIMP to create some designs. On this particular image, i attempted to make the text look like it was painted on the street. What is your opinion of it?
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BzQtWsEoS9RFcjlPRms3MExSWVE/view?usp=sharing
Dustin W. Stout says
12.30.14 at 12:23 PMThanks for commenting Steve! My first thought– I would miss it if I weren’t looking for it. When I did find it, I couldn’t read it because the contrast is too low and the letters are too squished together. Make the text white and see if that works better. If you look at the street area around the text, everything else painted on the ground is painted in white anyways, so it makes more sense.
Steve Chavis says
01.02.15 at 9:58 PMThanks for the tip!
Ty Cahill says
12.24.14 at 9:52 AMVery good information!
Regarding contrast, the white text on a red background has very good contrast, but black/white still provides the *best* contrast. Some people with color blindness will see the red more as brown. We can’t forget the people who have trouble seeing color.
Dustin W. Stout says
12.24.14 at 11:02 AMAbsolutely right Ty! I will sometimes (time allowing) run images through this color blindness simulator. Do you use anything similar?
Elene Marsden says
12.22.14 at 2:26 AMI loved your section on balance-it made so much sense to me and will influence my “creations” in future. Thanks so much.
Dustin W. Stout says
12.22.14 at 9:20 AMMy pleasure Elene! 😀
Laura says
12.19.14 at 6:03 AMThanks for the tutorial on balance, image and framing (found it through MaAnna Stephenson’s BlogAid mention). My best example of trying to do all 3 of those is this Slideshare I created last year (my first of many now) which put text on quite a few images. The framing and balance was sometimes a challenge! http://www.slideshare.net/WarrenBerger/questolutionsa-way-to-make-your-resolutions-stick
Dustin W. Stout says
12.19.14 at 11:06 PMReally great slideshare Laura! Loved it!
Renee says
12.16.14 at 4:15 PMGreat tips and very easy to read Dustin. The visuals are great!
Dustin W. Stout says
12.16.14 at 9:10 PMThank you Renee! So glad you liked it!
Greg Savage says
12.16.14 at 2:13 PMHi Dustin,
thanks for this post, it’s really put a lot into perspective for me. Can’t wait to read more on this topic. This is where I struggle most.
Dustin W. Stout says
12.16.14 at 2:54 PMAwesome Greg! Glad this was helpful for you!
Sam Kneller says
12.16.14 at 12:13 PMSimple and efficient with illustrative examples. Way to go. Merci.
Dustin W. Stout says
12.16.14 at 9:09 PMThank you Sam!
Mohammad umair says
12.16.14 at 2:18 AMI’m a content marketer and usually need images for blog posts which mostly include those taken from the net.
This is more than a handy guide to not only work with the existing photos but create original ones too.
Thank you Dustin
Dustin W. Stout says
12.16.14 at 11:37 AMI’m glad you liked it Mohammad! You may also like to read my Best Places to Find Free Images & Photos Online post if you haven’t already read it.
mohammad umair says
12.18.14 at 8:34 PMYes Dustin. I have gone through almost entire “Creativity” section of your site. You create wonderful content.
Thanks.
Soumya Roy says
12.15.14 at 4:56 AMVery helpful tips Dustin. I am a small city entrepreneur and you know, being a bootstrapped entrepreneur, it is not always possible to go to a designer. I learned web designing using internet but as we all know creativity can’t be taught and I seriously lack on that part.
Your tips and shared resource will always be a great help for me and will follow these three rules of great visual designs. 🙂
Thanks for sharing.
Dustin W. Stout says
12.15.14 at 8:01 AMAwesome Soumya! Growing up in a small town, I have a lot of respect for small town entrepreneurs. Always keep learning my friend!
And I think creativity can be taught, but it’s much easier to be grown like a muscle. Practicing and practicing.
Krista Wiltbank says
12.14.14 at 5:40 PMSo those are the terms you designers use. I’ll mentally file those away to make me sound smart to my designer co-workers. 🙂
Seriously, this is really helpful information. A lot of what you describe is almost instinctual – someone with a decent eye will be able to grasp the concepts even without having words to describe why they’re making certain design decisions – but it’s really great to have the terms defined and described for the non-designers.
I’m definitely adding you to my must-read list!
Dustin W. Stout says
12.14.14 at 6:21 PMHaha Krista! I don’t know if all designers use those terms, but they’re definitely the ones I use because they seem to make sense to those I try to explain them to.
I’m so glad you found it helpful! I intentionally crafted this post so that it was both easy and actionable.
You’re absolutely right about the instinctual aspect. For a professional artist or designer, these things are common sense and usually taken for granted. But to be able to articulate these fundamentals to clients or students is an essential part of a designer’s skillset. Most designers though, since they take this stuff for granted, can’t properly articulate them.
Rob Newman says
01.13.15 at 1:26 PMI agree, Krista. For someone who is artistic these tips are probably instinctive. I also found Dustin’s post helpful. I’m analytic and a nerd. ha!
These tips will help when I’m putting text or a logo on an image.
Thanks Dustin, you did a good job of communicating artistic concepts with practical tips.
Cheers,
Rob
Dustin W. Stout says
01.15.15 at 9:06 AMI’m so glad you found it useful Rob! Rock on!
Jeff Sieh says
12.14.14 at 9:38 AMGreat tips Dustin! A lot of these tips can apply to producing great video as well. Definitely bookmarking this one!
Dustin W. Stout says
12.14.14 at 4:25 PMThanks Jeff! And you’re absolutely right– videography, photography, and graphic design have a lot of crossover when it comes to fundamental principles.