Design Principles:
How to Create a
Professional
Magazine Layout
Balance between visual and text
Professional
designers strike the perfect
balance between text and image.
Using
powerful Designing Software tools, you
can use techniques that help you set and
arrange a magazine layout.
Compositional Balance, Symmetry
and Asymmetry.
A balanced composition feels right. It feels stable and
aesthetically pleasing. While some of its elements
might be focal points and attract your eye, no one
area of the composition draws your eye so much that
you cant see the other areas.
Balancing a composition involves arranging both
positive elements and negative space in such a way
that no one area of the design overpowers other
areas. Everything works together and fits together in a
seamless whole. The individual parts contribute to
their sum but dont try to become the sum.
Unbalanced composition
If a design is unbalanced, the individual elements dominate the
whole and the composition becomes less than the sum of its
parts. In some projects, unbalanced might be right for the
message youre trying to communicate, but generally you want
balanced compositions.
Visual weight
This is the perceived weight of a visual element. Its a measure
of how much anything on the page attracts the eye of the
viewer.
Visual direction
This is the perceived direction of a visual force. Its the direction
in which we think an element should be moving if it were given
a chance to move according to the forces acting on it.
Four Types Of Balance (1)
Theres more than one way to balance a composition
Symmetrical
balance : when equal weights are on equal
sides of a composition, balanced around a fulcrum or axis
in the center. Symmetrical balance evokes feelings of
formality and elegance.
Four Types of Balance (2)
Asymmetrical balanceresults from unequal visual
weight on each side of the composition. One side of
the composition might contain a dominant element,
which could be balanced by a couple or more lesser
focal points on the other side. Asymmetrical balance is
more dynamic and interesting. It evokes feelings of
modernism, movement, energy and vitality.
Four Types of Balance (3)
Radial balanceoccurs when elements radiate from a
common center. Rays of sunlight and ripples in a pond after a
stone is tossed in are examples of radial balance. Maintaining
a focal point (fulcrum) is easy because its always the center.
Because everything radiates from a common center,
everything also leads to that center, making it a strong point
of attraction.
Four Types of Balance (4)
Mosaic balance(or crystallographic balance) results
from balanced chaos. Think Jackson Pollack paintings.
The composition lacks distinct focal points, and the
elements share a uniform emphasis. The lack of
hierarchy leads to visual noise at first glance.
Somehow, though, it all works together.
Symmetry: Three primary
types
1.
Reflection symmetry(or bilateral symmetry) occurs when everything
is mirrored around a central axis. When the reflection is a perfect mirror
image, the symmetry is said to be pure. Much of the time it wont be
perfect and each side will have slight variations. This is near symmetry,
and its more common than pure symmetry.
2.
Rotational symmetry(or radial symmetry) occurs when everything
rotates around a common center. It can occur at any angle or frequency,
as long as theres a common center. Rotation without reflection can be
used to show motion, speed or dynamic action.
3.
Translational symmetry(or crystallographic symmetry) occurs when
elements are repeated over different locations in space. Natural forms
develop translational symmetry through reproduction. Rhythm, motion,
speed and dynamic action are created through translation symmetry.
Thebutterflyis an example of reflection symmetry, thefence
posts show translation symmetry, and thesunfloweris an
example of radial symmetry.
Steps in Magazine layouting
1. Set up the document
Start with setting the number of pages to 8, the bleed to 2 mm so
we have some space for images to overlap, the margins to 10 mm
for top and bottom, the inside margin to 13 mm and the outside
margin to 20 mm. The reason for these different margins is that in a
spread with 2 pages a slightly larger margin on the outside of the
page looks better and provides space to hold the printed version.
2. Create a grid
A grid is used to keep consistency in the page layout and provides a
framework for positioning content. A well-used grid is the first thing
you need to give your layout a professional look.
Steps in Magazine layouting
3. Place a background
When creating a magazine layout,
you'll want to keep a good balance
between the white space, images
and text. A good technique is to use
an image with a lot of 'empty'
space, space around the subject has
the same function as white space.
Steps in Magazine layouting
4. Placing the text
Make a text frame that is
placed at the same vertical
and horizontal position as the
cocktail on the other page,
here in the third row, fifth
column of the grid. This
creates a imaginary line that
connects the image with the
text.
Steps in Magazine layouting
5. Setting up a baseline grid
To make our text look good we need to set up
a baseline grid.. A baseline grid of 8 pts,
which is half the leading, provides flexibility
because we can also use it for smaller text
sizes.
You can also change the paragraph styles
palette and change the style of the Basic
Paragraph to create variation through the
pages of the magazine.
Other major design elements you should
consider are: text colour, hyphenation,
column width and alignment, which will
combine to give you and eye-pleasing and
effective magazine design.
