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Newsletter Archives
Visual Rules – Design for the Human Eye
Developing messages for digital displays is
a fun, creative process that lets you experiment with the design
elements of color, contrast, text and arrangement. In order to retain
readability within an artistic, impactful presentation space, several
basic rules should be understood.
In this article, we’ll briefly review the
basic principles and proper presentation techniques for:
►Contrast
& Legibility
►Text
– The 3x5 Rule
►Text
Styles
►Color
&
Perception
►Focus
Techniques
►Previewing
The best
message may be lost if the viewer cannot easily see the information
displayed on the screen. Contrast is the primary factor for legibility:
Poor contrast reduces
legibility.
Good contrast improves legibility.
Contrast background and foreground colors.
Words on the
screen are there to communicate clear concise information. Remember to
keep messages uncluttered. Keep the type size large for legibility at a
distance, and present only the most important ideas.
Try not to use more than:
3 lines of text with 5 words each
OR
5 lines of text with 3 words each
Unless you
are duplicating a brand or logotype, keep the font simple and legible.
Never use more than two font styles in a single message and use
italics sparingly, as they can be hard to read from a distance.
Popular
fonts include Arial,
Tahoma, and
Times New Roman.
A "serif"
font is a typeface having small strokes at the end of the main strokes
of each character, such as Times New Roman shown above. Fonts like Arial
that do not have serifs are referred to as "san serif".
San Serif
fonts tend to be easier to read in messages, as serif fonts are better
for large quantities of text (a paragraph or more) - then serif fonts
help the human eye to track from word to word.
Keep in mind
that text size and the use
of bold
can help improve readability.
Color
creates good contrast and color choices should place foreground elements
perceptually in front of background. Basic understanding of color is
important for appropriate color selection in message creation.
 Understanding
Color
Three
primary colors are used in digital displays for color mixing:
RED, GREEN,
and BLUE. All other colors are created
from these primaries.
Secondary colors resulting from the primaries include
CYAN, MAGENTA
and YELLOW. WHITE is combination of all
three primaries and BLACK is absence of light. These colors are all
used to provide the wide array of colors available in digital
displays
Our Perception of Color
The human
eye is most sensitive to GREEN and
RED is second for optical sensitivity.
Our eyes are
least sensitive to BLUE.
To improve
your messages:
•Use contrasting colors
•Understand what viewer’s eye is drawn to
•Control impact of information
Use various techniques to pull the viewer’s
focus to critical information first. Guide the eye and provide visual
hierarchy by utilizing the tips we’ve provided on
text styles and
color.
Graphics, flow and white space also give visual "clues" to guide viewing
patterns.
Spatial
arrangement of design elements determines the hierarchy for the eye. Is
your graphic or your text more prominent? Very colorful items and/or
high contrast will
pull the eye first. Size will also play a part in determining what is
considered high priority to the viewer.
A consistent presentation of information over time can help to train
your audience to look for important information in familiar formats.
Consider developing design templates or guidelines to preserve
continuity.
When
previewing your messages, consider where your eye goes first and adjust
your design to ensure that the most critical elements take priority.
Test readability and visibility.
Previewing Tip: Stand back from your
monitor at least five feet – this simulates your audience’s perspective
for viewing digital displays.
Successful
message design allows your viewers to concentrate on your message,
instead of straining for readability.
Copyright 2006. Tech Electronics, Inc. (TEi). All rights reserved.
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