The power of "blank" in Design

In graphic design, many valuable experiences that have passed practical tests can be widely used in other fields.

You may have heard of the concept of "negative space"-one of the design skills designers use almost every moment. If it is used skillfully, the onlookers will not even notice that this technique is used in a piece of work. The main point of this approach is to direct the viewer's attention to key information in the work or the most important visual elements, so as to enhance the overall effect of the work.

 

Blue design (www.lanlanwork.com) is a focused and in-depth interface design company, it provides effective BS interface design, CS interface design, iPad interface design, packaging design, icon customization, user experience, interactive design, website construction, and graphic design services for enterprises both at home and abroad.

This seems unreasonable for designers who have many things to express-it is often difficult for them to restrain themselves from using more elements. However, once you really understand the essence of negative space, you will understand how to use it flexibly and appropriately.

In the graphic design context, the concept of "negative space" is slightly misleading. This is like saying that the page you want to design (whether real or virtual) has nothing but a blank space.

This is obviously not the case.

The blank space still contains many "things". If used properly, its effect will never be "negative.

The negative space in the design is like a navigation chart, which presents the viewer's things to understand and want to see accurately to them.

Some photographic works may intentionally blur the background and focus their eyes on one focal point. The negative space strategy is similar to this. People's attention will subconsciously ignore the Blurred background and only watch the clear things.

Our eyes tend to look at familiar shapes and patterns, such as recognizing a person's face, a specific tree, or recognizing a pet cat among different cats.

This principle is also applied to the negative space used in the design. When a blank space is broken by a sudden visual element, your sight will naturally turn there.

The simplest and most effective way to understand the negative space is to imagine a logo located on the top of the page. It is centered and the width is about 15% to 20% of the browser page.

This is important: There is nothing around it. So where are you looking?

The answer is: Look at the logo.

You will not look at the blank space, but you will find the logo later. Your eyes will go straight to the topic, because "something" suddenly breaks the state of "nothing.

This is the secret of the negative space. It is the "blank" in the work that allows you to immediately see the things that exist.

So should all page elements occupy space?

This actually means that some visual elements need to use negative space, while others do not. It is important to distinguish between these 01:10.

Concept image? Consider it as well.

The publication date of an article? Not recommended. Because when a visual element is set off by a negative space in the page, it immediately gives a feeling that it is "more important" than other elements in the page, this may disrupt the existing page layout.

Therefore, logo, title, subtitle, and main image-only these elements that are important to a certain extent are worthy of negative space.

Use negative space to show stories

Please refer to the above three examples. They are not as simple as the logo I first used, but use a relatively complex negative space policy, the "Higher-Order" processing method may be a little effort-consuming, but if appropriate, the results will be very strong.

Negative space can confuse the viewer's eyes-it may take some time for the viewer to respond, but once they discover the mystery, they will be overwhelmed by the creative mind of the Creator.

The above are just some examples.

Negative space makes the video more dramatic

Another effect of negative space is that it can make theme visual more dramatic like portraits or key visual elements. This method is often used together with the title and text.

Using this method to deal with common and common projects may be a little difficult, but for some of the projects that your customers require to be "high-end", the negative space will show its magic.

The following is another example of the negative space embodied in a specific file (the image author is Anthony Taylor, a photographer who has obtained the permission of the author ).

Artists who design posters for thrilling movies also have master-level "negative space" designs.

Old 1982 poster

Posters for the new version of 2007

The poster of the movie Ghost drive (1982) by Steven Berger is a classic example.

No single element in this movie poster can scare people.

There is a little girl, a teddy bear, and a big TV screen. There is no blood, no violence, no terrorist image, and even the font is unremarkable.

However, the whole poster is filled with a thrilling atmosphere. Apparently, there was something on TV that fascinated the poor and innocent little girl. She was alone in the dark, and no one could pull her out.

Interestingly, when we launched the movie 25th anniversary commemorative edition (2007), we used a redesigned poster, and the new poster gave up almost all the "negative spaces ", the Center screen is enlarged, but the actual visual effect is doubtful.

The new poster makes us and the little girl stand in the same room as the onlookers. Of course, we still feel uneasy, but the desperate atmosphere is greatly weaker than the old poster.

What should I pay attention to when using the negative space?

From the perspective of pure design, the negative space, together with other design techniques such as the three-component, five-component, and font design (not only the choice of fonts, but also the design of vivid and interesting fonts, A diverse and efficient design toolbox is provided for designers.

A mature designer always uses this toolbox when working on every project. Of course, he will not use all the tools every time.

Good design is often concise. Maybe you only need a visual skill, a charming little trick, and a special font.

Everyone who writes code knows that when you rely too much on a technique, things will become a mess. The best strategy is often the simplest, that is, to use as few code as possible. In programming, the design is no exception.

To be honest, it is not easy for new designers to make outstanding works, but the poor design is endless and can be seen in all types of design.

In my personal experience, the best design strategy I know comes from a creative director I used to work.

 

Blue design (www.lanlanwork.com) is a focused and in-depth interface design company, it provides effective BS interface design, CS interface design, iPad interface design, packaging design, icon customization, user experience, interactive design, website construction, and graphic design services for enterprises both at home and abroad.

His philosophy is:

"Understand the information you want to express. The viewpoint should be clear, easy to understand, and always be implemented. To achieve this, the design is naturally successful ."

Incorporate the design concept of negative space into your toolbox and try to use it frequently. Your customers will still insist that you fill every inch of space. Yes, even the best designers will encounter this situation.

However, an outstanding design will always be the best defense.

Artists who design posters for thrilling movies also have master-level "negative space" designs.

 

The power of "blank" in Design