Creative design tips for beginners

Creative design is an area that many individuals and businesses think is outside of their skillset.

There is a level of design sophistication that only experienced professionals can achieve of course, but that does not mean you have to possess qualifications in graphic design before you can produce good work. As long as you do not try to go beyond what you are capable of, there is no reason why you cannot get involved in the creative design area of your business. In most cases, this will be about designs for branding and advertising purposes.

This article will provide some helpful pointers for those who are new to creative design work.

Keep it simple

The first tip is to stay within your abilities when coming up with designs. If you try for a level of complexity that you are not able to achieve, the results will be disastrous. Keeping things simple is not just about recognising that you are new to designing– it is also tends to produce more effective results.

Less is very definitely more when it comes to corporate designs, so you should always be looking to streamline and simplify. Remove all clutter so that the focus is on the most important message; learning how to communicate that as simply as possible is a valuable design skill.

Font choices

The style of font that you choose for your designs must be the right one, as it really can determine their overall quality. There are two factors to consider when it comes to font choices: readability and brand image. You should select fonts that are easy for people to read and that fit in with how you wish your company to be perceived.

Choose colours wisely

Colour is another essential aspect of the creative design process and one that must be used wisely. The colours used will help to determine the tone and mood of the design and will activate emotional responses in viewers. If you understand the connection between colour and human psychology, this will make picking the right ones easier for you.

One example is the colour blue, which produces feelings of melancholy, but is also a shade that people associate with trust and reliability. Deploy colour to paint your preferred mood and produce contrast. Look at a colour wheel and make sure to pick shades that are apart from each other on it, so there is dynamic contrast between them.

Use white space

One common error that rookie designers make is to fill up all of the white space. This is known within design circles as ‘negative space’ and it can be valuable. Negative space can give a design a more minimalistic and polished final look.

If you want an example of that, look at the advertising designs for the electronics giant Apple. They make liberal use of white space to intrigue the viewer and create a sense that their products are high end and classy.

Seek feedback

Getting the thoughts of other people is important if you are new to creating designs. If possible, try to speak to graphic designers about your creations. Sites such as Instagram and Dribble will give you access to designers who can critique your work. Do not get defensive, as constructive criticism will help you achieve the best results.

Typography

Typography is about producing a coherent text hierarchy based around weight and size. This means you must consider what part of the design each section of text is for before selecting its size and weight. For example, the text for the headline should be larger and thicker than that of the body copy below it. Any other typographic move will just confuse the viewer.

There are design processes that can help to enhance typography too. They include underlining, shadowing and texturing. Take some time to play with them.

Learn fundamental design principles

All of what we have covered up to now can be considered the fundamental principles of good design. This means assembling text and imagery in a sensible and coherent hierarchical order; use of colour that is intelligent and high contrast without clashing; and the use of negative space to create a sense of prestige and avoid clutter.

If you are able to master these basic design principles and then put them into practice for your creations, you will come up with designs that are attractive and effective. It is all a matter of practice and constructive feedback.

At Ainsley Signs, we handle creative design in Manchester and the North West for businesses of all sizes. Get in touch with us today.