Making Effective Presentation Designs

Sarahh Scher

Faculty Fellow for Adjunct Support
Center for Teaching Innovation
Salem State University

Universal Design Principles

Balance
Unity & Harmony
Hierarchy
Scale & Proportion
Dominance & Emphasis
Similarity & Contrast
White Space or Negative Space

Understanding the basic principles of design will help you make good choices as you start working on your project.

The principles help you create a final product that is easy to read, drawing your viewer in and directing them through the information you want to present.

Adapted from: https://www.ponoko.com/blog/how-to-make/graphic-design-principles-and-elements-guide/

Balance

Makes a design feel stable. All elements of design hold a visual weight. The principle of balance speaks to the even, but not necessarily equal, distribution of design elements. Balance can be symmetrical or asymmetrical.

symmetrical

Lester Beall, Running water - Rural electrification administration, 1930

asymmetrical

Lester Beall, Light - Rural electrification administration,1930

Balance makes a design feel stable. All elements of design hold a visual weight. The principle of balance speaks to the even, but not necessarily equal, distribution of design elements.

The design on the left is more or less symmetrical: the blue and yellow halves are almost equal, and the faucet and black text are split more or less in half, with the white text and black arrows balancing out the tap sticking into the yellow block. Absolute symmetry is usually avoided because it makes it difficult for the viewer to know where to begin looking.

The poster on the right is asymmetrical due to the size and color difference between the house and the light bulb. The blue and white text balance each other, and the color fields are close to equal.

Unity & Harmony

The feeling that all design elements belong together, creating a sense of completeness. When a design has harmony, the design elements are working in unity. Without strong unity, communication breaks down and the design fails.

No enemy sub WPA poster

No enemy sub will dare lift its eye if you lend your Zeiss or Bausch & Lomb binoculars to the Navy, 1941-43

Lester Beall rural electrification WPA poster

Lester Beall. Rural electrification administration,1930

Unity and harmony speak to the feeling that all design elements belong together, creating a sense of completeness. When a design has harmony, the design elements are working in unity. Without strong unity, communication breaks down and the design fails.

In the design on the left, the repeated use of black, green, and yellow makes all parts of the design feel like they belong together.

The design on the right uses the similarity of the red and white stripes of the flag and the parallel boards of the fence to make the background feel like it belongs with the foreground, while also adding a patriotic message.

Hierarchy

The order in which a viewer looks at design elements within a composition. It’s important to let the viewer know where to look first, second, third, and so on.

WPA jobs poster

There are jobs for you, if trained, 1940

Save your eyes, 1937

Hierarchy is the order in which a viewer looks at design elements within a composition. It’s important to let the viewer know where to look first, second, third, and so on.

In both posters, the most important information is in the largest type: “JOBS” and “SAVE YOUR EYES.” The main fonts being used are also ones that use all capitals, so that the phrases stand out even more. Further information is given in smaller type.

In the design on the left, the light-colored wedge stands out from the busy green background, and on the right, the figure’s goggles are brighter than anything else, emphasizing their importance.

Scale & Proportion

How design elements relate to each other in size, weight and placement. Proportion is the relative size, weight and placement of an element to the whole design.

WPA photography poster

Anthony Velonis, East Side, West Side, 1938

WPA pet show poster

Arlington Gregg, Pet Show, 1936-39

Scale and proportion are how design elements relate to each other in size, weight and placement. Proportion is the relative size, weight and placement of an element to the whole design.

There are obvious scale differences in both posters, where the human figure is as tall as the buildings on the left and the winning dog towers above the spotted cats on the right. The figure and dog both show proportion manipulation as well; the dog’s head is large relative to its body, and the human figure’s head is small relative to the camera its holds in front of it. There is also the use of scale and proportion in type, working as part of the hierarchy principle: on both posters, the title is in the largest font, larger in scale than the rest of the type and taking up a larger proportion of the design. The design on the right also plays with visual weight, as the dark dog commands a great deal of attention against the bright yellow background, while the cats do not stand out nearly as much.