When you think about graphic design what comes to your mind? Is it your favourite logo? A retail website you check WAY too often? The cute packaging your online order came in? A book cover that left you begging to peak inside? Graphic design is all of the above and so much more. It uses illustration, photos, colour, and typography to create appealing images that draw you in. Graphic design is so much more than just a quick doodle or a series of words in a cool font. It takes a very skilled graphic designer to know how to use designs to create and sell you whatever it is they are trying to sell. A website with a good graphic designer sees more traffic and thus, the business sees more profit.
Sounds pretty easy, right? Draw a cool picture, throw up some word art (you know, that thing everyone used on Microsoft Word back in the ‘90s and early 2000’s?), add a touch of your favourite colours and call it a day? Well, if you want more than your one great aunt who thinks she is cool because she has “The Facebook” to check out your website then you better find yourself a professional graphic designer. Not only will they create WAY more rad designs than you could ever imagine, but they are also well-versed in Colour Theory.
Because Graphic Design is applied to everything visual, colour plays an important roll in everything graphic designers do. Colour Theory aids in the choices graphic designers make. It builds on a few key components: colour combinations and the colour wheel, how colours affect your emotional experience, and colour scheme. These are not the only components but they are the main ones used to make the design look good.
Let’s start with colour combinations. Using the colour wheel, graphic designers understand which colours complement each other and which colours will make the viewer want to look away. Like in every good relationship, opposites attract. The colour wheel leads designers to what colours fall opposite a colour being used to create contrast. This contrast is visually pleasing and tends to make the viewer spend a longer amount of time looking at the image.
Next graphic designers have a keen knowledge of how colours affect your emotional experience. This one is very interesting. Warmer colours and brighter colours tend to evoke more alertness and energy in the viewer while cooler and darker colours tend to evoke more feelings of relaxation. Have you ever been driving through a city and noticed some big yellow arches on a red platform? We all recognize the logo for McDonald’s but what some may not know is that it was by no means a mistake that it is the colours that it is. Not only are red and yellow more eye catching colours, but also red is known to make the viewer feel more hungry than other colours and both colours heighten your sense of alertness. Graphic designers understand how to use the right colour in the right context to elicit the desired response from the viewer. How cool is that?
Finally, let’s touch on colour scheme. Graphic designers understand how to put designs and colours together to create absolutely stunning images. Flowing with a colour and complimentary colours throughout a design entices viewers to continue to look at the design whether it be a logo, a website, a storefront sign, a package, a magazine, a book, or the closing credits of a fantastic movie. These designs are carefully planned and thought out to be pleasing to the viewer.
Graphic designers are the key to a good visual design. They are creatively gifted and educated and cannot be taken for granted. If you need content created, hire a graphic designer. Contact Growth Media Strategy for your graphic design needs!