OUGD404- Study Task 5- 10 things you need to know about graphic design

1.

Pantone Colour Matching System 

The Pantone Color Matching System is largely a standardized color reproduction system. By standardizing the colors, different manufacturers in different locations can all refer to the Pantone system to make sure colors match without direct contact with one another.

Pantone contains everything you need to select, specify and match solid and process colours for accurate solid colour specifying and matching




Pantone Swatches

Solid Color FORMULA GUIDES:
One flat colour 

• FORMULA GUIDE Solid Coated
• FORMULA GUIDE Solid Uncoated

COLOR BRIDGE Guides:

To determine how a PANTONE Color will appear when reproduced in CMYK or to create optimal display of PANTONE Colors on monitors and Web pages

• COLOR BRIDGE Coated
• COLOR BRIDGE Uncoated
• COLOR BRIDGE® Supplement Coated
• COLOR BRIDGE® Supplement Uncoated

CMYK Guides:

Four colour process (cyan, magenta, yellow, black)

• CMYK Coated
• CMYK Uncoated

PANTONE METALLICS Guide

• METALLICS Coated
• PREMIUM METALLICS Coated

PASTELS & NEONS guide

• PASTELS & NEONS Coated & Uncoated

2.

Colour Modes

Available color systems are dependent on the medium with which a designer is working. When painting, an artist has a variety of paints to choose from, and mixed colors are achieved through the subtractive color method. When a designer is utilizing the computer to generate digital media, colors are achieved with the additive color method.

SUBTRACTIVE COLOR.

When we mix colors using paint, or through the printing process, we are using the subtractive color method. Subtractive color mixing means that one begins with white and ends with black; as one adds color, the result gets darker and tends to black.

The CMYK color system is the color system used for printing.

All desktop and professional printers mix four different ink colors — (C)yan, (M)agenta, (Y)ellow and (K)ey (Black) which is abbreviated as CMYK.  These four colors can be mixed together in varying amounts and produce thousands of different shades and hues on paper.

ADDITIVE COLOR.

If we are working on a computer, the colors we see on the screen are created with light using the additive color method. Additive color mixing begins with black and ends with white; as more color is added, the result is lighter and tends to white.

The RGB colors are light primaries and colors are created with light.

You should always design in RGB color mode if your final artwork is going to be used on computer screens or digital devices.

RGB can give you very bright and nice colours that are impossible to produce using inks. If you forget about this, you might end up with a great online design that looks quite dull when printed.

3.

Anatomy of Type 

Character components

Typographic characters have basic component parts. The easiest way to differentiate characteristics of type designs is by comparing the structure of these components. The following terms identify some of the components of letterforms.

Terminology 

AscenderThe lowercase character stroke which extends above the x-height.

BarThe horizontal stroke on the characters ‘A’, ‘H’, ‘T’, ‘e’, ‘f’, ‘t’.

BaselineThe imaginary horizontal line to which the body, or main component, of characters are aligned.

BowlThe curved stroke which surrounds a counter.

Bracket
A curved line connecting the serif to the stroke.

Counter
 The empty space inside the body stroke.

Descender.The lowercase character stroke which extends below the baseline.

Loop The bottom part of the lowercase roman ‘g’.

Sans serifFrom the French, meaning “without serif”. A typeface which has no serifs.Sans serif typefaces are typically uniform in stroke width.

SerifTapered corners on the ends of the main stroke. Serifs originated with the chiseled guides made by ancient stonecutters as they lettered monuments. Some serif designs may also be traced back to characteristics of hand calligraphy. Note that serif type is typically thick and thin in stroke weight.

Shoulder
The part of a curved stroke coming from the stem.

StemA stroke which is vertical or diagonal.

StressThe direction in which a curved stroke changes weight.

TerminalThe end of a stroke which does not terminate in a serif.

X-heightThe height of the body, minus ascenders and descenders, which is equal to the height of the lowercase ‘x’.

4.

Key Fonts

Block- fonts should be used for display headers

Gothic- fonts are sans-serif and are Simply in form

Roman- fonts are standard serif fonts

Script- fonts are brush, handwritten or are made to resemble these characteristics 

5.

Typeface

The letters, numbers, and symbols that make up a design of type. A typeface is often part of a type family of coordinated designs. The individual typefaces are named after the family and are also specified with a designation, such as italic, bold or condensed

Font

One weight, width, and style of a typeface. Before scalable type, there was little distinction between the terms font, face, and family. Font and face still tend to be used interchangeably, although the term face is usually more correct.

6.

A good rule when working with type is to use a maximum of three fonts.

7.

Semiotics

Semiotics is an investigation into how meaning is created and how meaning is communicated. Its origins lie in the academic study of how signs and symbols (visual and linguistic) create meaning.

Definitions of semiotic terms

Sign: Any motion, gesture, image, sound, pattern, or event that conveys meaning.

Symbol: A person, place, action, word, or thing that (by association, resemblance, or convention) represents something other than itself. 

Signifier: A linguistic unit or pattern, such as a succession of speech sounds, written symbols, or gestures, that conveys meaning; a linguistic sign.

8.

Colour Wheel

Primary Colors: Red, yellow and blue
In traditional color theory (used in paint and pigments), primary colors are the 3 pigment colors that can not be mixed or formed by any combination of other colors. All other colors are derived from these 3 hues. 

Secondary Colors: Green, orange and purple
These are the colors formed by mixing the primary colors.

Tertiary Colors: Yellow-orange, red-orange, red-purple, blue-purple, blue-green & yellow-green
These are the colors formed by mixing a primary and a secondary color. That's why the hue is a two word name, such as blue-green, red-violet, and yellow-orange.

9.

Complimentary Colours

Complimentary colours are any two hues positioned exactly opposite each other on the colour wheel. 

These pairs on the Basic Color Wheel have a special relationship. When they are placed next to each other, they make the other appear more intense and brighter. This is a phenomenon in Color Theory called Simultaneous Contrast.

With this in mind, complementary colours are best to avoid using together, particularly when using type as it strains the eye and affects legibility.

10.

Colour Harmonies - basic techniques for creating colour schemes Analogous colour scheme Analogous colour schemes use colours that are next to each other on the colour wheel. They usually match well and create serene and comfortable designs. Analogous colour schemes are often found in nature and are harmonious and pleasing to the eye. Make sure you have enough contrast when choosing an analogous colour scheme. Choose one colour to dominate, a second to support. The third colour is used (along with black, white or gray) as an accent. Triadic colour scheme  A triadic colour scheme uses colours that are evenly spaced around the colour wheel. Triadic colour schemes tend to be quite vibrant, even if you use pale or unsaturated versions of your hues. To use a triadic harmony successfully, the colours should be carefully balanced - let one colour dominate and use the two others for accent. Split-Complementary colour scheme  The split-complementary colour scheme is a variation of the complementary colour scheme. In addition to the base colour, it uses the two colours adjacent to its complement. This colour scheme has the same strong visual contrast as the complementary colour scheme, but has less tension. The split-complimentary colour scheme is often a good choice for beginners, because it is difficult to mess up. Rectangle (tetradic) colour scheme  The rectangle or tetradic colour scheme uses four colours arranged into two complementary pairs. This rich colour scheme offers plenty of possibilities for variation. Tetradic colour schemes works best if you let one colour be dominant. You should also pay attention to the balance between warm and cool colours in your design. Square colour scheme  The square colour scheme is similar to the rectangle, but with all four colours spaced evenly around the colour circle. Square colour schemes works best if you let one colour be dominant. You should also pay attention to the balance between warm and cool colours in your design.