Objects such as clip art, photos, or pull-quotes placed inside columns of text can add visual interest and excitement to a publication. Text wraps create an offset between these elements. Attention to detail and a few simple guidelines can improve the appearance of text wraps and improve readability of adjacent text.
Difficulty: Average
Time Required: As long as it takes to make text wraps look good
Here's How:
- Keep text wraps from disrupting horizontal flow of text.
Prevent text from wrapping on both sides of a graphic or pull-quote. Readers will be forced to jump over the graphic or pull-quote to read a line of text. - Visually balance space around graphics.
When placing an object between two columns of ragged-right aligned text, use a slightly smaller standoff on the left side to visually balance the space around the object. - Align objects with the baseline of adjacent text.
Aligning your objects with the baselines and with other objects or grid lines makes for a more visually consistent experience for the reader and it can help eliminate awkward gaps. - Avoid overly irregular text wraps.
Trying to follow too closely the contours of irregularly shaped images often results in too many different line lengths, too much hyphenation, and holes in the text.
