Using Image Editing and Layout to Control Perception

Some people may see Helvetica as a classic, readable font while others think of it as tired, overused. Yellow is bright and cheery — a happy color — but it's also the color of cowards, death, and courage depending on your culture and point of view. Each person has their own preferences and biases when it comes to fonts, colors, and other design elements such as the images you use in a piece.

It's not always easy knowing how any one person will see your designs so we have to think in broader, more typical terms. Not all women are drawn to pink, fancy script fonts, and pictures of cute kids but these elements and images do appeal to women in general.

We do the best we can.

Use Image Editing to Take Control of Your Artwork

It's not only the elements we choose and how we combine them that's important. It's also what we do to those elements that affects how people feel about our work.

In an experiment in how different people see the same thing in different ways, Brian Auer discovered 28 Ways To Interpret A Photo. He was "shocked and amazed at the diversity and creativity" that participants exhibited when asked to take the same photograph and crop, color, and otherwise interpret this single image. In addition to showing how differently the same image speaks to a variety of people it shows how much post-processing can change a basic image.

A practical lesson in Auer's experiment:

Give Your Photos a Second Chance
Just because a photo initially looks unusable, doesn’t mean it’s not worth pursuing. A larger processing skillset will give you more options and allow you to use more of your images.

Artwork, whether it's clip art or photographs or even charts or decorative initial caps, are an integral part of many desktop publishing projects. How you crop it, color it, rotate it, filter it, and Photoshop it can totally change the way others see the same basic image.

• Flip an image to direct the readers' eye. Enlarge an image to create more impact. 10 Ways to Modify Clip Art offers up simple ways to edit or modify images for use in desktop publishing. These tips work for clip art and usually for photographs as well.

• Crop a photo to put the focus on a specific area, create tension, or get multiple uses from the same photograph. These Photo Cropping Examples illustrate nine ways and reasons to crop photographs for page layout.

• Use color to draw attention to what you deem as important. On a mostly black and white page a spot of color stands out. One way to do that is to use a black and white photograph with just one element in full color. How to Combine a Color and B&W Image shows two methods for creating that effect.

Use Placement of Pictures (and Text) to Take Control of Your Layout

After image editing, how and where you place images and text in your layout can affect how readers see and react to your design. We can't totally control our readers' perceptions and biases regarding all of our color, font, and image choices. However, good page layout practices can eliminate some of the guesswork. There are some tried-and-true practices based on years of study that a print designer can use to their advantage.

• Multiple studies have shown that readers tend to look at and skim a page in a predictable pattern. Designers can take advantage of those tendencies by putting their most important elements in those natural hotspots. Even if you're not designing an ad, the page layout tips in How Do I Design a Good Ad? are usually applicable to other documents. It covers the Z layout, the Ogilvy layout, and different ways to use illustrations effectively in a layout.

• Use emphasis to create a focal point and blatantly or subtly show the reader what's important, where to go, and how to interact with a piece. Focus on This describes ways to use the elements and principles of design to create emphasis and a focal point in a page layout.

• Use a grid, the rule of thirds, and strong visuals for a more visually pleasing, enticing, interesting, and effective page layout. Adhering to these seven page composition tips can help ensure that your pages both look good and do their intended job.

There is no guarantee that everyone will react to your font, color, and image choices in the same way. There is no guarantee that everyone will read or skim your page in the same manner or see what you want them to see. However, in general, these image editing and page composition tips will help you to visually communicate your message to the majority of your audience.

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