The basic elements of design are line, color, balance, harmony, shape, texture, scale, dominance and emphasis, typography and space. When you match these ten elements with the seven elements of print advertising some match up. The elements of print advertising include layout, size and shape, placement, paper and ink, graphic elements, color vs. black and white, and copy elements.
As shown above both print advertising and the design elements go hand in hand. One print advertising element is “graphic elements”, in this post I will lay out which graphic elements are most important to print advertising for magazine ads.
Magazines are media where people see a lot of print advertisements so today I will be exploring some of the important elements graphic designers need to consider when designing an advertisement that is placed in a magazine.
- Typography: Typography is used for different parts of the magazine advertisement, viewers can see it in the headline and the copy of the ad. The typography doesn’t have to be similar but it needs to be readable and eye catching, especially the headline, to grab attention.
- Harmony: Not only does the design need to look good it has to have harmony with both the visual elements and the advertising elements. People need to see that the copy and the imagery match, they need to make a connection to understand.
- Dominance and Emphasis: The advertiser needs to understand what elements need to dominate in the ad or have an emphasis. This depends on what the ad is trying to sell, sometimes the image or illustration will need to be emphasized, sometimes the copy will take the dominate roll.
- Balance: Balance in design is how all the elements are arranged. Balance is important when making an ad, all the elements need to have a good balance in order to draw viewers eyes to the ad and move it throughout so viewers see everything the advertisement is trying to say.
Above are two successful print ads that use the elements of design to draw in readers and sell their product.
All the design elements can be incorporated in some sense in a magazine advertisement, I chose these four as the most important because they are seen in almost every print ad seen in a magazine.
These design elements are considered in other print ads as well, but are probably considered more in magazine ads than considered in print ads such as billboards. The ads in magazines are a little more complicated and since they are seen for more than five seconds they need to grab attention. Design elements are what bring the viewer in and keep their attention until the ad gets the point across. The complication of these elements is often not present to the viewer, they don’t consider the thought that designers do, but the elements are needed for a good design.
Research for this post found from:
https://creativemarket.com/blog/2013/12/02/10-basic-elements-of-design
Great information. As a graphic design student it is always great to have a quick refresher on what it is that makes a great designs. In advertising, it is also always important to remember who your target audience is. It isn't one of the elements of design or anything but can be used as a great starting point when first creating something. Thanks for sharing your information with the world!
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