Newsletter Design Basics

Now that my assignment 2 is done, I'm to my next project which is a group project. For this lesson, I moved on to a new topic which is newsletter designs. I learnt what I need to know to design a print layout. There are four basic rules: Consistency matters, use the right tools, know the fundamentals and know your audience.

Rule #1: CoNsIstEnCy MaTtErS

When I start a page, the next page must be similar in either colours, theme, fonts and more. It shouldn't be extremely different that it would look like it doesn't belong together. For example, these two pages doesn't fit each other at all.

            

(http://www.youthedesigner.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/edwin-murray-01.jpg)

(http://www.lpcprinting.com/images/newsletter-printing-large.jpg)

Rule #2: Use the right tools

Only by using the right tools, will I be able to create a nice design. The best case would be using Adobe InDesign as the layout, photoshop to edit the pictures and illustrator for vectors. 

(http://www.vapartners.ca/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Adobe-Suite-Logo.png)

Rule #3: Know the fundamentals

The fundamentals are colour, layout and typography. If I know my colour wheel well, I can find the right colour scheme to match the theme of the design. The layout is another word for balance. Without the right layout, everything on the page would be messy and there wouldn't be any direction or focus. A nice logo, good fonts, plenty of space for story and large appropriate images would be an example of a good layout. For good typography, there should be enough space between letters and lines (leading & kerning), consistent formatting throughout and suitable fonts! 

Rule #4: Know your audience

To make the design more appropriate and suitable, knowing the target audience would be best before deciding on the layout. These are some things to consider: Age, education, career, gender, income and hobbies. For example, if the topic was on Lego toys which is targeted to children, the design should be colourful, vibrant and has less words to keep it simple.

These are all that I learnt during that lesson! I will definitely take note of these basic rules.