Design Sense - Creating a Strong Focal Point

Today, I want to give a few tips on how to make sure that your layouts have a strong focal point.  Understanding some basic design principles will allow you to make sure that every element on your page works to support your main objective.

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The first step is to think about what is going on your page that you want to be the main focus for your viewer.  This can be a photo, a title, or even your journaling. The beauty is that you get to decide what gets the most attention.

Secondly, determine which specific elements you want to include on your page.  This is all about narrowing your list of products down to the ones you’re actually going to glue down. For my projects, I wanted to use Hexagons as a design element.  I lifted them off the page for depth.

Third, think about how the elements you’ve chose can ‘point’ to your main focus.

For my project, I’ve used my title as my main focus.  I’ve decided there is an important value statement that I want to highlight through emphasis on my title specifically. That concept is the idea that couples can ‘make it work’ in marriage.

The first thing I'm going to do toward that end is create my title as a 'grand entity'.  Size is one very clear way to point the eye to a focal point. 

 

Secondly, placement is important.  Placement doesn’t have to be centered, in fact, centering along the rule of thirds is often a great idea.  However, when anything is front and center, you just can’t miss it.  This time, I'm going with that idea.  

Thirdly, I’ll use the aforementioned ‘other elements’ to create a triangle who’s lines move the viewers eye around the page so they are sure to spot all the most important parts.

You’ll notice that there are more than just one triangle that could be recognized here, but all of them emphasize my main focus.

Finally, consider color.  Some colors are more attention grabbing than others.  Color also evokes mood, so carefully plan for the mood you want to create.  I want my viewer to be soothed by the hopefulness of my subject matter so I'm going with the color Yellow (which symbolizes hope) for my title to add extra emphasis to my point.  I’ve also outlined it in black pen so that it will stand out. 

These concepts will help you as you seek to create meaningful, memory-keeping projects in the future.

 

Comments

[Julie Tucker-Wolek]

This is GORGEOUS!! I love love love the hexagons and the title!! Thanks for sharing how you create your focal point!!!!

[Patricia Roebuck]

This is beautiful, Ursula! I love the totoria and design of this!

[www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1518825640]

gorgeous layout and i love the sentiment

[Hermes Bags]

The thought was that the quick-turnover cafe would help support the main dining room downstairs.