Elements of Design

Let’s start with a definition, a line is a mark made by a tool as it is drawn across a surface. The tool can be almost anything; it could be a pencil, brush, a computer and mouse, or even a finger. Also, a line is defined as a moving dot or point, and can be called an open path.

There are different types of lines, and all lines have direction and quality. The line type or attributes refers to the way it moves from its beginning to its end. Lines may be straight, curving, or angular.

Line direction is a reference to the lines orientation to the page. Horizontal lines move across the page, east to west or west to east. Vertical lines move up and down on the page, north to south and south to north. Diagonal lines look slanted in comparison to the edges of the page.

Line quality refers to how a line is drawn. A line may be delicate or bold, smooth or broken, thick or thin, regular or changing, and so on.

Qualities Of A Line Include:

Line is an important element of visual communication because it can be used to define shape, contours, and outlines, also to suggest mass and volume. It may be a continuous mark made on a surface with a pointed tool or implied by the edges of shapes and forms.

Sometimes a designer uses a line alone to divide or unite elements on a page. Lines can denote direction of movement (as in diagonal lines and arrows) or provide an anchor to hold elements on a page (such as lines at the top, bottom, or sides of a page).

You can use lines in conjunction with other elements of your design. One well-known example, the AT&T logo, is a pattern of thick and thin lines arranged in a circular shape.

Lines are one of the basic elements of design. Alone or in combination with other lines or shapes they can aid in the readability, appearance, and message of a design. Use lines to:

• organize
• texturize
• guide the eye
• provide movement
• make a statement
• convey universal meanings

Keep an eye out for brochures, ads, newsletters, graphics, logos, and other print projects that include examples of lines, look for materials around you that include lines of all kinds.

Outlines:

Outlines are lines made by the edge of an object or its silhouette.  An outline makes an object seem flat and is usually the same thickness throug-out.  Tracing around an object placed on a sheet of paper is one way to create an outline.

Contour:

Lines that describe the shape of an object and the interior detail.  For example, a contour drawing of a person's face would include the line defining the shape of the head and additional lines that describe the surfaces and planes of the facial features.

Gesture:

Gesture lines are line that are energetic and catches the movement and gestures of an active figure.   Sometimes gesture lines are called movement lines, and they emphasize direction and fluidity.  They are typically done quickly in the form of a rough sketch as the model moves.  Therefore they lack detail.

Sketch Lines:

Sketch lines provide more detail tahn outlines, contour lines, and gesture lines.  They can be drawn very quickly, but they sometimes have a polished appearance.  Sketch lines often give an object the appearance of depth, or three-diemnsionality.

Calligraphic:

Greek word meaning “beautiful writing.” Precise, elegant handwriting or lettering done by hand. Also artwork that has flowing lines like an elegant handwriting.

Implied:

Lines that are not actually drawn but created by a group of objects seen from a distance. The direction an object is pointing to, or the direction a person is looking at.

Try This

While no one but you may see this hands on exercise, take the time to do it just as if you were turning it in for a grade. It will help reinforce what you have learned.

Using pen or pencil and plain paper, spend at least 10 minutes sketching a variety of lines. Using your favorite page layout or graphics program spend a minimum of 20 minutes getting to know the line drawing capabilities of the program. Draw solid and dashed lines. Draw freeform lines. Explore whatever options your program has for changing line width, length, line endings.

The general outline of something is a shape, and can also be defined as a closed form or path. There are many ways to depict shapes on a two-dimensional surface. A shape is as an area that stands out from the space next to, or around it, due to a defined or implied boundary, or because of differences of value, colour, or texture. Shapes can also show perspective by overlapping. They can be geometric or organic. Shapes in visual communication can be used to add interest, style, and theme to a design. Shape & form play a large role in photography and video and is often overlooked by amateurs.

In two-dimensional design, shapes possess width and length. When shapes possess volume, they move into the realm of three dimensions and are better described as form. In either dimension, the configuration of the shape or form determines its meaning. For example, the shape constructed of soft, curved edges can be described as sensual; the shape constructed of angular edges and points can be considered crystalline. Shape configurations can be described on a basic level as geometric or organic.

There are many ways to depict shapes in two-dimensions or form in three dimensions. One common way is with lines. Lines can be used to describe a flat shape, like a pyramid or a cube. A shape can be open or filled with colour, tone, or texture. How a shape is drawn gives it a quality; a shape may be curving or angular, regular or changing, flat or volumetric, and so on.

Other ways of describing the overall configuration of shapes includes figurative, mechanical, or natural.

Shapes must reflect the intent of the message. If your message is one of tranquil feelings, the use of harsh angular shapes would confuse the viewer. A sense of tranquility is more likely to be instilled by using flowing organic shapes.

Cagegories of Shapes and Forms:

Geometric:

Circles, squares, rectangles and triangles. We see them in architecture and manufactured items.

Organic:

Leafs, seashells, flowers. We see them in nature and with characteristics that are free flowing, informal and irregular.

Static:

Shapes or forms that appear stable and resting.

Dynamic:

Shapes or forms that appear moving and active.

Try This

While no one but you may see this hands on exercise, take the time to do it just as if you were turning it in for a grade. It will help reinforce what you have learned.

Remember form is the three-dimensionality of an object. Shape is only two-dimensional. You can hold a form; walk around a form and in some cases walk inside a form. In visual communication we usually use 2 dimensional images using value to imply form. For instance, shading a circle in a certain manner can turn it into a sphere.

1.  Draw and correctly shade the four basic Forms. You may do this by hand or using your favorite computer graphics program.

• Sphere;
• Cube;
• Cylinder; and
• Cone

In you are not sure how to turn your basic shapes into forms, check out this short video:

If you would like to learn how to create forms on a computer check out the videos below.  The first one shows you how to create shading in photoshop, and the second one shows you how to create 3D shapes using powerpoint.

2. Using the skills you learned above, create an organic shape that appears to have form.  Again, you may do this by hand or using your favorite computer graphics program.

Space is the area provided for a particular purpose. It may have two dimensions (length and width), such as a computer screen, or it may have three dimensions (length, width, and height) like a TV Studio. Space includes the background, foreground and middle ground. Space refers to the distances or areas around, between or within components of a piece. There are two type of space: positive and negative space. Positive space refers to the space of a shape representing the subject matter. Negative space refers to the space around and between the subject matter.

Space in a two-dimensional drawing or graphic refers to the arrangement of objects on the picture plane. The picture plane is the surface of your medium, be it paper, canvas or screen for example. You can have a picture plane that is a crowded space with lots of objects or an empty space with very few objects in the picture plane. A two-dimensional poster has heights and width but no depth. The illusion of depth can be achieved by using perspective. This is the technique used to have your image look likes it is moving to the distance like a landscape or cityscape.

Space is the three-dimensionality of a sculpture. With a sculpture or architecture you can walk around them, look above them, and enter them, this refers to the space of the sculpture or architecture. A three-dimensional object will have height, width, and depth.

Categories of Space

Positive Space

Simply put, positive space is best described as the areas in a work of art that are the subjects, or areas of interest.  In an image positive shapes are the solid forms in a design such as a bowl of cherries. In this example it is shown by green shape over the bowl of cherries.

Negative Space:

Negative space is area around the subjects, or areas of interest.  In an image the negative space is the area around the positive shape. Shown below by the yellow area around the bowl of cherries.

Check out this short video, which looks at the idea of positive and negative space:

Picture Plane

Is the flat surface of where the image will be displayed it could be your monitor, drawing paper, canvas, TV, etc...

Composition

Is the organization and placement of the elements on your picture plane.

Focal Point

Is the object or area you want the viewer to look at first. This is always important in making sure you are giving the right element the most attention.

The relationship between a figure in the background is a fundamental association of a positive and negative or shape versus space. But in a curious way, space around figures has shape to. To orchestrate a harmonic balance of the parts of the design, it is critical to achieve a sense of the relationship between the shapes of the design and the configuration of the space around the shapes. Experienced designers know the importance of paying equal attention to the shape of the figures in the shape of the surrounding space or background.

In the most fundamental terms, space is an area activated by other elements. Graphic design is a discipline concerned with the arrangement of elements in a given space. Designers tend to focus attention on the photograph, letterforms, or illustrated subjects in their design. But to present those graphic elements in the design and visually purposeful way, designers also designed the space around the elements. When a line or shape element is introduced into an area of space, it is said that the space is activated. Activating space can be attained subtly or overtly using line or shape.

Try This

While no one but you may see this hands on exercise, take the time to do it just as if you were turning it in for a grade. It will help reinforce what you have learned.

1. Create an original logo for a real or imaginary company using only one colour but only use the colour in the negative space.  To accomplish this task, you may either draw it by hand or you can use your favourite computer graphics program to help you design it.  Usually good logos can be easily identified using only one colour. That way it can be reversed to use the negative space if necessary when branding items. Here are a few examples.

Value is a design element that refers to the relationship between light and dark on a surface or object. Value is also referred to as tone when talking about black and white images.

Value is created by a light source that shines on an object creating highlights and shadows. It also illuminates the local or actual colour of the subject. Value creates depth within a picture making an object look three dimensional with highlights and shadows. A landscape creates the illusion of depth by getting lighter in value as it recedes to the background.

In this rhino image the whites create an impression that the blacks are "blacker" than they would be if most of the image were black and no areas were very light. The reason is that the tonal range of the image provides the necessary contrast that allows you to see what the artist wants you to see.

The relationship of one element (part or detail) to another in respect to lightness and darkness is called value contrast. This allows us to discern an image and perceive detail. We need value contrast in order to read words on a page. If the words on a page are close in value to the colour of the page then it would be difficult, if not impossible, to read them. Most text type is black and the page white in order to achieve maximum contrast.

Different value relationships produce different effects, both visual and emotional. When the narrow range of values, which is called low contrast, is used in the design, it evokes an emotional response from the viewer. The emotional response is different when the design has a wide range of values, or high contrast.

The range of values from black to white is the tonal range available to a designer. The ability to use that range effectively lets the designer determine the mood of an image and create and control the ambiance.

The photographer Ansel Adams was a master at using tone effectively. He said that a photographer should make a picture, not just take a picture. He visualizes what he wants the image to look like -- what he wants to communicate -- before he makes the picture. Then he sets up his equipment to get the image he wants.  In his picture "Snow Hummocks, Yosemite National Park, California," he uses tone to evoke mood and time.

Snow Hummocks, Yosemite National Park, California © Ansel Adams

Tint:

Adding white to colour paint to create lighter values such as light pink or blue.

Shade:

Adding black to paint to create dark values such as dark blue or dark red.

High Key:

A high-key image consists primarily of light tones, without dark shadows.  A photograph or painting so composed features a diminished tonal range of primarily whites and light grays.

Low Key:

A low-key image consists primarily of dark tones.  A painting or image is low key if its dominant values are dark.

Value Contrast:

Light values are placed next to dark values to create contrast or strong differences. 

Look at the examples above and ask yourself which bars stand out the most against their surroundings.

The first, (dark) bar is clearly visible against the white background but barely visible against the black. The second, (light) bar 's contrasts are the opposite. The third (gray) bar is equally visible against both black and white but not as visible as the high contrast areas of the first two bars. The fourth (black to white) bar has maximum contrast at either end.

The coloured bars add hue and saturation as variables. The two red bars are middle values and contrast equally with black and white. The brightness of the red, however, makes it more visible.

The violet bar corresponds to the first dark gray bar in contrast -- high against white but low against black. The two yellow bars correspond with the second light gray bar in contrast. The brighter yellow does make that bar more visible even against the white -- but that contrast is still low and will be noticeable only depending ont the background. For example, against black it has both strong value contrast and strong colour appeal.

Value Scale:

  Ascale that shows the gradual change in value from its lightest value, white to its darkest value black.

Try This

While no one but you may see this hands on exercise, take the time to do it just as if you were turning it in for a grade. It will help reinforce what you have learned.

1. Look at brochures, books, ads, business cards, and other print projects and find two to three samples that illustrate the use of value to create contrast (either high contrast or low contrast) and to create random or directed (leading) movement. For each sample, look at the purpose and focus of the piece and decide if, in your opinion, the use of value:

2. With paper and pencil, or in your favorite graphics program, experiment with using value. Draw simple shapes such as circles and squares. Place objects ranging from light to dark on light and dark backgrounds. Mix objects of different values and create static and dynamic groupings. Experiment with using light type on dark backgrounds. Which combinations of light and dark values are easiest to read?

Here is a short video which shows how to use Adobe Illustrator to adjust value and a video on how to add gradients to shapes in Microsoft Word:

Texture is the surface quality or the perceived surface quality. In the creation of visual design, there are two types of texture: real and implied.

Textures range from the smoothest polished mirror to the roughest mountain range as seen from an airplane. The term is often misused to refer only to rough surfaces but this is not correct. All surfaces have texture.

A designer recognizes that different textures can affect interest in different ways. Some surfaces are inviting and some are repellent and so are the textures that suggest those surfaces. Using different textures can increase interest in a composition by adding variety without changing colour or value relationships.

While texture can make an image more interesting it is not a strong enough element to be useful for organizing a composition. Value and colour contrasts are more efficient at that.

Categories of Texture:

Tactile (Real):

*this is obviously not tactile - it is impossible to recreate tactile texture on a screen

Tactile means touch. Tactile texture is the actual (3D) feel of a surface. This is of paramount importance to three-dimensional design but of only moderate interest in two-dimensional design. Examples of this include sandpaper, cotton balls, tree bark, puppy fur, etc.

Implied (Visual):

Visual texture refers to the illusion of the surface's texture. It is what tactile texture looks like (on a 2D surface). The textures you see in a photograph are visual textures. No matter how rough objects in the photograph look, the surface of the photograph is smooth and flat. The texture may look rough, fizzy, gritty, but cannot actually be felt.

Pattern

A recognizable motif regularly repeated produces a pattern. Pattern requires repetition -- in design as in life (a pattern of behavior). The more regular the repetition, the stronger the pattern. Compare this field of flowers with a side of a building. Both have a repeating motif.

The most noticeable patterns occur when you see the group before the individuals -- notice the organization first (the building). All of the motifs in a pattern have surfaces, so there is always texture. But there is not always pattern -- only when you notice it.

Texture and pattern are related. When you look closely at a tree you can see the pattern of leaves that make its surface. When you back away you lose awareness of the leaves and notice the texture the leaves make on the tree. Farther away still and you can see the pattern of the trees making up the forest and finally the texture of the forest. In this way pattern changes to texture as you lose sight of the individual motifs. This is easy to do with natural patterns, but you have to get quite far away from a building grid to see it as texture.

Patterns are generally more noticeable than textures. This makes them a stronger visual element for controlling attention.

The Principles of design can be thought of as what we do to the elements of design. How we apply the Principles of design determines how successful we are in creating a successful visual communication.

Try This:

While no one but you may see this hands on exercise, take the time to do it just as if you were turning it in for a grade. It will help reinforce what you have learned.

1. Create different 4 different types of textures. Explain what the texture is at the bottom of each box.

2. Draw a pattern of uniform black squares or circles on a piece of white paper. Now draw that same pattern but make one of the circles or squares red — just one. How does it change the overall effect?

3. Design a simple pattern with 20 or more shapes in it (a 4 by 5 grid for instance). Use quilt patterns as an inspiration for your pattern. Into each shape of the pattern put a sample of a different texture, like different fabrics are used in a quilt.

Organize the samples in a way that makes it easy to see the pattern. Remember that value is the strongest contrast, and hence organizing element available to a designer. Colour differences are also strong ways to separate or group items in a composition. Notice how traditional quilts use similar values and colours to make a larger pattern out of the smaller blocks they are made from.

Here are a few quilt examples to help inspire you:

Colour is seen either by the way light reflects off a surface, or in coloured light sources. Colour and particularly contrasting colour is also used to draw the attention to a particular part of the image. There are primary colours, secondary colours, and tertiary (third level) colours. Complementary colours are colours that are opposite to each other on the colour wheel.

Complementary Colours:

The complementary colour of a primary colour (red, blue, or yellow) is the colour you get by mixing the other two primary colours. So the complementary colour of red is green, of blue is orange, and of yellow is purple. The complementary of a secondary colour is the primary colour that wasn't used to make it. So the complementary colour of green is red, of orange is blue, and of purple is yellow. An easy way to determine a complementary colour is that they are directly opposite on a colour wheel.

Why are Complementary Colours Important in Colour Theory?
When placed next to each other, complementary colours make each other appear brighter, more intense. The shadow of an object will also contain its complementary colour, for example the shadow of a green apple will contain some red.

Analogous Colours:

Analogous colours are colours that are found side by side on the colour wheel. These can be used to create colour harmony. Orange, yellow-orange, and yellow are an example of analogous colours. They are blended nicely in Sunflowers, a painting by Vincent Van Gogh. How do you know that these colours are closely related? They share a colour—each of them contains some yellow.

Vincent Van Gogh  Sunflowers  (1888)

Monochromatic colours:

Monochromatic colour schemes are derived from a single base hue, and extended using its shades, tones and tints (that is, a hue modified by the addition of black, gray (black + white) and white). As a result, the energy is more subtle and peaceful due to a lack of contrast of hue. Monochromatic colour schemes may be considered boring unless there is diversity within the design.

Warm & Cool Colours:

Warm colours are a group of colours that consist of reds, yellows, and oranges. Cool colours are groups of colours that consist of purples, greens, and blues.

Colour Theory:

Understanding and utilizing colour effectively comes more easily to some than others; however, one thing is certain–the study of colour deserves your attention. It is a powerful and highly provocative design element. Colour is difficult to control when creating an original work, and even more so when work is reproduced in print or viewed on a computer screen.

We can discuss colour more specifically if we divide the elements of colour into three categories:

Hue:

Hue is the name of the colour, for example, red or green, blue or orange.

Value:

Value is the range of lightness or darkness, for example a light green or a dark green, a light yellow or dark yellow. Shade, tone, and tint are different aspects of value.

Saturation:

Saturation is the brightness or dullness of a colour, that is, bright red (100%) or dull red (10%), bright blue or dull blue. Chroma and intensities are synonyms for saturation.

Try This:

While no one but you may see this hands on exercise, take the time to do it just as if you were turning it in for a grade. It will help reinforce what you have learned.

1. On a sheet of paper create a colour wheel. Be sure to include the primary, secondary and intermediate colours. Use coloured pencils to create your colours.

2. Look at brochures, books, ads, business cards, and other print projects and find examples of warm, cool, and neutral colour palettes. Find 2-3 examples that you consider excellent use of colour. Find 2-3 examples that you consider poor use of colour. What makes each example work or not work? Look for overuse of colour, colour pairings that clash horribly, and unusual colour combinations that 'work.' Compare the colours used and purpose of the piece to the general colour symbolism described in the supplemental material. Is there a connection or did that piece 'fly in the face of convention' and use those colours in an unexpected way?

Subtractive Colour

All objects that surround us are made of different materials and all these materials have the property of absorbing or reflecting light.

Imagine a sheet of paper, the paper appears white, because it reflects all the light that hits it.

If we drop red ink on the paper, the pigment in the ink absorbs most of the blue and green light but at the same time reflects the red light.

If you add a drop of yellow to the red ink the pigments will mix and the resulting pigment will still reflect the red light and part of the green light. This combination, will create the sensation of orange

This system of creating colours by mixing pigments is called subtractive, because pigments absorb (or subtract) light from the white light that hits the paper. Only the wavelengths that are reflected combine in our eyes to create the colour that we see.

In paint or pigment such as water colours, oils, or coloured pencils, the subtractive primary colours are red, yellow, and blue. As mentioned earlier they are called primary colours because they cannot be mixed; yet other colours can be mixed from them. Mix red and yellow and you get orange. Mix yellow and blue and you get green. Mix red and blue and you get violet. Orange, green, and violet are the secondary colours. You can mix these colours and get numerous variations.

CMYK Colour

The printing processes use subtractive colours to create all the colours that we can see on a printed surface.

In most colour printing, the primary ink colours used are cyan, magenta, and yellow. Cyan is the complement of red, meaning that cyan acts like a filter that absorbs red. The amount of cyan applied to a paper will control how much red will show. Magenta is the complement of green, and yellow the complement of blue. Combinations of different amounts of the three inks can produce a wide range of colours; this is how artwork reproductions are mass-produced. These three inks, when combined together in equal proportions should result in black but it results in a dark, muddy brown instead. Black ink is therefore added to the mix to obtain a real black and to give more depth to printed images. This mixture is called CMYK.

Watch this short video which recaps subtractive colour mixing:

So, printing actually uses four colours that are considered primary: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black, abbreviated as CMYK also known as four-colour process printing. Four–colour process is used to reproduce colour photographs, artwork, and illustrations. The viewer perceives full colour that is created by dot patterns of cyan, magenta, yellow, and/or black.

The number of colours that can be reproduced in printing is smaller than the number of colours that can be seen on a computer screen.

There are three main reasons for this:

For these reasons, printed colours can never be true to nature and can only approximate colours that we can see on a computer screen or on a photo.

Spot Colour Printing

In offset printing, another way to produce colour is by using spot colour–a colour that is printed with its own separate ink, as opposed to creating a specific colour from process colour. Most often spot colour is used when three or fewer colours are indicated in the design. Using more than three spot colours is very expensive. For indicating and creating spot colour, a popular colour matching system called Pantone matching system is used.

Check out this short video, which reviews spot vs. process colour printing:

Additive Colour

So far we have been talking about colour on a surface, painted or printed on like a movie poster, but we need to further define colour a bit, because working with other mediums that produce their own colour, like a computer monitor or TV things change a bit.

Computer monitors, projectors, iPods, smart phones, television etc. work the way our eyes work. They emit red, green and blue light and the combination of these three lights in various quantity and intensity creates the millions of colours that we can see on the screen.

When the three lights are beamed in the same proportion and intensity, the result on the screen is white. When there is no light emitted, the result is black.

This system of creating colours is called additive because the three primary lights, Red, Green and Blue (RGB) are added together to form the white light.

Computer monitors can reproduce a large variety of different colours but they can reproduce only a smaller subset of all the colours present in nature due to impurities present in the materials that emit light and to the characteristics of the screens.

When using additive colour you can produce many more colours than when printing using subtractive colour. Since a lot of the work you will do is done digitally and then transferred to a printed format you need to be aware that what you see on the screen is not necessary what you will see in the final output. To alleviate this understanding colour theory is a very important element of good design. Talking with a printer is always a great source of information before doing your work so that you can work to their specifications. Using a common form or colour is also important and the most accepted form or colour matching is known as Pantone Colour.

Pantone Colour

Rather than using the more common colour picked in most graphics programs use the "Colour Libraries" option (see red arrow). You can select the exact colour you want from the pantone colour palette that way you can be assured that the final printed version will be the right colour. Many people who do not know these subtleties are very disappointed when they compare what prints out to what's on the monitor. There is an automatic indicator that the colour you have selected is not achievable by subtractive colour (CMYK) (see small yellow circle with an exclamation in it).

Conclusion

There have been many scientific studies of colour, as well as many unscientific theories. Most of what you need to know about colour in its use in graphic design will come from experimentation, experience with print production, asking printers questions, getting colour advice before going to print, and observation. In graphic design, colour depends on the use of printing inks, so colour choices can be dictated by budget constraints and paper selection, as well as project needs.

Allow your design solution to guide your colour choices; some colours are more appropriate than others for certain problems and brands or groups. For example, if you were to design a one-colour logo for an American Insurance Company, you would probably not choose pink. In American popular culture, pink may be thought as a frivolous colour and therefore would not be appropriate.

If you make keen observation habit when looking at existing packages, posters, web sites, or any other design, it will become an integral part of your design education. You may have noticed that gold, for example, is used in the package design of cosmetics; it is associated with luxury and quality. Try not to lock yourself into using your favorite colour in all your design solutions. Experimentation, experience, and keen observation will help you develop the ability to use and control colour.

Try This:

While no one but you may see this hands on exercise, take the time to do it just as if you were turning it in for a grade. It will help reinforce what you have learned.

1. Imagine you are going to design a tri-fold brochure for a local business. What are 5 questions that you would need to ask the client and 5 of the printer to complete the task that would effect the use of colour in the project.

2. Find 3 examples of 4 colour process printing where you can see evidence of this printing process.

Session 1: Self Check and Project

In this section of the lesson, students will check their understanding of what they have already learned by completing the colour wheel assignment and the visual scale assignment.

In this section, students were introduced to the most basic ideas concerning the elements that make up visual design. The elements of design are the building blocks used to create a work of visual communication.

These elements of design included:

Students examined how each of these elements of design can be used when creating compisitions and had the opportunity to create a compisition of their own photographs.  In the next lesson, students will start to explore the principles of design, which go hand in hand with the elements of design.

Before continuing on, please review the lesson objectives that were presented to you at the beginning of the lesson. If you have any questions, please contact your teacher before moving on.

By the end of Session 1: "Elements of Design", students should be able to:

• define the elements of design

• identify the elements of design using examples

• describe the impact of each element on the visual message; e.g., line, shape (2D) or form (3D), colour, texture, depth (perspective), light, direction (motion), mass (visual weight), tone (black and white) or value (colour), space (positive and negative)

• identify copyright restrictions and permissions and put them into practice