Equestrian Design: Image & Composition
Have you ever wondered what makes a poster or an ad stand out? Why are we drawn to certain things? Why do specific ads seem more memorable than others? A huge part of that is creativity and originality, but there’s also something else at work behind the scenes: composition. How you arrange text and images within the space of your design matters! But how do you figure out the best way to arrange them? Trial and error? Well, maybe… but there are certain standards that always look great and can be a nice reference as you develop your design skills. The first is called “The Golden Ratio”, which basically says that within a work of art or architecture, if one maintained a ratio of small elements to larger elements that was the same as the ratio of larger elements to the whole, the end result was extraordinarily pleasing to the eye. (Credit Here) The second is called the “Rule of Thirds”, which is based on composition. You take your canvas and divide it up into 9 equal parts (3 across, 3 down). The ideas is to line up the main images or whatever you feel is most important with the corners of the very center rectangle. Following this principal with help draw your eye to the image and make the design as a whole more appealing.
Here are some great examples of posters that utilize these principals:
The next time you see an ad or poster that you like, see if it follows these rules! I bet it will!