Monday, Feb.10: Videos

SUMMARY

The first video touched on Gestalt Theory, and how layouts are designed using this specific theory. The first part of the theory is proximity. This idea means that things that are grouped in the same general area have the same functions. Similarity is the second part of the theory, meaning things that are grouped by colors, shapes or fonts go together. For example, text against a white background goes together and texts against a yellow background go together. The third part is continuity, meaning things are grouped in order by a visible/implied line of sight that lead you to the next part of the website/advertisement. Lastly, closure is the idea that when half or a portion of an image is finished, the brain finishes the rest of it on its own. For example, including half a picture of an air balloon in a header might seem strange, but an individual’s brain will finish the photo on its own.

The second video explains the significance and importance of organizing a document to show what is most important, as well as correctly grouping different things together. By doing this, the designer can highlight what needs to be most important to the audience and how the document is supposed to be read.

OUTSIDE EXAMPLE

When going to a restaurant, there’s an unspoken expectation of how a menu is supposed to be set up and read. It starts with appetizers, then entrees (often organized by the type of food: chicken, pasta, pizza), desserts, and then followed by drinks. This follows the chronological order that someone would eat their meal in: appetizer, main course, then dessert.

Right next to my house, about 30 minutes from here, there is a small family-run restaurant called “Wraptitude”. This tiny place sells wraps, burgers, mexican food, and really fun desserts. Although the food is fantastic, when we first started going it seemed quite disorganized. I would mainly attribute this to the menu’s lack of order. The appetizers were on one of the last pages, drinks first, desserts scattered throughout as just simply images on the side of the page.

It doesn’t seem like a big deal, but it definitely made a big impact on our first few experiences there. Although the service and food were both great, just this simple issue made the whole restaurant seem like it had opened 2 days ago.

CONNECTION

When looking back on this experience after watching the video about visual hierarchy, this explained the strange feeling we had when we left. If a document (in this case a menu) isn’t designed properly, it can have a different effect on an audience, sometimes even a negative impact. The idea behind visual hierarchy and the design that goes into menus as well as other important documents should be prioritized in the process of starting a new business.