Hierarchy

Also known as visual hierarchy, hierarchy is the ordering of priorities in a design. This may include different visual elements, such as contrast, colour, font size and placement on a page. The graphic designer's job is to create an understandable document using organisational systems that the reader easily understands.

More terms you might want to know

Hand-lettering

The art of drawing original characters and symbols — especially for decorative purposes.

System Font

A type of font that comes pre-installed in an operating system.

Iterative Design

A way of developing new products or services using a process of repeated and regular refinement, in which prototypes are made, evaluated, revised, and re-evaluated until the desired result is achieved. High profile companies have successfully implemented iterative design to create effective and innovative products.

Diary Study

A technique for understanding people’s experience of a product or service. Participants are asked to keep daily records of their experience using the product, and these records are taken into consideration when designing the design.

Aperture

The setting on a camera's lens which controls how much light comes into the camera. Aperture settings can usually be set to F-stop values ranging from F1.4-F22. The higher the aperture value, the smaller the opening is, and vice versa, which affects the depth of field in photos and how much light reaches and illuminates a subject or scene in a photo.

Slab Serif

A type of serif, characterized by large x-heights and thick, blocky strokes with little variation in width.

Margin

The space that an item has around it.

Stem

The part of a letter, usually a vertical line, that rise above the x-height.

Pictorial Mark

A graphic representation, such as an icon, of a company or brand. Pictorial marks can be used on marketing materials to communicate the intentions and personality of the company. Factors such as colour, placement, and shape are significant in how the general public perceives a pictorial mark.

Typesetting

The process of arranging type to make written material readable. The arrangement of type involves decisions about individual letters and words (e.g. line spacing, letter spacing, and word spacing) and more significant page layout decisions (e.g., margins, headline position on the page).

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