At present, images have an enormous role, whether in personal or professional life. On social networks we see how the photographs or images that are published, far from being casual shots, have a composition and retouching work that makes them more interesting and able to stand out from the crowd.
For that reason Learning how to compose attractive images capable of capturing people’s attention is an increasingly valued skill in our society. To develop it, a series of knowledge and knowledge is required that are grouped into different but related disciplines.
On the one hand, it is essential to understand how it works human perception. Most people are unaware of how their visual apparatus works and go through life unaware of the enormous work behind advertisements in the development of concepts and images made exactly to the measure of the human eye. On the other hand, they require notions about composition to find the best combination of shapes, colors and sizes.
This is one of the central issues that can be learned in the design courses, where the ability to create the best visual solutions is trained. In fact, there are many people who choose to carry out a graphic design online course to be able to respond to your daily needs for the production of attractive visual content.
In this article, we will tell you about some basic concepts that can be learned through design courses and that will be very useful to begin to investigate what is behind each image.
How to compose attractive images?
human perception
The first step for anyone who wants to learn how to compose attractive images is to understand how human perception works. That is, how our visual system works to make sense of what our eyes see.
There are some basic laws that explain the resources from which our perception organizes what it sees. A first rule is that of figure and ground.
Perception researchers managed to establish that in humans a figure and a ground are separate aspects.
So, to create images that are clear, concise and consistent, the elements must be arranged so that the separation between the figure and the background occurs instantly.
The perception of the figure and the background is due to the fact that we have the ability to see contours and through them we interpret the content according to our previous experience.
A second rule that explains our way of perceiving is that of grouping..
Humans tend to group the objects we perceive and interpret them as a whole. Now, the grouping is not random and is subject to some guidelines.
It is grouped by proximitythat is, objects that are located next to each other, will tend to be seen as a group and not as independent entities.
We also usually group by likeness. If there are two elements that have similar characteristics, we will automatically interpret that they are related.
And, furthermore, our perception tends to group objects that together can create a simple symmetrical shapelike the circle.
A final rule that orders human perception is the pregnancy. It means that our perception has the ability to complete parts of an image so that it becomes understandable.
The aforementioned rules of perception work automatically, ordering our perception. Most of the time we are not even aware that they operate in how we organize and understand visual information.
organic and geometric shapes
One of the first notions that can be learned when studying graphic design or visual composition is to work with shapes.
Previously, we mentioned that human perception is organized according to the ability to distinguish figure from background. Starting from this conceptual pillar, designers know that their work element is the form. Now, what types of shapes exist and what are they associated with?
In design, a distinction is made between what is called “organic shapes” and “geometric shapes”.
organic shapes.
Organic forms, as their name suggests, are those that can be found in nature, whether in the animal, vegetable or mineral world. They are characterized by being curved and imperfect, unpredictable in the sense that they do not have a fixed geometric structure but rather a freer one, with irregular profiles.
Examples of organic forms are the outline of the clouds, of the leaves of the trees, of the mountains; among other.
Now, humans have artificially created other forms that, although inspired by nature, are perfectly geometric and flat.
Geometric forms.
The most basic geometric shapes are the point and the line. From these two shapes you can create all kinds of geometric shapes; like the plane, the polygons, the circumference, the ellipse, the hyperbola and the parabola.
In addition, from geometric shapes you can create three-dimensional figures such as polyhedrons, polytopes, cylinders, cones, and spheres.
Being artificially created shapes, geometric shapes have a great capacity for attraction in human perception. It could be said that these are forms created as a synthesis of what the eye perceives in nature.
Graphic designers often combine organic shapes with geometric shapes to create images tailored to what they are looking to communicate. Each of these forms have associated meanings that must be known in order to control to what extent they take center stage in a given composition.
Geometric shapes are usually associated with the artificial, perfection, hardness and order; while organic forms usually refer to nature, realism, freedom and have a great expressive charge; due to its irregularity.
Conclusion.
Learning how to compose compelling images that communicate a message clearly, concisely, and consistently is an increasingly necessary skill. This is true, not only for those who are graphic design professionals, but for practically the common people who need to visually display a product or service.
Fortunately, through graphic design courses you can learn about the fundamentals of human perception and the necessary tools to compose effective messages.
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