Leona Hu met Benjamin in a Berlin cafe called Shakespeare & Sons, during his transition from SoundCloud to NPR. During their conversation, he talked about when his father began using digital programs like AutoCAD, and how he became equally inspired, seeing it as a way for static design to achieve dimension. Benjamin spoke about his passion for music and how he enjoyed being involved in the design and music communities. He was named a “SoundCloud Hero” for raising awareness of white nose syndrome and colony collapse disorder.
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These websites have some captivating interactivity; however, the selection of type and the typographic styling and spacing are the reasons why we chose them for this piece. We focus on typography and on how engaging it can be; hopefully, this article will draw your attention to some of the minutiae involved in effective typography, and move you to continue on your own thought-provoking journey through the typographic details of other websites.
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Is sketching by hand more than a nostalgic activity? How is paper any different from a screen, especially when hardware is becoming more and more sophisticated? Is improving your hand-sketching skills really worthwhile when high-tech software is advancing every day?
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As usual, we have to put ourselves in the users’ shoes: What do we want them to see first? How will your message be best communicated? We have to ask these questions before we start designing, because the layout will shape the rest of the design. The following websites have some quite unusual layouts. They aren’t necessarily perfect; still, browse through them, and maybe your creative genius will be sparked.
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Jesse Friedman has spent nearly a decade trying to create scalable, predictably insightful, inspirational environments. he has led creative teams in these environments, and is currently doing it as the Director of Web Interface and Development at Astonish. What follows is what Jesse has found to help his team harness inspiration effectively.
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Your typography helps to create an experience for users before they’ve even read a word or clicked a button. The treatment of type creates an atmosphere and elicits a response much the same way as tone of voice does. It establishes a mode of communication and, in turn, the personality of the website. The choice of typeface will determine how people respond to your website. The following websites have very distinct personalities, largely established by the typography.
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Unlike other industries, the web design and development community are all about sharing knowledge and experience. We are very lucky to be part of such a great and useful learning environment, and it is up to us to embrace it — to embrace our learning experiences, and also to embrace our ability to share.
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When people visit your website, you want it to stand out from the crowd, to be memorable. It is a reflection of the person or organization behind it. You want people to come back and use your website or get in touch with you. It has to be innovative yet functional. Ask yourself, what would make life easier for your user?
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In this article, Martin Gittins will explore the idea of consciously restricting yourself to a set of core tools that you know, love and trust, so that you don’t get overwhelmed by the staggering array of resources and options available to designers. You should know what your most precious tools are, and keep a portable set close at hand.
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