Investing in the Grid

Print designers have successfully utilized the grid to create effective design layouts long before the world wide web was even conceived, but the truth is that grids can be just as effective for web page design and ought to be employed by every web designer.

The grid enables designers to create a system of related design elements that interact with each other in a logical, consistent manner. It aids designers in creating a unified page layout and a clear page hierarchy — helping to achieve a visual rhythm that moves the viewer’s eye around the page. Designers experienced with table-based design are more likely comfortable relying on a grid to form the foundation for their designs.

Many website designers today completely ignore (or worse, avoid) the grid. While a vast majority jump right in knowing they want a 2 or 3 column design, never stopping to consider how the choices they make affect the usability, readability, and flow of a site. What if a shift in proportions, a change to the relationships of elements, or an adjustment to type size could make your site more usable and better able to communicate? The grid is the tool that can help you make better choices and therefore have more impact with your design.

However, don’t confuse structure with a lack of visual complexity. It is the very structure of a grid that opens up a multitude of purposeful, rational design decisions.

Leia o post original