Graphic design is the craft of planning and creating visual content to communicate ideas and messages. Graphic design is everywhere you look — from billboards to product packaging to mobile apps. By incorporating different elements and principles, these designs can influence our perceptions and emotions.

Graphic design is also known as communication design, and Graphic Designers are essentially visual communicators. They bring visual concepts to life, most commonly through graphic design software, and inform or engage consumers through text, graphics and images.

Graphic design is one way that businesses connect with consumers. Design can be used to promote and sell products, to convey a message, or to develop a brand identity. Though some graphic design has a commercial purpose, graphic design can also be a form of art and expression.

What Are the Elements and Principles of Graphic Design?

Graphic design has elements and principles that every designer must apply in order to make a design worth it. The principles of graphic design include: Contrast, hierarchy, alignment, balance, proximity, repetition simplicity, and function. Whatever work you produce be it for a magazine, a poster, a website or advertisement, the principles of design should be considered. A good designer keeps these principles as guidelines in their toolkit and will consciously use them to develop their ideas. Read the full article on principles of graphic design.

Graphic design elements include: line, shape, color, texture, type, space, and image. A good mastery of these basic elements will take your graphic design portfolio to the next level.

What Are the Different Types of Graphic Design?

Graphic design is all around us, which means there is a range of graphic design areas and specializations. Each type of graphic design requires specific skills and techniques.

Visual Identity Graphic Design

Visual identity graphic design focuses on the visual elements of a brand. It aims to communicate a brand’s identity through images, shapes, and colors. Graphic Designers within this area create elements like logos, typography, color palettes, and image libraries that represent a brand. They also develop visual brand guidelines to ensure brand consistency across all uses.

Marketing and Advertising Graphic Design

This type of design is used to sell products or services. This may involve print advertisements, such as posters, billboards, flyers, catalogs and packaging, or digital advertisements, such as television ads, video ads, or social media posts.

Graphic Designers working in this area create assets for marketing strategies and campaigns. They develop ideas, research consumer habits, and create designs that speak to the target audience. This type of design involves a strong knowledge of how to sell a product and how to entice consumers.

Web Design

Web design involves planning and building the appearance, layout, structure, and design of websites. It focuses on the front-facing aspects of a website, including the user experience. Web Designers combine a variety of visual elements, such as text, photos, graphics, and video, to create appealing and user-friendly sites and pages. Web design is closely connected to UX and UI design.

Publication Graphic Design

This design focuses on creating layouts and selecting typography and artwork, including photography, graphics, and illustrations. Graphic Designers in this area work with books, newspapers, magazines, and catalogs. They need to understand color management, printing, and digital publishing.

Packaging Graphic Design

Packaging not only protects products, but it is also an important marketing tool. Graphic Designers in this area develop concepts, mockups, and print-ready files. Packaging graphic design requires an understanding of print processes, as well as industrial design and manufacturing. Packaging Graphic Designers need to track trends and competitors so they can create packaging that stands out to consumers.

Motion Graphic Design

Motion graphic design is a new specialty area in graphic design, though it is quickly growing and demand is increasing for Motion Graphic Designers. At a basic level, this type of design involves any graphic in motion. This can include animations, banners, title sequences, trailers, or video games.

Environmental Graphic Design

Environmental graphic design is a multidisciplinary practice that combines graphic, architectural, interior, landscape, and industrial design. This type of design connects people to places. Typically, these Designers will have a background in graphic design and architecture. They should be familiar with industrial design concepts and architectural plans. They may work on projects such as public transportation navigation, retail store interiors, signage, and office branding.

Illustration for Graphic Design

Graphic Artists create original artwork through a combination of media and techniques. They often have a background in fine arts, animation, or architecture. Graphic Artists collaborate closely with writers, editors, marketers and art directors across all types of graphic design.

What Is the Difference Between UX Design and Graphic Design?

Graphic design focuses on the appearance of a product, while UX design focuses on the user’s overall experience with the product. These two types of design have many elements in common, but there are a few important differences between the two.

The goal of graphic design is to create visually appealing products that convey certain messages or information. Graphic Designers focus on branding, typography, layout, and the overall principles of design composition. They work on a range of materials, including advertisements, flyers, logos, packaging, and animations.

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Content source: BrainStation