Are your visuals saying what you want? Part 1 Visual Elements

Create more effective training materials, blogs, websites, etc. by understanding how to use visuals that reinforce your message not detract from it.

You know that pictures make your training materials, blog, website, etc. more interesting. But are you using them as effectively as you could be? In this series of posts, we’ll be taking a look at what makes an image speak, to see if you’re getting your images to reinforce what you want to say.

What are the elements of the visual story?

There are a number of elements that make up the visual language of an image beyond the content of the picture. Here are some examples:

• Dominant lines and shapes
• Color
• Contrast
• Texture
• Pattern

In this post, I will focus on dominant lines and shapes. I’ll write about others next week.

Dominant lines and shapes

Here we have two photos of a dog swimming. Same dog, similar colors.

The dominant lines in the pictures are quite different. If you learned to read a language like English, your eye automatically starts at the top left side and moves to the right. The same holds true for images. Your eye will tend to follow the dominant lines in an image from top-left to right.

The picture of the dog with the ball in it’s mouth, moves the eye to the right along the diagonal, returns to the left along the bottom diagonal, then wraps around to focus on the dog’s face. The other picture brings the eye down vertically to a vortex of tension created by opposition of the lines pointing up from the bottom. The focus is the nose of the dog.

Even if you don’t consciously notice the dominant lines, your eye will subconsciously follow them. They will lead your attention, which is why identifying them can help you be more effective with the images you use for your blog, presentations, etc.

More examples

Here are some images to practice finding dominant lines and shapes. There are no ‘right’ and ‘wrong’ answers. Each person will see things slightly differently, and that’s OK. You can see what I picked out of each one.

What do you want people to pay attention to?

Certainly, you want to select images with content that is related to the message you want to convey. Beyond that, you also want to help guide people through your content effectively. Paying attention to how the images are moving your audience’s eye can help you look at whether you are guiding their eye to the most important places on your page.

On your blog or website homepage, you will have a number of elements that may be competing for attention.

• If you have an image in the header, where do the dominant lines lead?
  • Is it to your post?
  • Your sidebar?
  • Off the sides of the page?
  • Are you directing people to what you want them to pay attention to?
• If you add an image to your post
  • Is it leading the eye through the content of the post, or away from it?
  • How do the lines and shapes relate to the sidebar(s)?
  • Is it adding or distracting?
• Are you leading eyes to what is most important to you?
• Does the visual emphasis align with the focus of your blog?

Take a look

How are the images working (or not) on your blog, website or printed materials?

The series will continue and we’ll focus on identifying other elements that can contribute to making the visual story as effective as the verbal one.