Week 3 - Construction

Construction of grids;

• Before you can apply a grid you must understand the requirement of te grid of the work to be produced.
• Typeface, text and illustrations, print method and paper quality must be confirmed beforehand (ideally).
• Thumbnail sketches will make your job of final layouts easier and productive.
• Always start will small sketches.
• Thumbnail sizes should be appropriate to the final format.
• Before drawing your sketches, consider the number of columns needed. 

Examples;

• 2 columns, logically gives you more space:
• 1 column for text
• 1 column for illustration
• They can be mixed together.
• 2 column division can be subdivided into more columns.

Three columns;

• Opportunities for arranging and accommodating text and illustrations in numerous sizes.

Disadvantages of 6 column;

• Lines of text will be narrow.
• Small typeface will have to be used

 Stats, figures, graphs and trend line publications;

• 4 columns
• Can also be subdivided.

Column width - point size;

• The width of a column dictates the size of the typeface.
• The rule; The narrower a column is, the smaller the typeface.

Thumbnails;

• Make a variety of thumbnails of layouts/designs.
• Do not rely on just one set of thumbnails.
• Enlarge a small selection of appropriate thumbnails by 1:1.
• Compare them and select and repeat process until you are confident with the design.

Applying type to columns;

• The first line must fit flush to the top limit of the column grid.
• The last line must stand on the bottom line.
• Keep calm, it is difficult to find the final solution the first time around.
• It could mean that you grid field is too high or too low.

Font Heights;

• 4 point type
• 6 point leading

• 7 point type
• 10 point leading

• 10 point type
• 13 point leading

• 20 point type
• 40 point leading

Type and picture, 8 field grids;

• 8 and 20 grid fields in A4 format.
• 8 grid fields are used frequently for advertising material and brochures.
• If using 8 grid fields you can subdivide into 16. 
• The grid is only an instrument in which you, a designer, can make interesting and balanced designs.

20 field grid;

• Has quite a large scope for idea solutions.
• There is around 42 possible layout options. 

 Experimenting on InDesign;

 Going to layout, unchaining the boxes, then changes the number so that they are different.

 Going to create guides, then you can change the values in that to give you guides.

When making boxes and things, if you hold onto the mouse and press up and right it will give you more boxes.

Going to window then utilities then script, you find different things which you can add, as long as the box is selected, for example adding guides.