Chapter 3 Reflection-Katelyn Pesola

Chapter 3 Syntax and Communication

            Chapter 3 is about typographic syntax and communication, which includes the importance of creating balance within a design using letters, words, lines, columns, and margins. Typographic syntax is defined as the process of arranging elements into a cohesive whole. After reading this chapter, I believe that typographic syntax is extremely important when creating a design. Its not only important to have a design that looks visually pleasing but also making sure that the design makes sense in terms of what it is trying to communicate. I really liked the example on page 55 #14, I felt that this example showed a very creative way to create variation within type size, weight, and line spacing.  But even with all the variation the viewer is still able to clearly understand what the designer is trying to communicate. This image creates a great sense of rhythm, which really goes along with the musical content of the poster.

            I also found the section on typographic space to be very interesting and informative. The authors talk about the importance of having balance and unity within a design. I think that balance and unity are both really important but are sometimes are very hard to achieve. I believe that the only way to create balance and unity within a design is through trial and error and practice. I also found the section on visual hierarchy to be very helpful as well. The examples with the dots on one page and the actual layout on the other were very interesting as well as helpful in understanding visual hierarchy. I liked being about to see all the different ways that visual hierarchy could be achieved with the same words. It was interesting to see that by just changing the size of the font what became more important within the design.

           An example of a design that I think does a good job of having visual balance and unity is the book cover for A Beautiful Mess Photo Idea Book.  The cover of this book, while having a lot going on, really creates balance with the use of size and color. It is clear because of the size of the text to know what the title, subtitle and description is. In terms of the photos, while they are all different they include a similar color palate, which makes them work well visually.