Thursday, February 24, 2011

Simple Icons And Webpage Design

Simple icons are created not to make the design beautiful but rather minimal and contemporary. Light-weight Simple web icons are meant to be created to improve internet site user interaction.

Minimalistic website design

Lets discover what minimalistic web page design indicates. Surely the first features are simplicity and light-weight elements. Simple icons involve all this. This type of icons does not have complex wordings, figures, textures and patterns. Often less even indicates more. It depends on areas and extent. Website design is exactly such area.

Today minimalistic web site design is something unusual. As far as you know high modern technologies have one great drawback - often they resulted in the loss of simplicity. These days the contemporary trend is to mix minimalistic web site design with CSS3 and HTML5. Simple does not necessarily mean primitive. Internet site with simple design often contain brave and off-color effects and actively use CSS and Ajax.

The most significant features of the modern simple web site design:

  • grid based design;
  • simple icons;
  • light shading and reserved color transition;
  • light texture of patterns and backgrounds (often transparent like);
  • more empty or white space;
  • simple shapes and figures, clear lines;
  • less amount of various bright colors;
  • clear and readable typography;

The Essence Of 2d Icons

2D icons along with other objects are famous for their flexibility. This is achieved by the peculiarity of rendering them at different resolutions ideal for various output devices.

2D Icons may embody the next items:

  • raster pictures (digital graphics);
  • styled text as a typeset for 2D Icons;
  • vector models (geometric graphics).

All these items can be managed by 2D transformations for example rotation, scaling or angular position etc. Meshing basic models you may get more complex ones.

2D icons are not similar to the real three-dimensional objects but because of the layers technique they can create the illusion of all 3D characteristics like shadow, reflection or highlighting. The layers should keep the definite hierarchy and order carefully. This makes editing 2D icons and related objects simpler.

2.5D Icons

2Dicons also are widely recognized as 2.5D models. This technology enables website designers to work with any layer with no need of touching the others. The most of the well known graphics editors choose this kind of 2D object development.

2.5D is a synonym to pseudo 3D and is interpreted as "two-and-a-half-dimensional" graphics. Models which were built with a help of with 2.5D technology appear to be tridimensional while in fact they are not. The featured projection depicts both front and side views.

This technology used for designing 2D icons is usually attained by the special lighting effect. 3D illusion can be reached as a result of virtual light source to the left or to the right side and above the users monitor.

Vintage Icons Style Can Make Visitors Smile

Retro takes over the modern web site design industry. For sure the best representatives of classic beauty and noble taste are Vintage icons. Nowadays modern-day web site style usually includes some vintage twist. Retro and Vintage are the most famous and widely used trends in the modern digital art. Vintage web icons, textures, patterns as well as clip-art bring mystery to your design. They make you plunge into the atmosphere of the old happy times, when everything seemed to be so simple, innocent and noble. People usually associate childhood or youth with happy times. Due to this psychological peculiarity of people vintage style is so well-liked.

Find out all about retro style in the present day internet site design industry

In present day art retro becomes some conscious norm. Having emerged in the post-modern art, it penetrates into the contemporary website design in the form of vintage icons, old-style backgrounds, aged photography etc. It is obvious it gives some zest to the feel and look of the ordinary internet sites.

Typically the new retro style consists of the Web 2.0 look with a vintage twist. It needs to combine the modern clean blocks and the outdated ones. Also there is a necessity to combine aged design elements like Vintage web icons, styles and color palettes.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

The Truth About Realistic Icons

The initial mention about realism happened in 1850 when it's spread over French art. It is really carried over the hundreds of years and penetrated right into all types of art and design. Speaking about realism in web design we can easily say that it's represented here by Realistic icons.

Facts about history of realistic icons

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Vintage Web Icons As An Element Of Vintage Web Design

If your want your web site looks archaic - use Vintage web icons. They're one of the most noticeable and easy-to-apply graphical elements. With a help of vintage web icons it's easy to create the vintage atmosphere at your web page Also use vintage typography, less-saturated colors and retro textures. Your internet site visitors will definitely like antique air of your new design.

Retro trend is all about the styles of the70s and 80s. Retro advertising art from the 1950s is bold and eye-catchy. Presently with a help of computer technologies it is possible to put a new face on this type of art and easily use its characters in web site design and printing. Often such faces in the vintage web icons are retro cars, pin-up girls, soldiers and politicians of the former times as well.Most frequently used retro cars are Fiat 500, the 1970 Dodge Challenger, the 1969 Chevrolet Samara, the 1964 Ford Mustang etc. You can effortlessly find Vintage web icons that include hints to retro cars concepts. This will help to attract more attention to your internet site layout. They are ideal for the sites concerning auto sales, transporting services, tour sites etc.A pin-up model is another popular character used in vintage icons design and other internet site graphics styling. It usually depicts exaggerated, idealized images of how the really beautiful and attractive woman should look like. Pin-up images are great for vintage web icons or clip-art designed for the model agencies, websites regarding health and beauty areas.

In case you have a internet site that is connected with military and security guard you may successfully use images of soldiers and officers with outdated appearance to attract much more interest and win the visitors trust.

There is no limit in usage of specific characters. Apply your creativity and use them as you wish. Thus you will surprise your visitors. So far as you know it is a very good way to turn your potentional clients minds to your internet business.

Patterns and Typography for vintage icons

Vintage patterns recommended for usage in vintage icons design is the following:

  • patterns containing vintage papers;
  • with vintage frames;
  • with outmoded florals;
  • paper and bagging, gold-cloth as the texture fabric;
  • wooden or bronze textures for vintage icons.

For producing vintage icons titles, content headings and texts you can use such authentic fonts as Matchbook, Bazar Medium, Embossed, Hill House,-Fontleroy Brown, Fusty Saddle, Just Old Fashion, Goudy Bookletter 1911, Rocket Script, Parisian, Star Avenue etc. You are free to find and purchase the fonts to match your design on the internet.

Try to get a such vintage-inspired layout that looks contemporary and appropriate, but no old-fashioned. If you create the cozy and noble, antique feel using Vintage icons, images and styled blocks for the online site layout, your visitors will come to your site with a happy smile over and over again.

But try to avoid stuffiness in your vintage design look. Do not forget that the main emphasis should be made on the goods, services or content of your web-site not on the web site design.

Monday, February 21, 2011

All You Need To Know About Line Icons

Lines are more frequently used for outlining the contours of objects and emphasizing edges. If placed and developed reasonably, line icons can be the great decoration of any minimalistic or clear web design.

Line icons - to be or not to be....

Let's find out what line actually is. This is a form containing both width and length but eliminating depth.We are accustomed to the fact that the line is usually straight. Newertheless the line is more often curved. The lines can render some appropriate mood or feeling of a movement. Staying static shapes, Line web icons can create a kind of illusion of the dynamic objects. The mood depends on the lines direction. As an example horizontal lines in Line icons bring the feeling of calmness, harmony and stability. Speaking about the vertical lines - they strive for the light movement. Energy and stronger dynamic feeling pertain to the diagonal lines. If you would like develop refine and modern line icons designs you should use mix of straight lines and curves.

Line art background

Certainly the very first type of line art that familiar to a great deal of artists is curve stitching. It was carried out with threads of various colours and needle. The canvas was a card board first. String Art is another name for this movement. Generally it was found out by Mary Boole as the accessory material for kids to help them study geometry of angles and spaces.Spirelli is a type of string art that has been usually applied to scrap-booking and making cards. Before the photography appeared line art lived also in the form of illustrations for print sources and included only black and white colors. Also some tones of gray were also acceptable.Line art includes geometry and art and in such a way becomes appealing to both technical and creative sides of human nature, So if you desire to become a Line icons designer keep in mind that this process may develop imagination and creativity as well as calculation skills.Line art has an ability to be printed to the halftone picture without extra conversion. Thus it's different from photography or multi-color painting.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Advantages Of Realistic Web Icons.

Realistic web icons are crucial elements of the present day pieces of software program, applications and add-ons.

Internet sites are a special niche requiring special methods for representation and promotion. The most successful way is of course including realistic icons into the website design. They help users to get a quick initial impression of what business area and what products he/she is going to have to do with. The icons should be placed on web page homepage to be noticeable at once.

You may hire the skilled designer to create some unique set of icons meeting your website personal needs and products. But remember that such method of designing of realistic icons is quite expensive and takes a lot of time. The custom order result still remains indefinite Even professional web designers fall short of the mark called non-uniqueness. Often many of website designers simply take icons that were created earlier and vary colors and shades, use some other effects and then sell realistic icons as exclusive items.

Finding authoritative icons resources it is another way of getting nice web icons. They're numerous Realistic web icons stocks and providers on the internet. You see what you buy and the price may occur essentially lower than in case with custom orders. Also you save your valuable time. So as far as you see now - stocks are much more preferable for finding well designed and low-cost realistic icons . All these advantages make icon stocks the great deal.

Tips for utilizing realistic icons

If you decide to create a realistic icon first of all you should build the basic pictograms. Also it should look vivid enough if being displayed at worse resolution. The icon must be recognizable at first sight. You can make a test and see if it is possible to discern the icon within just one second.<\p>

The next task is to make realistic icons more eye-catching with a help of decorative elements. Icons really should not be overloaded with the details and color tints. Design should look integral and reserved. You may make the edges anti-aliased. So keep in mind the simple rule - the decoration shouldn't take away from the icons essence and functions.

The icons are often stored in vector format that makes it pretty simple to edit. It allows you to resize, rotate, adjust the edges and edit outlines. Also you can change the color scheme and add more details and so on. So you don't have to be an experienced designer or an artist to use them.

Realistic web icons may be helpful in case you need to design the interface layout of the new software program or IT services. Designing premium quality, eye-catching and good-looking realistic icons is not an easy task. Truly realistic images may be created only if you take and edit the high-resolution photos. So keep this in mind.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Line Icons Creation

The objects with the outlined contours is another kind of Line icons. They're called contour drawings. It's also possible to find another type of icons: the items are without some strict outlines. They are known as gesture drawings. These kinds of drawings are being widely used by experienced designers who are able to repeat the outlines of the object right after seeing it.

One additional technique is adding some halftones and shades to the object. It's possible by using short lines and crosshatching. Do not afraid to vary their frequency and also pencil pressure. And this variety creates more three-dimensional look to the object. It helps to develop awesome Line web icons, logos and buttons.The lines with the dots not combining the singular elements are classified as open lines. The lines can be gesture-like, parallel, contour etc. as well. You may be wonder what is bezier curves in computer graphics? It is such sort of the curves that are necessary for creating complex line shapes. These curves are handy small features necessary for creating the vector shapes like line icons, unusual buttons etc.Nowadays computer technologies reached such a level when it becomes possible to reproduce exactly the same designs or even build new shapes that based on some older ones. The wonderful thing - it can be done without extra efforts and time. Moreover, you can go back to the previous adjustments due to the history panel. As a result there is no need to design Line icons from scratch if you have made some faults.

Simple Web Icons Particularities

Simple web icons are among the principal features of minimalistic design. Remember that simple icons along with other design elements should be used moderately. Among the keys is minimizing icons use in general. Simple icons are supposed to be used where they're unquestionably necessary and eliminated where it is possible. Optional simple web icons are to be refrained from repetition or eluded.

Limited amount of color, reserved tones, clear elements, soft lighting are being used for simple web icons design. One of the greatest advantages of Simple icons is that they don't distract website visitors from the main idea of your web site.

The following rules for simple icons design can be outlined:

  • minimal usage of duplication
  • less amount of graphical elements
  • maximum intuitive clarity
  • clear typography in simple web icons
  • less icons

Some important ideas for creating a minimalistic design with simple web icons

Don't forget about lightweight background textures and patterns. They are also essential for the design and content perception as well as simple icons. The background pattern or images shouldn't grab all the attention of your visitors. The eyes should focus on the web page content or some main blocks. So the background should be of a light simple shade making it secondary compared with the foreground items like simple web icons.

One more outstanding feature of the lightweight and clear design is undoubtedly clear typography. Select simple icons names according to their function and remember that such names should be precise, and meaningful. Headings placed on simple web icons should be of readable font and huge enough for easy reading. Clear hierarchy should be followed as well.

Also for creating a great clean simple icons design you may use enough white or empty space. Extra spaces keep elements more readable. As a result it is easier to work with them. In case you use some extra space between simple web icons this dont harm to the design of your site at all.

In general the minimalistic trend is not entirely minimal. Inspite of its great amount of white space there are still some simple icons, light textures, neat styles and bold fonts. Minimal is not exactly the same as simple. Initially minimal meant plain typographic excluding images and styling. Today there is a great amount of various web pages over the Internet. That's why modern design requires something more than black text on white background. Reducing elements of design to the most essential items you can add more zest to your internet site layout with some unusual coloring, catchy simple icons, half-transparent and light-weight textures and patterns.

Simple equals smart. Simple web icons look great and professional especially for a clean business style design.

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Two-Dimensional Graphics Displayed By 2d Icons Rule

Today 2D icons is a wide spread trend in the modern day web design. These two-dimensional icons are well known for their flexibility and comparative simplicity. 2.5D Icons is the type of 2D Icons that is closer to pseudo 3D representation.

Being originally based on vector graphics devices 2D computer graphics traces back to the 50s. 2D web icons are among the most significant two-dimensional digital design items.

What's actually 2D?Usually it is being connected with computer graphics and determined as the two-dimensional way of digital images generation. Two-dimensional models are mainly 2D geometric ones, digital images and texts. The term 2D comprises not only the models themselves but the techniques and tricks specific to them as well.

2D icons and objects don't simply represent the real world items but they are independent objects with their own semantic value. 2D graphics allows to get more direct control of the image than 3D technology. This one of the main reasons why they are so preferred in the world of modern web design.