Web Design Graphics - March 2009

Web design Sunshine Coast

At 12website.com.au - web design sunshine coast, we work with our customers to design logos, business cards, brochures and all types of graphic design. We also provide a Style Manual to enable the customer to use the logo in different formats including newspaper advertisments.

Please recognise that web design and print design are different. At Sunshine Coast web design we understand that web and print share many similarities, but they also have many differences.
Below is a list of things to consider when going from print design to web design:

Web design resolution

Resolution is the quality of an image. It's measured in terms of pixels. If you see an image listed as "70 ppi", that means the image has 70 pixels per inch (ppi). Because web graphics are viewed on screen, they should be no larger than 72 ppi. A large ppi image will load slower, and won't necessarily look any better. This also has a direct effect on the user experience. Will they wait for the grapic to load or go to another website? Read more fom web design homepage from March 2008.

Web design image files - Gifs and Jpegs

JPEG stands for Joint Photographers Experts Group. It's a great format that retains colour and detail found in photographs and graphics with lots of color blends. JPEGs can display millions of colors so it's ideal for print. JPEG or JPG may also be optimised for web design.

GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format. Most web pages use this format because it's supported by all web browsers, can display up to 256 colors, and can include transparent backgrounds. GIFS are appropriate for image files with little colour variation, and for images that will only be viewed on screen.

Photographs saved as GIFs may appear grainy. Single color images saved as JPEGs may appear fuzzy. When you save a graphic image, consider what type of file it is. Remember, GIFs work best with images having few colors or color variations. JPEGs work best with photographs or images to be printed. Whilst jpgs may be used in both web design & print, gifs are suitable for web design only. Look at the big picture & consider these web design tips.

Web design fonts

There is a major difference between choosing fonts for web as opposed to print. With print design, your completed piece will display the font specified during the design process. You don't have to worry that a reader will open your brochure and not have the proper fonts displayed. There are only 4 web safe fonts where web designers can be sure their fonts will display properly. The main ones are Times New Roman, Arial & Verdana.

Unlike with print, web fonts differ based on the web browser being used. Your audience can only view the same font you're viewing if it's installed on their computer. If you design a beautiful website using Chaucer Bold, and none of your viewers have that font, their browsers will have to find a substitute, usually Times New Roman.

This is why it's good to be conservative when it comes to web fonts. Your beautifully designed page can look horrible when displayed on someone else's browser. Don't let your hard work go to waste.

Stick to fonts such as Helvetica, Arial, Times New Roman, or Verdana. All web browsers are capable of displaying these fonts. However, if you do want to use a creative font, you can include it in a graphic file. But this will cause your page to load slower.

As we are both web designer & print designer, we take time to study the business and create a marketing plan suitable to both your online & offline requirements. More on professional web design from December 2004.

You can create the most stunning website, with flash animations, video or audio features, rotating logos etc but the truth is, if your website doesn't have any depth, no amount of "pretty" will get visitors to come back, let alone purchase anything!

Just as doctors warns against spending your entire time planning a wedding (and spending thousands of dollars on it), instead of preparing for a lifelong marriage, many first time entrepreneurs become absorbed by the visual aspects of their website. They spend hours agonising over colour schemes and designs (and then spend thousands of dollars having special effects added), but sadly don't give any priority or time to the content of their website.

At 12website.com.au - web design sunshine coast, we have the experience to balance your website. Use our web design checklist to 'get it right the first time'.

Disclaimer

12website.com has prepared the supplied information as a voluntary service to the online community. The information is necessarily web design and small business in nature and is not intended to be relied upon other than as general background material. This should not be used as specific advice, recommendations or guidance, and specialist assistance should be sought by anyone in need of such help. 12website.com accepts no liability under any circumstances for any loss, expense, damages or costs whether direct or indirect (including loss of profits / damage to business) which may be incurred by any person as a result of relying on or using in whole or in part any of the supplied information.