11. Set your designs apart from the rest. Create a style by using rotated letters for nuance.
Crop your image so that you have copy space to work with when applying your text. Here the letters have been placed individually and rotated. Remember that design is deliberate, the L and the E have been applied to correspond with the form of the flower.
12. When using a shape to contain your text, apply a color from your background to your type for a cut-out effect.
Use an eyedropper tool to collect tones, ensuring consistency of color within your graphic. Here the creamy color of the sky has been used on the text. The contrast has been reduced in the background image for a dusty and beachy effect.
13. Make beautiful collages with your favorite photos using grids, ensure to apply the same filter to each image for consistency.
When you are using grids, make sure you line up forms within your images for compositional harmony. Here you can see that whether it’s a cloud, a horizon or a wave, something is lined up to bring the grid together. An additional tip is to apply the same filter to all your images for consistency.
14. Be creative with letters + symbols by applying scale to form interesting compositions.
Here I have used an Ampersand as a base to build graphic. I’ve inserted much smaller accompanying copy into the counter sections of the symbol and used a monochromatic palette to create stronger contrast between the type and background.
15. Let your background determine how you align your text. Find space with less noise for placement.
Create balance in your graphics by establishing what elements are holding most weight. Here the trees are filling up much of the left hand side of the background image, therefore the text has been placed and aligned on the right.
16. Use a low contrast background combined with bright text to make your message stand out.
This graphic has a slightly darkened background image that creates brilliant contrast against the neon yellow text overlay. There is also a subtle blur applied to the filter so that the fine type (Raleway Thin) is easy to read.
17. Typefaces have personalities too. Make sure you represent your message with the right fonts.
Use typefaces to visually communicate your message. Here i chose to apply a structured typeface (League Spartan) to symbolise logic, then a more classical serif for the second part to portray imagination. Additionally, the two sections are placed over different sections of the image, sky and sea.
18. Choose a geometric typeface teamed with an elegant serif for a happy pairing.
Contrast is your best friend when it comes to creating graphics with impact. A geometric shape under a sans serif font is an excellent combination as their structural forms fit well together.
19. Use an interesting text placement to play on the idea of your message.
Break your words up into separate text boxes and to create intriguing compositions. It’s vital that your text is still read in the correct order, so placement is crucial. Keep alignment in mind by confining your text to a section of your graphic, so that it doesn’t run off the page.
20. Apply a tint to your image the same as any block color in your design for consistency.
This can be achieved by using the same color across your whole graphic. Peach has been used as a background color for this graphic, then a similar tint applied to the accompanying image.
Read the next ten in the next part.
