Just a couple of graphic design terms for non-graphic designers, to help you gain a better understanding of some of the most common graphic designers terms. Knowing these terms will allow you to communicate more effectively with your marketing department, designer friends etc.
Let’s get started:
VECTOR
Editable assets made from mathematical formulas. Can be made as big or small as needed without losing quality.
DPI
The number of dots per inch on a piece of printed material. The more dots, the higher the print quality.
LOGOTYPE
A logo centred around a brand’s name or initials. Generally, type characters are used as the logo itself.
HUE
Colour in its purest form. A primary colour without a tint or tone added.
TYPEFACE
The collective name of a family of fonts. For example, Futura is the name of a family of fonts.
KERNING
The adjustment of space between two individual characters in a word.
RGB
RGB color is a model in which red, green, and blue light are added together in various ways to reproduce a broad array of colors. RGB tends to be used for on-screen purposes.
CMYK
CMYK is a color model that is used for print purposes. CMYK colors begin as white and then get darker as more colors are combined.
GRADIENT
Gradient is a gradual change from one color to another. This type of graphic design approach is exactly what Instagram did when they changed their logo.
HEX CODE
Hex is a six-digit number that follows a hashtag. It is used to represent colors and often what graphic designers use in computer design programs.
NEGATIVE SPACE
Any space that surrounds the elements of your main design is called negative space. It is important to have this in order to give the eyes some “breathing room”. You’ll often notice that the most well-known logos and brand designs involve a great deal of negative space. Remember, negative space doesn’t always mean white space.
These are the main and most important graphic design terms that you’ll probably come across at some point! Keep this guide close to you and use it when you need to explain something to a designer!