As designers, it’s our job to experiment with numerous layouts within a print ad, website design, digital display advertising, and more to discover how graphic elements best complement each other. Understanding the principles of alignment, visual hierarchy, contrast, balance, and proximity are crucial. While it’s important to know the rules and guidelines of design, it’s equally important to avoid getting stuck in a creative funk.
Drawing inspiration from many sources can bring fresh ideas into our work. Here are some inspiring ways to push boundaries and experiment with design layout:
- Trust yourself. As a creative, you will sometimes take risks with your ideas to carry out your vision. Trust yourself and your abilities and go for it. Not every idea will always work out, but even mistakes can lead to great design.
- Collaboration. Working with others and receiving feedback allows you to see things from different perspectives. Collaboration enhances your creative outcome.
- Look outside of the screen. In a digital profession, it is easy to feel glued to the screen, but inspiration is all around us—in nature, other forms of media, the people around us, architecture, or music.
Don’t be afraid to break away from design trends now and then and experiment! Embrace the freedom to experiment with different design approaches to layout. Pushing boundaries and trying new things often result in innovative and remarkable designs.