Video: The best page layouts for print, e-books, pdfs and the web
Today we are able to repurpose our communications in a variety of ways: print, PDFs, e-books, and the web. Services like www.lulu.com, an online, on-demand publishing company (and the one I use to create my paperback books) allows anyone to create professional-looking books for no upfront costs. However, even though we have these new technologies, [...]
Timeless design and communication principles—tips on consistency, typography, contrast, and content importance
There will never be an end to new technologies coming to the world of church communications. No matter what tools the Lord gives us to use as we share the message of the gospel, there are certain timeless design and communication principles we do well to remember if we want to communicate effectively, no matter what [...]
Answers to basic questions on how to design church communications
“How do I design my bulletin, newsletter, flyer, brochure, all the church communications both in print and online?” “What makes a good design in a church publication?” These are questions every church communicator asks and this article provides some foundational advice no matter what project or media you are designing for.
Understand what design is really [...]
VIDEO: Classic design strategies that will help you communicate more effectively
The full title of this video is: From the Gutenburg Bible to your church website and worship bulletin, classic design strategies that will help you communicate more effectively. It was for a seminar at a conference and I wanted folks to know what the seminar contained.
The original seminar lasted about 90 minutes (doing a video [...]
Picas, a useful way to measure in creating print communications
When you are measuring for print communication creation, it is sometimes difficult to deal with the fractions of inches.
Graphic designers use the pica as the basic measurement because, for one reason, it is a much smaller measure and is easier to work with.
This PDF explains it for you.
The Adobe design programs as well as MS [...]
Design, what it really means for effective communication creation
Design is probably one of the most misunderstood terms in communication work.
Design is not fancy graphics or multi-media fluff you add on to your message. It is the plan that organizes how you will visually represent your message.
Good design is the messanger, not the message itself and it should never shout more loudly than the [...]
Foundational and very important advice about design
Design is the messenger, not the message. That is why it is so important to plan your message before you begin designing your church communications. Roger Parker, an expert in communication design put it this way:
The purpose of graphic design is to make it as easy as possible for readers to understand your message. Because [...]
Typography: a powerful tool to create effective church communications
Type is one of the most powerful design tools you have in creating effective church communications.
Even though we are not always aware of it, we’ve all grown up with a typography vocabulary. For example which one of the two examples below is a headline and which is text:
THIS ONE?
or
this one?
You didn’t even have to think [...]
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