Basic+Page+Design


 * Basic Page Design For Screen and Print**



• Keep the edge margins consistent. • Keep internal margins consistent.
 * Margins**

•Every item in the layout should align with some other item in the layout.
 * Alignment**

•Use a serif font for large blocks of text (it’s easier to read). •Use a sans serif font for captions. •Use the same font for your headline and subhead •Use no more than three different fonts in one spread (headline, text, captions)
 * Typeface**

•Caption placement should be obvious to the reader without using cues such as right, left, above, below, above right, etc. •Don’t trap captions in the middle of the spread. •Use three part captions: Background sentence in the past tense gives additional information.
 * Captions**
 * Lead-in in bold** Description sentence in present tense tells what is happening in the picture.

•Come up with a clever and appropriate headline (not “My Feature Story”). •Give some information in the subhead to draw the reader in. •Arrange the head and subhead on the page so that they are in contact with the main body (text) of the story.
 * Headlines & Subheads**

•Create your text in Word, then paste or place it into the spread. •Start the first paragraph with a drop-cap. •Indent all paragraphs except the first 1.5 picas. •Avoid “orphans,” single word lines at the end of paragraphs. •Get rid of any words, phrases, sentences, or paragraphs that aren’t necessary to the story.
 * Text**

•The spread should have a dominant photo that is your best shot and is twice as large as the next largest photo.
 * Photos**

•Keep empty white space (or whatever the background color is) to the edges and corners. •Never trap white space in the middle of the spread.
 * White Space**

Keep the focus of your design on the story which you are telling with your text and pictures. The layout should never be about the design, rather the design should serve the story. The best page design is often the one that the reader doesn’t notice.
 * Focus**