3. FRAMING
Think of the outside edge of a picture as a
frame. Framing is the position of an object
within the boundary of the image. When
you crop a picture to a smaller size, you’re
changing the relationship to the frame.
When you make a composition from
scratch your elements can be within the
frame, touching the frame, or appear to
extend beyond the frame, like looking out
a window and seeing objects partially
hidden by the wall around the window.
4. BALANCE
As you make a composition from
scratch your elements need to be
arranged so they appear balanced.
This is like balancing objects on a See-
Saw (a flat plank on a triangular
fulcrum); if you put a large object on
one end and a small one on the other
you must change the position of the
fulcrum or add more small objects to
balance the big one.
5. TOUCHING
Distinct elements within a composition
don’t have to be separate; they can
just touch at a corner or along part or
all of one edge. The way things touch
can tell you about their relationship to
each other.
6. OVERLAPPING
Distinct elements within a composition
can overlap each other or be cropped
by the frame of the image. When
combined with changes in relative
size this can imply position in illusory
space.
7. ILLUSORY SPACE
Since images on paper are flat (2D) you can only
create an illusion of 3D space by the position
and relative size of the objects within the
composition.
Since we usually can’t see through objects we
assume that when one overlaps another, the
one in front is closer. As things get closer to the
eye they appear larger, so if two things look
similar but one is larger it’s probably closer. In a
composition this is called relative size. By using
different sizes and overlapping you can create a
plausible illusion of position in 3D space.
8. CONTRAST
You can create or suggest many
different meanings just by the contrast
of elements in terms of size, direction,
space, and position.
• Size (larger or smaller)
• Direction (rotation of objects, or
groups of objects
• Space (separating objects)
• Position (of elements, relative to
each other and the image frame)
9. NEGATIVE+POSITIVE 01
If you put a single element onto a page,
say a large black letter “A” on a white
background, you’d say that the “A” is in
the foreground. We’re used to thinking
about the recognizable, foreground object
as being more important; in art and
design it’s called positive. Everything
else, the white space around it and the
white triangular hole in it is said to be
negative.
10. NEGATIVE+POSITIVE 02
Design tends to treat positive and
negative elements as having equal value,
as interlocking parts of a whole like a yin-
yang symbol. Negative can even become
positive, and vice versa. In a good
composition there is a dynamic
relationship between positive elements
and negative space (dynamic in this sense
means moving or changing).
