Monday, February 28, 2011

Realistic Is Not Mystic: Discovering The Truth About Realistic Icons

Realism traces back to the 1850s when this movement spread in French art. It is carried over the centuries and penetrated into all types of art and design. Speaking about realism in internet site design we can say that it's represented here by Realistic icons.

Details about background of realistic icons

2d Web Icons And Models Material

2D icons are really well known for their flexibility. This flexibility is achieved by rendering them at various resolutions ideal for various output devices.

2D Icons items:

  • raster pictures (digital graphics);
  • styled text as a typeset for 2D Icons;
  • vector models (geometric graphics).

The above-mentioned items can be managed by 2D transformations such as rotation, scaling or angular position etc. Meshing basic models you will get more complex ones.

2D icons aren't like the real three-dimensional objects but due to the layers technique they can create the illusion of all 3D characteristics like shadow, reflection or highlighting. The layers really should maintain the certain hierarchy and order carefully. This makes modifying 2D icons and similar objects easier.

2.5D Icons vs 3D and 2D Icons

2Dicons also are well known as 2.5D models. This technology allows website designers to work with any layer with no need of touching the others. The best of the prominent graphics editors choose this kind of 2D object development.

2.5D is a synonym to pseudo 3D. This means "two-and-a-half-dimensional" graphics. Models that were created with a help of with 2.5D technology appear to be tridimensional but in fact they are not.

This technology used for designing 2D icons is often achieved by the special lighting effect. 3D illusion is reached as a result of virtual source of light to the left or to the right side and above the users monitor.

Line Is Refine: Line Icons As An Evidence

Lines are more frequently used for outlining the contours of objects and emphasizing edges. If located and developed reasonably, line icons can be the best decoration of any minimalistic or clear web site design.

Lines and their facilities in line icons design.

What's actually a line? It's a form containing both width and length but eliminating depth.The line is not only straight but more often curved. Staying static shapes, Line web icons can make a sort of illusion of the dynamic objects. The mood is usually being conditioned by the lines direction. Horizontal lines in Line icons express calmness, harmony and also stability while the vertical ones strive for the light movement. Energy and stronger dynamic feeling pertain to the diagonal lines. If you would like develop refine and ultra-modern line icons designs you should use mix of straight lines and curves.

Line art background

Curve stitching may be the first type of line art known to the artists. This sort of line art was developed with a help of threads of different colors and needle. The canvas was a card board first. This movement is also well known as "String Art". Originally it was found out by Mary Boole as the accessory material for kids to help them study geometry of angles and spaces. Line art existed also in the form of illustrations for print sources before the photography was invented. At that time line art involved only black and white colors. A few shades of gray were also acceptable and imitated.Appealing to both technical and creative sides of human nature, line art includes geometry and art. Creating Line web icons may develop special imagination and creativity along with calculation skills.Line art has an ability to be printed to the halftone pic without extra conversion. Thus it's different from photography or multi-color painting. This type of art is named line drawing and line copy as well.

Realistic Icons Important Info.

Realistic icons are necessary elements of the modern pieces of software, applications and add-ons.

As far as you know websites demand special methods for representation and promotion. Probably the most effective way is certainly including realistic icons into the web site design. They help users to get a quick initial impression of what business area and what products he/she is going to have to do with. The icons should be placed on web page homepage to be noticeable at once.

You may hire the experienced designer to create some unique set of icons meeting your web site personal requirements and products. But such custom orders of realistic icons are very expensive and take significant time period. The custom order result still remains indefinite Even professional web-designers fall short of the mark called non-uniqueness. Often some of web-designers simply take icons that were created earlier and vary colors and shades, use some other effects and sell realistic icons as unique items. Though in fact they aren't.

Finding authoritative icons resources it is another way of getting nice web icons. There are various Realistic web icons stocks and providers on the net. The excellent advantage of this method of getting web icons is that you see what you pay for. The price may be lower than in case with custom orders. Also you save your valuable time. Thus for finding nice and inexpensive realistic icons stocks are much more preferable.

Tips for utilizing realistic icons

Designing realistic icons you need to build the basic pictograms first. Also it should look vivid enough if being displayed at worse resolution. The icon should be recognizable at first sight. How to check your icons? If it is possible to discern the icon within less than a second - it's well done.<\p>

When you find the formula of the basic silhouette and it is stable you possibly can make realistic icons more eye-catching with a help of decorative elements. Never overload icons with the details and color tints. Design should look integral and reserved. You can also make the edges anti-aliased. The decoration should not detract from the icons essence and functions.

The icons are often stored in vector format that makes it pretty simple to edit. You're free to resize, rotate, adjust the edges and modify outlines, change the color scheme and add more details etc. So you needn't be an experienced designer or an artist to use them.

If you need to design the interface layout of the new software program or IT services - Realistic icons may be very helpful in this task. But remember if you wish to create premium quality and eye-catching realistic icons you should be patient because it's not easy. Truly realistic pictures may be produced only if you take and edit the high-resolution photos. So bear this in mind.

Friday, February 25, 2011

Simple Icons And Website Design

Simple web icons are designed to join forces of minimalism and modern trend. Light-weight Simple icons are meant to be created to improve website user interaction.

Minimalistic webpage design - prevalent trend

Lets find out what minimalistic web design means. Surely the first features are simplicity and lightweight elements. Simple web icons include all this. This type of icons doesn't have complex wordings, figures, textures and patterns. Often less even means more. It depends on areas and extent. Website creation is exactly such area.

Today minimalistic webdesign is something unusual. High modern day technologies frequently lead to the loss of simplicity. Blending minimalistic web site design with CSS3 and HTML5 is becoming more popular and makes you believe that combining simple elegance and usability is the method for your web page success. Web site which uses simple design often has off-color effects and also actively use CSS and Ajax.

Among significant features of the present day simple website design are the following:

  • grid based design;
  • simple icons;
  • light shading and reserved color transition;
  • light texture of patterns and backgrounds (often transparent like);
  • more empty or white space;
  • simple shapes and figures, clear lines;
  • less amount of various bright colors;
  • readable and clear typography;

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Vintage Icons - Grab The Attention Of Your Visitors!

Retro steadily increases its right place in the modern web design industry. Vintage web icons symbolizing the old-time styling are the message of classic beauty and noble taste, Vintage design trend arouses gentle feeling in the visitors hearts.Modern day webpage style acquires some vintage twist. Retro and Vintage are the most famous and also widespread trends in the modern-day digital art. Vintage web icons, textures, patterns as well as clip-art bring mystery to your design. They assist you to create the atmosphere of the old happy times, with feelings of simplicity, innocence and nobility. People usually associate childhood or youth with good times. Thus vintage style revives due to this psychological peculiarity of the human nature.

Retro style and the modern day internet site design industry

In modern art retro becomes some conscious norm. It is simple to find sights of retro style in the modern website design in the form of vintage icons, old-styled backgrounds, aged photography etc. There is no doubt it gives some zest to the feel and look of the ordinary websites.

The new retro style quite often incorporates the Web 2.0 look with a vintage twist. It requires good recipe of combining present day clean blocks and the outdated, aged elements of design like Vintage web icons, styles and color palettes.

Vintage Web Icons As An Element Of Vintage Web Design

In case your want your site looks archaic - use Vintage icons. They're one of the most noticeable and easy-to-apply graphical elements. With a help of vintage web icons it is possible to create the vintage atmosphere at your webpage Also use vintage typography, less-saturated colors and retro textures. Antique air is going to charm and brings unconscious smiles to the faces of your website visitors.

Retro trend is all about the styles of the70s and 80s. Retro advertising art from the 1950s is bold and eye-catching. Presently with a help of computer technologies it is possible to put a new face on this type of art and easily use its characters in webdesign and printing. Usually such faces in the vintage web icons are retro cars, pin-up girls, soldiers and politicians of the former times as well.No doubt among the most frequently used retro cars are Fiat 500, the 1970 Dodge Challenger, the 1969 Chevrolet Samara, the 1964 Ford Mustang etc. You can effortlessly find Vintage icons that include hints to retro cars concepts. This will help to attract more attention to your internet site layout. This is the great idea for websites that have a deal with auto sales, transporting services, tour sites etc. A pin-up model is another popular character used in vintage icons design and other web-site graphics styling. Usually it presents images of how the really sexy and beautiful woman should look like. Pin-up images are great for vintage web icons or clip-art designed for the model agencies, websites regarding health and beauty areas.

Military and security guard internet sites may effectively use soldiers and officers with an outdated appearance to win the site visitors favour and trust.

Usage of specific characters is not limited to the above-mentioned ones. You may apply creativity and use them unconventionally. This will make people surprise and thus memorize your website.

Patterns and Typography for vintage icons and other graphics

Highly recommended Vintage patterns in vintage icons design:

  • patterns containing vintage papers;
  • with vintage frames;
  • with outmoded florals;
  • paper and bagging, gold-cloth as the texture fabric;
  • wooden or bronze textures for vintage icons.

Authentic fonts to be used for developing vintage icons titles, content headings and texts are Matchbook, Bazar Medium, Embossed, Hill House,-Fontleroy Brown, Fusty Saddle, Just Old Fashion, Goudy Bookletter 1911, Rocket Script, Parisian, Star Avenue etc. You are absolutely free to find and purchase the fonts to match your design on the internet.

Try to get a such vintage-inspired layout that looks modern and appropriate, but no old-fashioned. The goal is to create the warm and noble, antique feel with a help of Vintage icons and also images and styled blocks for the site layout. Undoubtedly your visitors will return to your web page with a thankful smile over and over again.

But try not to make your vintage design look too stuffy, you should be aware that professional design is formal-looking and the major focus should be made on the goods, services or content your web site offers.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Two-Dimensional Graphics - 2d Icons Rule

2D icons is a wide spread trend in the web development of nowadays. Being two-dimensional, they are well known for their flexibility and comparative simplicity. 2.5D Icons is the type of 2D Icons that is closer to pseudo 3D representation.

2D computer graphics was initially based on vector graphics devices. 2D web icons are among the most major two-dimensional digital design items.

What is actually 2D?It's being associated generally with computer graphics and determined as the two-dimensional way of digital images generation. Two-dimensional models are mainly 2D geometric ones, digital images and texts. The term 2D comprises not only the models themselves but the techniques and tricks specific to them as well.

2D web icons and objects are independent objects with their own semantic value. 2D graphics enables us to get more direct control of the image than 3D technology. This one of the main reasons why they're so preferred in the world of modern web page design. 3D graphics is better realized in animation or photography than typography and sometimes even web site design.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Simple Icons Important Characteristics

We can easily claim that among the most important features of minimalistic design are Simple icons. In addition, simple icons and other design elements should be used moderately. Simple icons are meant to be used where they're absolutely necessary and eliminated where it is possible. Refrain the optional simple web icons. They may serve multiple functions.

Simple web icons design consists of limited amount of color, reserved shades, clear elements, soft lighting. One of the best benefits of Simple icons is that they do not distract website visitors from the main idea of your internet site.

The following rules for simple icons design can be outlined:

  • minimal usage of duplication
  • less amount of graphical elements
  • maximum intuitive clarity
  • clear typography in simple web icons
  • less icons

Minimalistic design with simple web icons

Additionally to simple icons themselves lightweight background textures and patterns are essential for the design and content perception. The background pattern or images shouldn't grab all the attention of your visitors. The eyes should focus on the web-site content or some main blocks. So the background should be of a light simple shade making it secondary compared with the foreground items like simple web icons.

One more well known feature of the lightweight and clear design is definitely clear typography. Simple icons names (if there are any) should be precise, meaningful and equivalent to their function. Headings placed on simple web icons need to be of readable font and huge enough for easy reading.

Enough white or empty space is useful for developing a wonderful clean simple icons design. Extra spaces keep elements individual and for that reason much more readable and easier to work with. Some extra space between simple web icons will do your design no harm at all.

Speaking about the minimalistic trend in most cases it is not totally minimal. Nevertheless the dominance of white space there are still some simple icons, light textures, neat styles and bold fonts. Don't forget that minimal is just not exactly the same as simple. Initially minimal meant plain typographic excluding images and styling. But modern day design demands something much more than black text on white background to make your website distinguish among thousands of other plain web-sites. Add more zest to your webpage layout with a help of some unusual coloring, catchy simple icons, half-transparent and lightweight textures and patterns. Also reduce design elements to the most essential items.

Simple equals smart. While creating the modern web page design you should bear in mind the eternal truth stating that genius is based on simplicity. Simple web icons is the best choice if you'd like your website look wonderful and professional.

Line Icons Creation

The objects with the outlined contours is another kind of Line icons. Such design elements are called contour drawings. There are items without some strict outlines which are rather some hint than actual contour of line icons. They're named gesture drawings. Such drawings are being widely used by skilled artists who are able to repeat the outlines of the object right after seeing it. It is not a complete piece of art but rather a sketch which usually needs 20-30 seconds to be drawn.

One more technique is adding various halftones and shades to the object by using short lines and crosshatching. Their frequency and pencil pressure can be different. And this variety impart more three-dimensional look to the object. This trick is widely used in web design as well. It helps to create amazing Line icons, logos and buttons.Also lets get info regarding open lines. It's such sort of the lines where the dots not combining the singular elements. The lines can be gesture-like, parallel, contour etc. as well. Contour drawing consists of superb simplicity and refinement of line design. The curves that are essential for creating complex line shapes are called Bezier curves in computer graphics. These curves are handy small features important for creating the vector shapes like line icons, different buttons etc.Today computer technologies reached such a level when it becomes possible to reproduce the identical designs or just build new shapes that based on some older ones. The fantastic thing - it can be done without extra efforts and time. Moreover, it is possible to go back to the previous adjustments due to the history panel. So you don't have to design Line icons from scratch after you've made some mistakes.