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Graphic design is the process of using color, light, contrast, balance, proportion, proximity, emphasis, texture, repetition and a host of other elements to create a composition that is pleasing to the eye.
It is also the process of molding an image or images along with text together into a composition that conveys a theme or message, often in order to advertise a particular product or service.
Graphic design actually dates back a long way — to prehistoric times, in fact. After all, cave designs and later hieroglyphics were some of its first examples. Although communication rather than aestheticism was the primary motivation, people today marvel at the great visual design aesthetics that were exhibited by the prehistoric artists.
The creation of the Gutenberg printing press in 1584 brought graphic design to whole new levels. The written word, combined with strong visual appeal, could now reach a greater audience than ever before. Although its first use was for printing the Bible, an attention to aesthetics was always present.
Graphic design reached its heights — or some would say its depths — with the arrival of the computer era. Although amateurish work could now be produced more easily than ever before, the computer age also allowed for companies to expand their corporate identity with visually pleasing logos and an improved online presence. Good graphic design was more in demand than ever before.
Broadly defined, the term graphic design can refer to website creation, photo editing, desktop publishing, animation, 3-D modeling and illustration.
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The Mac has always been an important part of the graphic design industry. The first “killer app” for the Mac, and the one that kept it from dying a quick death, according to Guy Kawasaki and other analysts, was Aldus PageMaker, one of the first desktop publishing applications. This formed the start of the desktop publishing revolution.
Although the original Mac screen was tiny and black-and-white, it had a higher resolution than most other desktop computers at the time, making it ideal for desktop publishing. Other graphic design programs followed, such as Adobe Photoshop, which appeared first on the Mac.
The premier illustration tool for the Mac remains Adobe Illustrator with its superb range of features and its ability to output to many file formats. Although a vector drawing program, it can also be used to convert graphics to Web-friendly GIF and JPEG formats.
DAZ Studio is a leading 3-D modeling application, while Adobe After Effects CS5 can create professional grade animations. In the CAD department there is AutoCAD for Mac. Inexpensive 3-D modeling apps are Bryce and Google Sketchup (which became a free product in 2006).
Mac users also have some design programs preinstalled on their computers in the form of iWeb, a good basic website and blogging tool, and iDVD to create DVDs of one’s movies and slideshows.
Graphic design and website design are closely related. It is important for a website to have visual appeal — that is to have effective graphical elements — if it is to be successful. Some of the most successful webmasters attribute their success to the visual appeal of their websites.
Creating something with a good visual appeal can be a difficult task, considering the wide viewing audience that must be satisfied. It is important to convey a particular emotion or theme, and special consideration should be given to the principles of mood, style and hierarchy, as well as the message that is to be conveyed.
The audience as well as the client must always be kept in mind when designing a website, logo or corporate identity. With the worldwide appeal of graphic design, there is no shortage of markets in which a graphic designer can showcase his or her talents.