Visual Rhetoric
- 1. Visual Rhetoric for Student Writers Brought to you by the Writing Lab at Purdue
- 2. What is Visual Rhetoric? Definitions and applications Use of images as argument Arrangement of elements on a page Use of typography Analysis of existing images and visuals
- 3. Focus of this Workshop Text elements How type functions and choosing fonts Headline versus body text Text and the Web Color Visuals and graphics Clip art Illustrations and diagrams Graphs Photographs and manipulated images Overall design
- 4. How Type Functions “ Personalities” of type Formal and informal fonts Consequences and font choices Consider effect of font choice Personality and appropriateness
- 6. Choosing Appropriate Fonts Font choice will build or harm ethos (moral character) Context and purpose of document is important Cultural and visual associations of fonts should fit document
- 7. Font Choice Example 1
- 8. Font Choice Example 2
- 9. Headline Versus Body Text How text functions Type of text dictates font choice Emphasis and attention Information Sustained readability
- 10. Headline & Body Text Example
- 11. Text and the Web Differences between print and the Web Accommodating users and browsers HTML standard fonts Screen readability
- 12. Color and Contrast Most basic and critical choice Black text on white background shows high contrast and is most common White text on black background is not ideal
- 14. Computer Screens and Color Pixels and colors on screen RGB values Color saturation Cultural associations of color
- 16. Clip Art Using packaged clip art Avoid the “cartoony” effect Choose clip art that truly fits the purpose of the document Match design schemes Consider creating images
- 18. Illustrations and Diagrams Purpose to inform Conveys specific information Relates to content in document More than an accent Striving for clarity Avoid clutter Choose selective pictures of reality Break up large amounts of information
- 19. Graphs Choosing how to represent quantitative information Pie charts and showing parts of a whole Bar graphs and numeric comparisons Line graphs and plotting changes
- 20. Photographs Found images versus captured photographs Copyright Composition and quality Achieving effects with photos
- 21. Photo Examples
- 22. Overall Design Creating paths for the eye Striking, eye-catching elements Finding information easily Design as rhetorical organization Consistency in design Avoid “kitchen-sink syndrome” Pitfalls of pre-fab templates
- 23. Stepping Back Is your design clarifying your information? Is your design unique enough to make it stand out? Is your design readable from its intended distance? Have you checked for typos and errors? When designing for the Web, have you checked your design on different computers and in different browsers?
- 24. Additional Resources The Non-Designer’s Design Book and The Non-Designer’s Web Book , both by Robin Williams Color Index by Jim Krause Idea Index by Jim Krause What is Graphic Design? by Quentin Newark
- 25. For More Assistance The Writing Lab at Purdue 226 Heavilon Hall 4-3723 http://owl.english.purdue.edu
Editor's Notes
- #2: <HAVE THIS INITIAL SLIDE FULLY VISIBLE BEFORE STUDENTS BEGIN FILTERING INTO THE WORKSHOP SPACE.> Welcome to this workshop on Visual Rhetoric for Student Writers. This workshop is brought to you by the Writing Lab at Purdue. Your teachers may have recommended that you come to this workshop to learn strategies for designing multimedia and visual-based projects with more rhetorical understanding. But you may be asking, “What, exactly, is visual rhetoric?” <ADVANCE TO NEXT SLIDE.>