Before and After 706 - How To Align by Eye PDF

Before&After
BAmagazine.com i U X
How to
Align by eye
The world is full of funny
shapes that your eye can
align better than your ruler.
Here are six examples.
Continued
Continued How to align by eye 0706

Before&After

How to align by eye

The world is full of funny-shaped images that your eye can align
better than your ruler. Here are six things to look for.
The images abovechair, plant, utensils, pillows, vaseare each a different shape, size,
color; the viewing angles are different, and so on. How do you line these up, sized and spaced
just so, with other things? Well show you why your eye is the best tool you have.
2 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Before&After How to align by eye 3 of 11 BAmagazine.com i U X
Scale and align by mass

For different objects to have similar visual height, scale them by their central
mass, not their bounding-box height. Squinting will help you visualize.
Before After
Kitty whiskers Stickout Kitty whiskers

2
Bounding
box
1
Shadow
Shadow Corner
0
Corner
That troublesome bounding box Scale by mass Mass
The images above are technically the same height. Thats Every image has a center of mass, its fullest, bulkiest
because a digital image is contained inside an invisible area, that governs its perceived size. Use this mass
bounding box that extends to the farthest pixel on every instead of the bounding box to scale your images,
side. That pixel can be an ultra-faint shadow, a hair, a little which (above) now appear similar in size. (Right) Mass
bump, even blank space. Your ruler measures the bound- is easiest to see on rectangular objects. For irregular
Mass
ing box, which is why its terrible at graphic design. What objects like the plant, squint and ignore small corners,
matters is the image inside, specifically its center of mass. faint shadows, minor stickouts, and kitty whiskers.

Center by weight
An asymmetrical object is naturally off balance. Centering it over a body
of text or other object requires a nudge right or left.
Before After
Decorative Pillows Decorative Pillows

We offer a wide range of colors, textures, We offer a wide range of colors, textures,
and sizes to add comfort and style to your and sizes to add comfort and style to your
lounge or sleeping area. lounge or sleeping area.
Centered by ruler Centered by eye

With both bounding boxes (image Pushing the center of mass to the
and text) center-aligned, the images right balances the image, like bal- Decorative Pillows
asymmetrical shape makes it heavi- ancing a heavy and light load on the
er on the left (below). teeter-totter. It helps to squint. We offer a wide range of colors, textures,
and sizes to add comfort and style to your
lounge or sleeping area.

Center by value
A dark object on a light background appears heavier than a light one, which,
like mass, throws off the balance. Compensate with a nudge.
After
Tomato Recipes Rice Recipes

Are you looking for that tempting appetizer, Whether its Spanish rice, chicken fried rice,
flavorful main dish, or that unusual dessert? or rice pilaf, well show you hundreds of ideas to
We have the tomato recipe for you! complement hearty main courses.
Asymmetrical value Symmetrical shape overrides value

Theres more mass on the right Like the tomatos and bowls, the image
(big white bowls) but more visual above is also left-heavy. In this case, though,
weight on the left. Compensate symmetry overrides value; identical objects
with a slight nudge to the right. feel correct only when centered.
Tomato Recipes
Are you looking for that tempting appetizer,
flavorful main dish, or that unusual dessert?
We have the tomato recipe for you!

Kern the space between objects

In typography, kerning means the adjustment of space between individual
characters, a technique that applies to graphics, too . . .
Outdoor Furniture Kitchen Utensils Vases Decorative Pillows

Take your comfort and style Cook better and faster with our Explore our vast vase collection! We offer a wide range of colors, textures,
outside with our quality furniture, selection of utensils and gadgets, From ceramic to bamboo style, from and sizes to add comfort and style to your
comfy cushions, and more! designed to simplify daily tasks. India to Spain, we have it all. lounge and sleeping area.
Before: Spaced by ruler

(A) The bounding boxes have identi-
cal space between them, but remove A B
the frames (B), and you can see that
the perceived spaces between the
images are different.
After: Kern the images

(C) Nudge by eye until the white C D
space between images appears the
same or nearly so (D).

Adjust the space between lines

Images of different heights may require vertical adjustment. As with typographic
kerning, you might think of this as graphical leading (pronounced: ledding).
What the ruler says . . . What your eyes see . . . Move the center shelf up . . .
Equal shelf heights Uneven vertical spacing Perceptually even vertical spacing
3
2
1
0

Distribute by value
If order is not a priority, balance your page by distributing images by value.
Darks first . . . . . . then lights
Make note of the dark objects (squinting helps) and

distribute so neither side of the page is heavier than the
other, then fill the gaps with the lighter objects.

Before&After
How to align by eye 9 of 11 BAmagazine.com i U X
Article resources
Typefaces Colors
1 Georgia Regular 9 C0 M0 Y0 K100
10 C0 M0 Y0 K60
Images
2
Images: iStockphoto
2 (6352857)
9
3 (12919738)
10
4 (6306475)
5 (11842001)
Outdoor Furniture 6 (16799169)
Take your comfort and style 1 7 (11361940)
outside with our quality furniture, 8 (15494393)
comfy cushions, and more!
4
3 5
6 8

Before&After
Article resources
Typefaces Colors
1 Linotype Didot Roman 13 C0 M0 Y0 K100
2 Adobe Caslon Regular
Images
3 (iStockphoto.com)
13
Images: iStockphoto
4 (16661602)
5 (4075677)
1
6 (18498827)
2 7 (15504871)
8 (3397523)
9 (6674530)
7 10 (15734716)
11 (3850760)
3 4 8
12 (11197038)
9
5 10
11
6 12

Before&After
Subscribe to Before & After Before & After magazine

Before & After has been sharing its practical approach
Subscribe to Before & After, and become a to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world
more capable, confident designer for pennies has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before &
After is dedicated to making graphic design understand-
per article. To learn more, go to
able, useful and even fun for everyone.
http://www.bamagazine.com/Subscribe
John McWade Publisher and creative director
Gaye McWade Associate publisher
E-mail this article Dexter Mark Abellera Senior designer
To pass along a free copy of this article to
Before & After magazine
others, click here. 323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678
Telephone 916-784-3880
Fax 916-784-3995
Join our e-list
E-mail mailbox@bamagazine.com
To be notified by e-mail of new articles as www http://www.bamagazine.com
they become available, go to
Copyright 2013 Before & After magazine
http://www.bamagazine.com/email ISSN 1049-0035. All rights reserved
You may pass along a free copy of this article to others
by clicking here. You may not alter this article, and you
may not charge for it. You may quote brief sections
for review; please credit Before & After magazine, and
let us know. To link Before & After magazine to your
Web site, use this URL: http://www.bamagazine.com.
For all other permissions, please contact us.
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Before&After
How to
Align by eye
The world is full of funny
shapes that your eye can
align better than your ruler.
Here are six examples.
Continued
Before&After
How to align by eye Continued How to align by eye 0706
The world is full of funny-shaped images that your eye can align
better than your ruler. Here are six things to look for.
The images above chair, plant, utensils, pillows, vase are each a different shape, size,
color; the viewing angles are different, and so on. How do you line these up, sized and spaced
just so, with other things? Well show you why your eye is the best tool you have.
0706 How to align by eye Before&After | www.bamagazine.com How to align by eye 0706
1 of6
Scale and align by mass
For different objects to have similar visual height, scale them by their central
mass, not their bounding-box height. Squinting will help you visualize.
Before After
Kitty whiskers Stickout Kitty whiskers
2
Bounding
box
1
Shadow
Shadow Corner
0
Corner
That troublesome bounding box Scale by mass Mass
The images above are technically the same height. Thats Every image has a center of mass, its fullest, bulkiest
because a digital image is contained inside an invisible area, that governs its perceived size. Use this mass
bounding box that extends to the farthest pixel on every instead of the bounding box to scale your images,
side. That pixel can be an ultra-faint shadow, a hair, a little which (above) now appear similar in size. (Right) Mass
bump, even blank space. Your ruler measures the bound- is easiest to see on rectangular objects. For irregular
Mass
ing box, which is why its terrible at graphic design. What objects like the plant, squint and ignore small corners,
Before&After Howinside,
matters is the image
to align bycally
specifi 4 of 11
eyeits center of mass.
BAmagazine.com
faint shadows, minor stickouts, and kitty whiskers. i U X
Center by weight
An asymmetrical object is naturally off balance. Centering it over a body
of text or other object requires a nudge right or left.
Before After
Decorative Pillows Decorative Pillows
We offer a wide range of colors, textures, We offer a wide range of colors, textures,
and sizes to add comfort and style to your and sizes to add comfort and style to your
lounge or sleeping area. lounge or sleeping area.
Centered by ruler Centered by eye
With both bounding boxes (image Pushing the center of mass to the
and text) center-aligned, the images right balances the image, like bal- Decorative Pillows
asymmetrical shape makes it heavi- ancing a heavy and light load on the
er on the left (below). teeter-totter. It helps to squint. We offer a wide range of colors, textures,
and sizes to add comfort and style to your
lounge or sleeping area.
2 of6
Center by value
A dark object on a light background appears heavier than a light one, which,
like mass, throws off the balance. Compensate with a nudge.
After
Tomato Recipes Rice Recipes
Are you looking for that tempting appetizer, Whether its Spanish rice, chicken fried rice,
avorful main dish, or that unusual dessert? or rice pilaf, well show you hundreds of ideas to
We have the tomato recipe for you! complement hearty main courses.
Asymmetrical value Symmetrical shape overrides value
Theres more mass on the right Like the tomatos and bowls, the image
(big white bowls) but more visual above is also left-heavy. In this case, though,
weight on the left. Compensate symmetry overrides value; identical objects
with a slight nudge to the right. feel correct only when centered.
Tomato Recipes
Are you looking for that tempting appetizer,
avorful main dish, or that unusual dessert?
We have the tomato recipe for you!
Kern the space between objects
In typography, kerning means the adjustment of space between individual
characters, a technique that applies to graphics, too . . .
Outdoor Furniture Kitchen Utensils Vases Decorative Pillows
Take your comfort and style Cook better and faster with our Explore our vast vase collection! We offer a wide range of colors, textures,
outside with our quality furniture, selection of utensils and gadgets, From ceramic to bamboo style, from and sizes to add comfort and style to your
comfy cushions, and more! designed to simplify daily tasks. India to Spain, we have it all. lounge and sleeping area.
Before: Spaced by ruler
(A) The bounding boxes have identi-
cal space between them, but remove A B
the frames (B), and you can see that
the perceived spaces between the
images are different.
After: Kern the images
(C) Nudge by eye until the white C D
space between images appears the
same or nearly so (D).
3 of6
Adjust the space between lines
Images of different heights may require vertical adjustment. As with typographic
kerning, you might think of this as graphical leading (pronounced: ledding).
What the ruler says . . . What your eyes see . . . Move the center shelf up . . .
Equal shelf heights Uneven vertical spacing Perceptually even vertical spacing
3
2
1
0

Distribute by value
If order is not a priority, balance your page by distributing images by value.
Darks first . . . . . . then lights
Make note of the dark objects (squinting helps) and
distribute so neither side of the page is heavier than the
other, then fill the gaps with the lighter objects.
4 of6
Article resources
Typefaces Colors
1 Georgia Regular 9 C0 M0 Y0 K100
10 C0 M0 Y0 K60
Images
2
Images: iStockphoto
2 (6352857)
9
3 (12919738)
10
4 (6306475)
5 (11842001)
Outdoor Furniture 6 (16799169)
Take your comfort and style 1 7 (11361940)
outside with our quality furniture, 8 (15494393)
comfy cushions, and more!
4
3 5
7
6 8
Article resources
Typefaces Colors
1 Linotype Didot Roman 13 C0 M0 Y0 K100
2 Adobe Caslon Regular
Images
3 (iStockphoto.com)
13
Images: iStockphoto
4 (16661602)
5 (4075677)
1
6 (18498827)
2 7 (15504871)
8 (3397523)
9 (6674530)
7 10 (15734716)
11 (3850760)
3 4 8
12 (11197038)
9
5 10
11
6 12
5 of6
Subscribe to Before & After Before & After magazine
Before & After has been sharing its practical approach
Subscribe to Before & After, and become a to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world
more capable, confident designer for pennies has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before &
After is dedicated to making graphic design understand-
per article. To learn more, go to
able, useful and even fun for everyone.
http://www.bamagazine.com/Subscribe
John McWade Publisher and creative director
Gaye McWade Associate publisher
E-mail this article Dexter Mark Abellera Senior designer
To pass along a free copy of this article to
Before & After magazine
others, click here. 323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678
Telephone 916-784-3880
Fax 916-784-3995
Join our e-list
E-mail mailbox@bamagazine.com
To be notified by e-mail of new articles as www http://www.bamagazine.com
they become available, go to
Copyright 2013 Before & After magazine
http://www.bamagazine.com/email ISSN 1049-0035. All rights reserved
You may pass along a free copy of this article to others
by clicking here. You may not alter this article, and you
may not charge for it. You may quote brief sections
for review; please credit Before & After magazine, and
let us know. To link Before & After magazine to your
Web site, use this URL: http://www.bamagazine.com.
For all other permissions, please contact us.
11 of 11 | Printing formats How to align by eye 0706
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Before&After

Continued How to align by eye 0706

How to align by eye

2 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Scale and align by mass

Kitty whiskers Stickout Kitty whiskers

3 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Decorative Pillows Decorative Pillows

Centered by ruler Centered by eye

4 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Tomato Recipes Rice Recipes

Asymmetrical value Symmetrical shape overrides value

5 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Kern the space between objects

Outdoor Furniture Kitchen Utensils Vases Decorative Pillows

Before: Spaced by ruler

After: Kern the images

6 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Adjust the space between lines

7 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Darks first . . . . . . then lights

Make note of the dark objects (squinting helps) and

8 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

9 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

10 of 11 How to align by eye 0706

Subscribe to Before & After Before & After magazine

11 of 11|Printing formats How to align by eye 0706

Before & After is made to fit your binder

For presentation format For paper-saver format

Printing formats|Paper-saver format

Before&After How to align by eye 8 of 11 BAmagazine.com i U X

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