As audiences grow numb to generic sameness, designers are abandoning safe defaults for bolder choices: stranger textures, louder colors, and authentic imagery that carries actual presence.

This year’s trends reward experimentation over polish, prioritizing feeling over following rules, and giving designers permission to inject character, detail, color, and weirdness into everything they touch.

Check out the trends we predict will break through and resonate with audiences at a deeper level.

Direct Flash

Direct flash has shed its reputation as a quick, inexpensive fix and become a campaign-defining style. The era of polished studio lighting and composed sets no longer carries the same weight for every campaign.

Those images still have a place, but as audiences gravitate toward work that feels real, direct flash injects life back into design.

Direct flash brings visual impact to your designs with striking contrast and strong pops of color.

This style of imagery offers a sharp separation of highlight and shadow, creating natural spaces for type and design elements, bringing an eye-catching moment to your work before a headline is read or a message is processed.

This style is gaining a strong foothold across the sports and lifestyle industries as brands continue to build stronger brand identities and strengthen their connections to their communities.

(BANDIT is an excellent example of a brand that continues to use direct flash imagery to bring grit and credibility in their campaigns.)

The work feels lived-in, not staged, and audiences respond because it authentically reflects the culture they recognize.

Americana

There’s something magnetic about imagery that captures the toughness, quiet resilience, and raw texture of the American West.

Honest and packed with story, Americana imagery is one of the most story-forward imagery trends for this year.

These images are characterized by a quiet stillness at times, then contrasted with the toughness and grit of a horse galloping at high speed, from cowboys to everyday people and places in small rural towns, young and old.

This approach embodies true authenticity. It’s not meant to be a romanticized view of the American West, but an honest look at people and culture.

People connect with stories, and when you can tap into that instantly with imagery, your designs are guaranteed to resonate.

Download the 45-Page Trend Report

The post The Design Trend Report | 2026 appeared first on Stills Blog.

You get something that feels raw, immediate, and impossible to ignore.

Once dismissed as an amateur accident or paparazzi byproduct, high-key flash photography has become a deliberate aesthetic choice in the creative world.

Across fashion, editorial, and advertising, more and more brands are embracing the look of direct, overexposed light and isolated subjects—not because they have to, but because it grabs attention and resonates with audiences in a way that perfectly lit, polished imagery often doesn’t.

RELATED READS: The Photography in Design Trend Report

This is “Flash On” photography, and it’s having a moment.

Harsh, Bright, and Unapologetically Real

Characterized by vivid subject isolation, hard shadows, and direct lighting, the “Flash On” style grabs attention fast—especially with audiences drawn to early-2000s visuals.

It’s messy.

It’s blown out.

And it’s extremely effective.

“There’s a higher need for things to feel authentic and ‘real’ in the digital space as we move forward,” says Victoria Stefania, a visual trend researcher. “We’re going to see more flash photography that displays the real and raw.”

What was once a technical flaw is now a visual strategy. Harsh flash lighting turns heads because it doesn’t try to hide anything.

Instead, it leans into imperfections—glossy skin, unflattering angles, overexposure—to create something that feels spontaneous, emotional, and real.

RELATED READS: Charley Pangus on Owning Your Design Style

Why “Flash On” Photography Works in Modern Branding

For years, brands obsessed over polish. From color grading to airbrushing, visual perfection became the default. That’s why “Flash On” photography feels like a breath of fresh air—it breaks the aesthetic norm.

Nowhere is this shift more evident than on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, where lo-fi visuals consistently outperform content that feels overly commercial. In that context, rawness becomes a form of credibility.

This style also taps into a deep well of cultural nostalgia. For millennials, it recalls club photos, glossy tabloid candids, and digital-camera selfies.

For Gen Z, it feels fresh and chaotic in a way that mirrors current trends in fashion, music, and design. It’s messy on purpose. Rebellious by design.

RELATED READS: Designer Q&A: Pushing Creative Boundaries with Jessica Walsh

5 Campaigns That Nailed the “Flash On” Look

Here are five recent campaigns that showcase just how powerful “Flash On” photography can be when done right:

1. Viktor&Rolf — Flowerbomb Extrême Campaign

For the Flowerbomb Extrême campaign, Viktor&Rolf embraced the visual language of “Flash On” photography to stunning effect.

Shot with deliberate overexposure and direct flash, the imagery isolates each subject against elegant interiors, making skin gleam, satin shimmer, and shadows fall hard.

The result is an unapologetically modern take on glamour that feels both candid and editorial. Echoing Y2K-era flash aesthetics, the campaign invites immediacy and intimacy, capturing high fashion through a lens that’s raw, bright, and arrestingly real.

RELATED READS: Exploring Visual Narratives in Photography and Advertising

2. Marc Jacobs — Spring 2024 Eyewear

Shot on location in London, the Marc Jacobs Spring 2024 Eyewear campaign fully embraces the “Flash On” aesthetic. Harsh, direct flash heightens the textures of skin, fabrics, and backgrounds.

The lighting flattens space and sharpens contrast, evoking the raw immediacy of early-2000s paparazzi and point-and-shoot glam.

The eyewear becomes the focal point, catching and reflecting light in a way that feels both nostalgic and unapologetically modern. It’s lo-fi luxury with maximum impact.

3. Gucci — “The Art of Silk”

In The Art of Silk, Gucci pairs the elegance of heritage design with the raw immediacy of “Flash On” photography.

Led by photographer Steven Meisel, the use of direct flash isolates actress Julia Garner against dark, nondescript backdrops, amplifying the gleam of silk and the sharp textures of skin and fabric.

The aesthetic deliberately evokes a candid, paparazzi-adjacent mood, giving luxury an edge of spontaneity. It’s a striking blend of softness and intensity, where silk flutters, and the flash cuts through.

RELATED READS: Exploring Visual Narratives in Photography and Advertising

4. Alaïa — Winter Spring 23

Shot by Tyrone Lebon inside Sterling Ruby’s LA studio, the Alaïa Winter–Spring 2023 campaign channels classic glamour through a raw, contemporary lens.

The use of direct flash strips away excess polish, illuminating Kaia Gerber’s features and surroundings with unfiltered clarity.

Harsh shadows, high-contrast textures, and slightly overexposed edges evoke the visual immediacy of ‘90s paparazzi shots, yet every frame still feels composed, sculptural, and elevated.

“Flash On” captures high fashion vibes with the intimacy of a candid.

5. FRAME and Sotheby — Debut Collection Campaign

For their debut collaboration, FRAME and Sotheby’s turned to “Flash On” photography to give their 1980s prep-inspired collection a sharp, modern edge.

The campaign imagery is defined by direct, on-camera flash—bringing high contrast, sharp textures, and a sense of spontaneity to otherwise polished, heritage-driven styling.

Whether it’s a baseball cap lit with harsh clarity or a blazer caught mid-adjustment, the aesthetic calls back to vintage paparazzi and candid fashion snaps.

How to Use “Flash On” Aesthetics in Your Own Work

This aesthetic does tap into nostalgia, but it’s also powered by a sense of nowness. “Flash On” imagery taps into the cultural desire for truth—however messy, bright, or blown-out it may be.

It tells the audience: this wasn’t overthought. It just happened.

So how can designers and creatives use this look without falling into gimmick?

A few pointers:

1. Use flash to create contrast.

Whether it’s between subject and background or polished and lo-fi elements, the tension is what grabs attention.

2. Lean into imperfection.

Overexposure, glossy skin, and harsh shadows are assets, not flaws.

3. Let context inform the choice.

“Flash On” photography works best when there’s an underlying theme of spontaneity, nightlife, rebellion, or raw emotion.

4. Pair it with clean layouts.

Let the photography be wild, but balance it with a strong typographic structure and negative space.

5. Know your audience.

This look will resonate most with Millennial and Gen Z viewers, particularly those already immersed in vintage or Y2K revival aesthetics.

RELATED READS: From Swiss Precision to DIY Boldness: Inside Jesse Nyberg’s Dynamic Design Journey

Final Thoughts: A Return to Reality

“Flash On” photography may feel nostalgic, but its resurgence is very much a response to the now. In a world saturated with perfection, the raw and the real stand out.

And ironically, it’s through a visual tool once considered unrefined—the camera flash—that brands are rediscovering how to connect.

So if you’re looking for a way to stop the scroll, break the polish, and inject a little chaos into your creative, turn the flash on.

Explore “Flash On” Imagery on Stills

The post Flash On: The Raw, Authentic Visual Style That’s Reshaping Photography appeared first on Stills Blog.

This aesthetic—where deep shadows, minimal light sources, and muted tones dominate—has found a powerful role in design. It evokes complexity, emotion, and intrigue, while amplifying visual impact when paired with clean, bold typography.

Drawing from cinematic inspiration and rooted in storytelling, low-light imagery allows designers to play with mystery, scale, and atmosphere.

And fashion brands in particular are dialing into this look, using it to craft scattered glimpses, textured darkness, and moments that linger in your mind.

RELATED READS: The Photography in Design Trend Report

Let’s break down 3 standout campaigns that nail this approach.

1. Fear of God ESSENTIALS Spring 2023 Collection

Shot with a muted, moody palette and minimal lighting, this campaign leans heavily into shadows and natural texture. The photos draw from ballet and yoga-inspired poses—elongated limbs, soft curves—paired with dim, ambient light that sculpts rather than floods.

The absence of brightness emphasizes the movement and form of the clothes, reinforcing Jerry Lorenzo’s vision of a “modern wardrobe” designed for motion, not just aesthetics.

It’s softness meets shadow in the best way.

RELATED READS: Leta Sobierajski on Creative Influence and Collaboration

2. Zvelle’s “Ray’s Arena”

In Zvelle’s “Ray Arena” campaign, low-light photography transforms a riding arena into a stage for resilience and refinement.

Using shafts of ambient light and rich shadows, the imagery feels cinematic and grounded—echoing the grit of Roosevelt’s “Man in the Arena” while spotlighting the elegance of the Ray sneaker.

Paradoxically, the darkness doesn’t hide the subject; rather, it reveals character, control, and quiet confidence.

RELATED READS: Designer Q&A: Pushing Creative Boundaries with Jessica Walsh

3. Prada’s Fall Menswear 1997

Though it dropped nearly three decades ago, Prada’s FW 1997 menswear campaign—shot by Glen Luchford and starring a young Norman Reedus—feels as relevant today as ever.

With its soft sculptural lighting, deep shadows, and minimal compositions, the campaign used low light not just to showcase clothing, but to capture mood. It’s proof that when lighting is intentional, darkness becomes a tool, not a limitation.

The aesthetics may be ’90s, but the principles of darkness are timeless.

RELATED READS: Beyond Aesthetics: How Joe Diver Balances Vision with Brand Legacy

What Makes Dark Imagery So Effective

Directional, Minimal Lighting

Each campaign uses just one or two light sources—spotlights, neon glow, or ambient lamps—to create sculptural depth and selective focus.

High Contrast & Deep Shadows

The majority of the frame is deliberately left dark, allowing illuminated areas to command full attention.

Texture & Silhouette Focus

Low-light doesn’t highlight every detail—it surfaces shape and material, pulling the viewer in to explore.

Mystery & Emotional Weight

What’s hidden in the darkness feels more significant. The imagery evokes longing, mood, and narrative tension.

Typographic Harmony

Bold, clean type becomes key when paired with darkness. It contrasts sharply and amplifies messaging without competing for attention.

Bringing Dark Imagery into Your Design System

• Lighting: Use a single directional or ambient source—spotlight, neon, streetlight—avoid flat flash.
• Composition: Embrace negative space. Let shadows be part of your storytelling.
• Style: Isolate the subject with light. Let shapes emerge from darkness—perfect for texture, product, and portrait photography.
• Pairing: Match your visuals with crisp, minimalist typography to elevate your message.
• Mood: Choose low-light to evoke sophistication, intimacy, or cinematic suspense.

Explore Dark Imagery on Stills

The post Dark Imagery in Design: Embracing the Depth and Power of Shadows appeared first on Stills Blog.

Stills: What defining moment in your career solidified your path in branding and design?

Kirsten Holland: It’s hard to pinpoint one defining moment, but moving to New York after design school and starting to do real client work—as opposed to student work—was impactful in solidifying my path.

At the time, I felt burnt out, uninspired, and unsure about my future. I knew I liked design, but didn’t know what I wanted to pursue.

Working in the field allowed me to meet some of my role models and see what a career in branding and design might look like.

When I was a student, it was hard to think about a career concretely, but starting to do professional projects and enjoying that work made me realize I was on the right path.

How do you balance design, branding, and editorial design?

A lot of my work incorporates all three.

Some projects have been branding-focused, some editorial-focused, and some UX-focused, but I feel like my skills for one “type” of design go hand in hand with the skills I have for another.

LearningWell—an online magazine about mental health in higher education—is a good example of a project I worked on with Decimal that required me to consider branding and editorial design equally. I was responsible for both the visual identity and the web design.

When I considered the visual identity, I considered how that would relate to the editorial content of the website and vice versa. 

How do you bring storytelling into branding and editorial design to create resonating experiences?

When I start a project, I try to define its goal and its story.

Storytelling starts at the project’s beginning and drives a brand’s narrative.

Good design should effectively communicate a story, even if the work is less narrative-based.

I usually work closely with clients in the project’s beginning phases to discover what story they want to tell, which informs the work I decide to do.

How has your design process changed as you’ve evolved in your career? 

My general process has stayed fairly similar. I usually start by gathering a range of references and ideas, iterating on those initial ideas, and refining them.

As I’ve evolved, the main thing that’s changed is that the beginning part of the project has gotten easier.

I feel less and less paralyzed when starting a new project, and my prior experiences have given me more of a jumping-off point.

RELATED READS: Dan George Hill on Disrupting Your Own Creative Process

Is there a particular project that has significantly impacted your career?

A recent project I’m really excited about is the new website for Coming Soon. It’s an NY-based homeware and furniture store that has really vibrant colors and designs.

It is one of the first e-commerce sites I’ve worked on, and I learned a lot.

It feels like an important project to my career because it allowed me to have a lot of fun.

Coming Soon’s products are playful, and the store owners encouraged us to explore design directions that embodied that whimsical spirit.

The project taught me a lot about experimenting and enjoying the design process.

How does Decimal Studios’ design philosophy match up with your approach to creating impactful designs?

At Decimal, we use design and technology to create beautiful, well-considered digital products and brands.

Our work is thoughtful, with attention to detail.

Since most of Decimal’s work is centered around digital products, it’s also important that what we design is a good user experience in addition to looking pretty.

Function is just as important as form because a product that does not work cannot make an impact, no matter how beautiful.

That design philosophy matches up with how I feel about my approach.

RELATED READS: Leta Sobierajski on Creative Influence and Collaboration

What design trends are currently inspiring you?

I try to avoid designing things that feel trendy, but I’ve been enjoying playing with brighter colors recently.

Neon colors, especially lime green, are having their moment this year after Brat Summer, and I’m here for it.

I’ve also loved some retro-inspired trends lately, especially with typography.

It’s fun seeing references to older typefaces and trends, especially those from the 1990s and 2000s.

I’ve always enjoyed nostalgia and love going down rabbit holes of weird vintage references on the Internet Archive and public domain image collections.

We can use a lot from the past to speak about the present.

What are your go-to strategies for tackling deadlines when you’re stuck in a creative rut?

When I’m stuck in a creative rut, I like to take a step back from designing.

It’s easy to get in my head when I feel stuck on something, which isn’t always the most productive. Looking at different real-life and online references can also help spark new ideas.

The existence of a deadline itself is also helpful for getting out of a rut.

Whether I want to or not, if something has to be done by a certain time, it will get done by that time. That pressure usually motivates me to push past any mental block and start designing.

Once I get the ball rolling, developing new ideas is easier, even if my first few ideas are bad.

RELATED READS: Melina K on Finding Your Creative Flow

What advice do you have for designers pursuing a multidisciplinary career?

Pursuing a multidisciplinary career shouldn’t be forced but rather something that happens naturally when you pursue your interests.

If you make time to work on projects that you enjoy, the rest will follow. My best work has always been work that I felt excited about. 

It’s also helpful to have lower-stakes creative outlets outside of your career. When I have the time, I like to draw and paint purely for fun.

While that isn’t directly part of my design work, what I learn about composition, color, and observation can and does inform my design choices.

How do you stay inspired and continually bring fresh ideas when working with your clients?

It’s not always easy, but spending time away from the screen helps me stay inspired.

I love going to museums and galleries, traveling, and even just walking around the city for inspiration. I try to stay curious—I want to be a lifelong learner. There are always new things I can see and do.

RELATED READS: Serena Tyrrell on Crafting Brand Identity

What do you like about Stills? Why would you recommend it as a resource for brands and designers?

Stills is great because it is a well-curated collection of high-quality photos.

They don’t feel like generic stock images and have a lot of personality.

What I like about using Stills is how easy it is to use and navigate. It’s intuitive to narrow down options and find what you need quickly, especially when you have something specific in mind.

I especially love using the color picker filter to find images with similar color schemes. It’s so helpful when you want to stick to a certain color palette for a brand.

The post Kirsten Holland on How to Elevate Brand Stories Through Thoughtful and Impactful UX appeared first on Stills Blog.

Stills: Starting as an art director at Wieden+Kennedy in 2018 and now working as a creative director, how has your creative process evolved?

Nik Reed: While both jobs are fundamentally different from one another, the process still starts at a similar place.

The goal early on is to identify some kind of point of view that feels true for the brand and something that can emotionally resonate with people.

But the double-edged sword is that the media has become so fractured that it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle.

However, the opportunity for creativity comes from the fact that there are new touch points and feelings that you can use to engage with people.

So if you do it right, brand truth can take even more forms today and resonate with even more people.

RELATED READS: Dan George Hill on Disrupting Your Own Process

Who played a significant role in your career, especially during your early years at Wieden+Kennedy?

Nik Reed: One of the great things about working at W+K is that so many people you work with are people you can constantly be inspired by and take inspiration from. It’s almost like a buffet-style mentorship approach.

At W+K, there’s so much history and creativity in the walls of that place that it’s pretty easy to walk in and feel inspired by what the people around you have done and are continuing to do, which, in advertising at large, is a luxury.

Many of the CDs I worked under helped shape my approach to the work—even my approach to the CD role.

One of our current CCOs at W+K, who was a CD who first hired me, was probably one of the first people I drew inspiration from to find success creatively at the agency. It wasn’t so much a capital-M Mentorship as a mentorship through osmosis.

Seeing how to lead a team creatively, being hands-on at the right time and hands-off with others, and even just finding a way to be creative in situations that would otherwise not allow it helped shape me early on and even into today.

RELATED READS: Gabby Lord on Fostering Creative Culture

With Wieden+Kennedy working with iconic clients like Nike, how do you balance maintaining a brand’s legacy with pushing creative boundaries?

Nik Reed: Our jobs as creatives should always be to push the boundaries of what’s known or established and constantly challenge the status quo.

In my time here, I’ve been fortunate enough to work on both legacy and newer brands. With all of them, we’ve either tried to push the brand out of its comfort zone or push the category as much as we can.

Each end of the legacy/new brand spectrum presents its challenges. But ultimately, the goal is to be unexpected and go beyond what a brand knows about itself or what a consumer might think of it.

For a legacy brand like Nike or McDonald’s, a key consideration is ensuring that the brand’s core ethos is maintained in everything it does.

Many brands make the mistake of trying to distance themselves from who they are and what they stand for to appeal to a modern consumer.

For many legacy brands, there’s usually a set of timeless attributes or beliefs that have made them resonate with people for a long time. So, when a brand is able to tap into that history and figure out how it can translate into a modern context, it can end up being really powerful.

From there, your job as a creative is to take those timeless qualities, figure out how to translate them into a new context, and then find some kind of alchemy between the “old” and “new.”

This approach ensures consistency but also allows the brand to remain fresh as time goes on.

RELATED READS: Beyond Aesthetics: How Joe Diver Balances Vision with Brand Legacy

What are the essential elements for creating impactful and memorable campaigns?

Nik Reed: Having a point of view is foundational to the success of any work.

That’s your starting point—your view of the world. It guides your creative decisions in nearly every aspect of the campaign. It’s the knife to cut through the noise.

What are you trying to say? And how are you trying to say it?

Unfortunately, the advertising landscape nowadays is filled with a lot of stuff that’s just stuff. I think there’s a general fear of not saying or doing anything because it might get in the way of capturing a potential customer, so it merely exists to fill space in the hopes that you will buy the product.

There’s a ton of everything-for-everyone-everywhere-all-at-once where you frame your brand as this amorphous thing that can be for literally anything for anyone. It plays to metrics and data over a feeling or emotion.

“Our job as creatives is being a chemist in a way where you combine different pieces from different places to create something new. So if you always have sources of inspiration to pull from, you’ll never run out of creativity.”

Nik Reed

When you look at past work or stuff today that’s interesting, it always makes you feel something. It might be a simple laugh, do something cool, or challenge what you think, but at the very least, it provoked something out of you.

Craft is another vital piece of the pie, as it determines whether something is impactful and memorable.

We’re in a really exciting space right now. There are so many talented people in the industry and even adjacent to our industry that can really push creative to new areas.

There’s excitement when you begin the production process. It’s a time when you figure out how that initial idea and point of view can be expressed creatively and done in a way that can feel fresh and unexpected.

RELATED READS: Award-Winning CD David Stevanov on Building Great Campaigns

What recent project are you most proud of? What contributed to its success?

Nik Reed: A recent project I’ve been excited about was a brand campaign we did for Team USA.

As someone who played sports my whole life, there probably isn’t a bigger legacy brand that comes to mind.

So the opportunity to build a new brand platform for them, as well as an entire visual identity, felt like something I probably wouldn’t get to do in a long time.

It’s also just rare nowadays that you get to really build a brand from the ground up and think beyond just a current moment and instead think about how this brand will continue to exist in the future.

In the campaign, we got to think of things on a macro scale, like how (potentially) millions of people would perceive the brand.

We also got to get into the weeds of crafting something that felt specific to the team and the country it represented.

It’ll be exciting to continue working with them and build on the foundation we’ve already established.

RELATED READS: Dani Hunt on Cracking the Code to Commercial Success

What helps you stay motivated on a high-stakes campaign under a tight deadline?

Nik Reed: Pressure can be one of our best allies.

As creatives, we sometimes benefit from having a little bit of a fire underneath us. It pushes us into making swift decisions.

There’s a time and place in the campaign when you can be more idle and take your time. But at some point, the train has to start going.

Otherwise, you can fall into the trap of perfectionism and spend too much time second-guessing whether something is right.

It’s always a balancing act between finding enough time to develop a good idea and having the urgency to implement it promptly.

Some of the work I’m most proud of came from us having to pivot or develop new stuff within a 24-hour deadline.

How do you stay inspired and continually bring creativity and fresh ideas to the table when working with your clients?

Nik Reed: It’s about staying perpetually curious. It’s about being interested in culture at large but also about finding smaller niches and communities to be interested in.

Beyond that, the people around me are similarly curious about the world, so I’m constantly learning or discovering something new.

Often, a creative’s job is being a chemist in a way where you combine different pieces from different places to create something new. So if you always have sources of inspiration to pull from, you’ll never run out of creativity or new ways to think.

RELATED READS: Alishbah Masood on Mastering a Creative Mindset

Tell us about a dream project or brand you hope to work with.

Nik Reed: I’ve been lucky to work on a wide range of brands and products while at W+K.

There’s not a specific brand necessarily. But it would be cool to do something in the luxury space or a fashion or apparel brand.

That space could lend itself to less traditional “ads,” but I just haven’t had the chance to work in that space as much.

RELATED READS: Kelsey Bryden on the Rewards of Leaving Creative Comfort Zones

What advice would you give aspiring creative directors looking to work at an agency like Wieden+Kennedy?

Nik Reed: It’s different for everybody, but there’s a really big difference between being a creative director and being a creative. It’s mostly a completely different job.

As a creative, you have control over the minutiae and every little detail. But as a CD, you’re largely viewing everything through a macro lens.

Most of the time, you’re not making things or coming up with ideas. Instead, you’re figuring out how to create an environment for the team to be creatively successful.

CDs have to figure out how to scale brand beliefs beyond just yourself and the rest of the team.

That’s why the role of being a CD is so different.

There’s this perception that ending up as a CD is a natural progression in your career. But it’s more of a decision than something inevitable.

Knowing what you want from the role and where you want to take any project is instrumental in determining whether the role is right for you.

It starts with identifying why you want to be in that position.

What do you like about Stills? Why would you recommend it as a resource for brands and designers?

Nik Reed: Stock photography is so often associated with being bad.

But when you have a resource like Stills, it can actually change and elevate the campaign beyond what it normally would be.

The post Wieden+Kennedy CD Nik Reed on the Chemistry of Creativity appeared first on Stills Blog.

Read her exclusive interview for her fresh perspective on all things design, how she’s honed her innovative approach, and why understanding a brand’s level of expressiveness is key to finding the perfect balance between following rules and breaking them.

Stills: How did you get your start in design, and what led you to freelance work with such notable brands?

Kelsey Bryden: My dad was a designer, so I applied to design school to follow in his footsteps. I went to Parsons and started interning with studios in the social impact space. I wanted to break free from the more conservative design sensibilities of the nonprofit world, and I was lucky enough to transition to my first in-house role at SoundCloud. You just need one notable brand to let you in, and from there, it gets easier.

Is there a particular project or brand that has significantly impacted your career?

SoulCycle. I walked into that job thinking I was in the wrong place, not at all identifying with the brand widely accepted as a rich white woman’s space, but I left with a huge amount of experience and appreciation for the work I’d done. I was able to really tap into being an art director there, managing illustrators and motion designers and hiring amazing photographers and other creatives. 

How has staying true to yourself impacted how you select projects and clients?

You can bring your taste and insight to everything. If you’re working with a client that’s more buttoned up, you can always present an option that feels out of their comfort zone and see if it sticks. Personal interests are a great starting point to attracting and going after work that feels very aligned. Lately I’ve been incorporating brands I love into my work, like Jacquemus or Melitta Baumeister. Sort of signaling to the universe that they’re on my radar. I also love dance music and always look for ways to design and direct in that space.

Working with brands in the fitness, tech, and food industries, what has been the most challenging aspect of transitioning between projects?

The hardest part is speaking to a much broader audience when you’ve been working with a more narrow one for a while. Sometimes, brands with more general audiences take fewer creative risks because they don’t want to alienate anyone. I keep my ear to the ground to pick up as many insights as possible about the audience we’re speaking to because knowing the audience allows me to change gears quickly and make decisions thoughtfully.

How do you maintain each brand’s unique identity while infusing your creative vision?

The most important axis for understanding a brand’s place is that of expressiveness. The spectrum could also be perceived as an aptness to break versus follow rules. It can seem obvious whether a brand is straight-laced or not, but there’s nuance to this spectrum, and it’s good to know the specifics of where you’ll have wiggle room. Everything falls into place from there, and you’re able to know when it makes the most sense to insert your own takes. A brand that doesn’t shy away from experimentation and lies on the more expressive side can be introduced to new mediums, concepts, and design languages as long as you can make the case. With a more “by the book” brand, I propose nudges that feel small to me but most likely will feel significant to them. As a person with your own thoughts and experiences, you’ll come up with expressions of a brand that sometimes fall outside of its purview naturally. It’s important to not be afraid of that—it doesn’t make you a bad creative. 

How do you approach building long-term relationships with brands?

Striving to have real relationships with a creative team is helpful. I want to know the people behind the brand and connect with them about things outside work.

What’s been the most rewarding aspects of your career?

I’ve loved making things with other extremely talented people. Mandy Stoller has become a frequent collaborator of mine; she’s an incredible photographer and CGI artist. We worked on an editorial shoot recently, and I was super humbled by the talent, makeup/hair—everyone who worked on it. It’s a bittersweet thing, but you hit certain milestones and have a dual feeling of knowing that the Younger You would be in awe and Present You is already onto the next achievement mentally. 

How do you stay inspired and continually bring fresh ideas to the table with client work?

Being tapped into fashion and even more tapped into music provides a more constant stream of inspiration. Those two industries fly pretty close to the sun when it comes to producing commercial art. Brands like Chopova Lowena and Collina Strada have a strong influential graphic sense. The renaissance of dance music flyers and merchandise is a huge source of inspiration for me, too. The trends and movements within these two worlds have introduced me to new software and techniques that I now bring into my more commercial work. 

What’s your advice to designers balancing creative freedom with client expectations?

It’s helpful to meet people where they’re at. If they’re not as adventurous as you are, give them what they want and present an alternative option from an informed and strategic place. Also, try very hard not to let the less creatively fulfilling work you’re doing for money get in your way of working on things that fulfill you. I’ve taken my foot off the gas for long periods of time and not challenged myself. You can definitely find your way back, but try not ever to get too comfortable. Stability is wonderful, and we all need it, but as creative people, you want more. 

What do you like about Stills? Why would you recommend it as a resource for brands/designers?

The importance of quality photography cannot be overstated. Designers always need resources like Stills, and I’ll always stand behind empowering independent photographers.

The post Kelsey Bryden on the Rewards of Leaving Creative Comfort Zones appeared first on Stills Blog.

Read her interview below to learn how she overcomes creative burnout, how her design process has evolved over the years, and why she turns to Stills for inspiration.

Stills: What is your design process like, and how has it evolved?

Allyssa Ellis: My design process always starts with an idea, whether to change something about how things are in the world or something as simple as a rebrand. It always starts there, whether it’s with posters or brand campaigns. From there, after I have my initial idea, I try to figure out the best way to solve and communicate it. Typically, that’s finding the right visual style and message to depict that idea accurately. Sometimes, I already have a visual in mind, and sometimes, I must search for it.

Where do you look for inspiration?

In the earlier parts of my career, I would always go straight to online sources to find that initial inspiration. If there’s something in particular that I’m looking for, like a particular style, I will look on Pinterest, Behance, or that typical kind of showcase site. I often find more inspiration from everyday things, experiences, conversations, and things that I notice outside the world. Something like how the light hits a certain tree, a book, or just the little things you notice daily that make you feel something.

How do you overcome burnout? 

That’s a hard one. Rest is always important, but you can’t let burnout win. You have to have momentum to keep going. I try to take the rest I need, but then I still work on creating something. It can be something small or just spending an hour a week on something to keep that creative fire going.

What is your secret creative weapon, and how did you develop that skill? 

Storytelling, or a way with words. I’ve always been drawn to literature and writing. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a songwriter or poet. The connection between design and story is very powerful. I’ve always written, but I connected it to the design process in college. From there, I realized I needed to start writing down my ideas and stories, which later led to personal projects and my newsletter.

Looking back, what hurdles did you have to overcome?

There are always a lot of personal hurdles. We all have difficult traumas and aspects of our lives. Certain relationships in the past have been hurdles, as has growing up in a super small town. I have had to figure out how to leave situations and environments behind and form new relationships (with myself and others).

What do you like about Stills? How is it a good resource for designers?

There’s a lot to like about Stills. It’s a new way to examine how imagery is used, especially with design. Many traditional stock websites feel very basic, dry, and fake. They don’t feel warm or inspiring and often look the same. Stills has such high-quality, inspiring imagery that can be used in various ways, especially with design. Whether that’s for mood boards or the actual designs themselves, it’s exciting to see the artistry of photography and design as one thing. 

Explore a Board of dreamy, chromatic imagery—hand-picked by Allyssa and available to license for your own projects.

The post Everyday Inspiration with Allyssa Ellis appeared first on Stills Blog.

Read his interview below to learn more about his unique working style, the turning point in his career that landed him long-term brand partnerships, and how he utilizes Stills as a never-ending source of inspiration for his work.

Stills: Describe your journey into creative direction and design—what inspired you to focus on high-end brands?

Joe Diver: I’ve always been deeply fascinated with art and visual storytelling, from interior design and oil paintings to photography and architecture. My career began in project management, but it wasn’t long before I realized my true passion lay in design. I gravitated toward high-end brands because my design style—a luxurious, clean aesthetic—naturally aligns with their needs. It’s where I can provide the most value and make a meaningful impact.

What early moments or projects in your career helped you become a sought-after creative director?

While my work revolves around creative direction, I typically consider myself a brand specialist, focusing on strategy, design, and digital execution. One of the most formative projects in my career was working with RIMOWA. Collaborating with such a prestigious brand, with considerable publicity, was pivotal in defining the type of clients I wanted to work with. It was also an invaluable experience in learning how to apply my design approach to a major brand and create a tangible positive impact.

Tell us about the mentors and key figures influencing your career path and design approach.

Studying the works of design pioneers like Josef Müller-Brockmann and Armin Hofmann has profoundly impacted my design style and methodology. However, I’ve been fortunate to have mentors like Phil Bastiaans (founder of Appart Agency) and Mirko Musmeci (founder of ANDOTHERS Studio) throughout my career. Their guidance and the opportunities they provided—such as working on high-profile projects like Superblue Miami—were instrumental in my growth as a designer. Their support shaped my skills and expanded my perspective on the possibilities within design and branding.

How has your creative philosophy evolved throughout your career? What core principles do you maintain?

At the start of my career, I was driven almost entirely by the desire to create visually striking aesthetics. As I’ve grown personally and professionally, my philosophy has evolved to incorporate considerations of culture, strategy, and the impact design can have on an audience and consumer. The visual appeal will always be the heart of my work, but integrating these broader elements has elevated my work to a new level. This combination of beauty and substance makes work stand out.

How do you balance client expectations with your creative vision, especially with iconic brands like RIMOWA and EnterJet?

Balancing client expectations with my creative vision involves a fine-tuned process of clear communication and a deep understanding of the brand’s identity and strategy. My approach begins with immersing myself in the brand’s values and objectives to ensure my work aligns with its essence. Open dialogue is essential—it helps build trust and allows me to demonstrate how my vision can enhance the brand. This collaborative process ensures that the outcome respects the brand’s legacy while pushing it forward meaningfully.

How do you build and sustain long-term relationships with your clients? What do you consider essential in these partnerships?

At the core of my business philosophy is a focus on people. Regular communication with each client is key to building solid and lasting relationships. Setting clear expectations at the start of a project, having regular but necessary meetings, and delivering outstanding results are crucial elements in maintaining long-term partnerships. I take pride in the fact that many of my clients have become friends, and much of my new business comes from referrals from past clients. 

High-end brands often have established identities and loyal followings. How do you innovate to keep the brand fresh and relevant within these constraints?

Innovating within the constraints of a well-established brand requires a delicate balance of respecting tradition while subtly evolving the brand’s image. I focus on understanding the core elements that define the brand’s legacy and using them as a foundation to introduce fresh, authentic ideas. By staying attuned to emerging trends, consumer insights, and new technologies, I can create work that resonates with contemporary audiences without alienating long-time followers. This approach helps keep the brand relevant and engaging, maintaining its luxury appeal while pushing boundaries.

What dream projects or brands do you hope to work with?

I would love to collaborate with Cole Buxton and UVU brands. Their existing identity and marketing are exceptional, and I would relish the opportunity to contribute to their continued success. They’re also at the forefront of the movement where founders become brand ambassadors, as seen with Represent, which I see as a massive driver of successful companies over the next decade. I’ve also thoroughly enjoyed my experience working with EnterJet in the private aviation sector, which has deepened my understanding of what luxury should look and feel like. I would love to explore opportunities similar to those of other premium service providers in the industry.

How do you stay inspired and continually bring fresh ideas when working with your clients?

My top advice for young designers is to stay on top of trends and continue educating yourself. I regularly organize and review my saves across platforms like Cosmos, Are.na, Stills, and Instagram to keep my inspiration well-stocked. Staying updated with cultural trends and brand moments is also vital for keeping my creativity flowing. This practice fuels my inspiration and adds context to my design decisions, enabling me to bring fresh and relevant ideas to the table when working with clients.

Explore a curated Board of Joe’s favorite imagery—all available to license on Stills.

What do you like about Stills? Why would you recommend it as a resource for brands/designers?

Stills has truly been a game-changer for both myself and the clients I work with. The platform’s extensive and varied imagery makes it versatile for virtually any project. Creating boards for each project has been particularly helpful when presenting concepts to clients—it’s like having a visual roadmap. I also enjoy working on conceptual projects and sharing them with my audience, and the imagery on Stills is consistently inspiring. I’d recommend Stills to any creative professional—it’s a powerful tool for expanding your creative horizons and easily developing concepts.

The post Beyond Aesthetics: How Joe Diver Balances Vision with Brand Legacy appeared first on Stills Blog.

A good brief encourages designers, Creative Directors, marketers, and everyone else involved in your project to foster their creativity and ingenuity, collaborate, and set the tone for the project. This document serves as the source of truth, something they can come back to as a reference to make sure they’re still on the right track and nailing all the project’s goals.

So, how can you write a creative brief that speaks to everyone? And why do you really need one?

Understanding the Purpose of a Creative Brief

A good creative brief has to go beyond a list of bullet points outlining the details of your project. Its main purpose is to provide clarity and align on vision. It will help everyone in your team gain a better understanding of what the project should look like and the approach to take to achieve that end result. Imagine the scenarios below:

While you can convey the idea for your project in a meeting or email, a creative brief helps your team better understand the direction you want to take. It provides context to your desired approach and sets expectations clearly.

20 Essential Elements of a Creative Brief

What makes a good brief for your creative project? Here’s a thorough guide on the elements you should include.

1. Project Name

Don’t just mention the project name—dissect it and share important notes on why you chose that name. How does it reflect the project? What message are you trying to convey?

2. Company Background

Who is this project for? Describe the brand and its values. What’s their mission? How did they get started? Introduce the company to your team like you’re introducing a new hire. This is where you encourage your team to get to know the brand.

3. Project Objective

Why are you working on this project in the first place? What’s the goal? What do you want to achieve? What is expected of the project? Is it to increase sales? Is it to promote a new line of products?

Having a better understanding of the project objective allows your team to have a better sense of creative direction.

4. Target Audience

Advertising briefs succeed when you’re clear on who you’re creating it for. Include demographic and psychographic profiles of your target audience. You want your team to get to know these types of people. Not just their age and race, but also their interests, so that they can approach the project more intentionally.

5. Competitors

Including your competitors is important as it shows your team what advertisement, website, and company online presence they should beat.

Aside from the competitor’s name and maybe their website, you’d want to include other relevant information like their ad that you’re trying to beat or a photoshoot they did that is now on their social media. Competition is not always to be seen in a negative way. Look at it as inspiration to be better.

6. Unique Selling Proposition

This is the part where your team should gain more insight into your product’s potential. What separates your product from other similar ones? What are its key features?

Imagine telling your friends about your product a.k.a. the baby your creativity and hard work just gave birth to—that’s how your approach to a unique selling proposition or USP should be.

7. Key Message

The key message is the core of every project, and if you’re wondering what a creative brief is, it’s a detailed version of the key message. So make sure you write this part as clearly.

Share with your team the main message you want the project to convey. If it’s a photoshoot for a new line of products, the key message is not just, “Hey, we have a new amazing product.” Oftentimes, it is, “Hey, we’re launching a new product, and this is why it’s amazing.” Key messages are rooted in both WHAT and WHY.

8. Key Consumer Benefit

If your key message is about the product and why it’s amazing, your key consumer benefit is how the product or service will benefit the people who will see your project, a.k.a. your target audience.

Give your team a better understanding of how your product will impact the audience. How will it make their lives easier? How will it make them eat healthier? How will it make them sleep better?

9. Tone and Style

Your brand’s personality should be reflected in everything you produce—ads, social media posts, product launches, everything. That said, whatever you’re creating a creative brief for, it’s important to detail the tone and style of the project.

10. Attitude

What feeling should this project evoke? When people see it, do you want them to feel encouraged? Happy? Eager to buy and share with their friends? You want them to be inclined to purchase or subscribe, so your brief should detail how to pull that string.

11. Call to Action

The call to action is what seals the deal. Not only should your project evoke the right feelings, but your creative team should also have a solid call to action that’ll convert that feeling into a sale or a subscription. Your take on this call to action should be outlined clearly in the brief.

12. Distribution Plan

What makes a good creative brief for advertising is a clear distribution plan. Make clear where this project will be placed. Is it exclusively for social media, or will you also send it out in newsletters? 

13. Budget

Budget is vital, and so is transparency. Be clear about how much you’re willing to shell out for this project, and how much your company is willing to spend, and always have space for negotiations.

14. Timeline

To save you and the rest of your team from unmet expectations, it’s best to lay out your timeline in the brief. This will help everyone see if they’re still on the right track at the right time. Or if they need to start powering through to finish before the deadline.

15. Mandatory Elements

For some projects, there is more than one element needed. You may be creating a brief for a new ad, but it’s possible you also need a logo and tagline. Or any other creative elements. Outline that in the brief so your team understands what exactly you need.

16. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Key performance indicators or KPIs are the elements that help businesses measure their success. Or measure the success of their new ad, new product launch, you name it. What KPIs do you have for this project? How do you know if it’s a success?

17. Consumer Insight

Consumer insight is like seeing your new project or new ad from the consumer’s lens. It’s important to understand their point of view about this ad before you even start working on it. And it’s important to share this with your team.

18. Stakeholders

Of course, you’d also want to list the main stakeholders involved in the project. You’d want your team to get to know them.

19. Resources

Resources should be a very meaty part of the brief. Layout all the resources that your team can use to produce the desired output. From inspiration (think mood boards) to material resources like stock images, your team will thank you for this information. You’d also want to iterate to only use quality stock photos and the latest data when they do further research.

20. Constraints

A content brief is not all positive notes and creative ideas. To make it really solid, you want to make sure you lay out all the possible constraints. This is so your team can prepare and get ahead of it. Be it legal considerations or technical constraints, understanding their limits will help your team produce work within their bounds.

Tailoring the Brief to the Project

Once you’ve mastered the elements of a good creative brief, it can be used in many different ways. This includes advertising, client work, collaboration with other creatives, freelance projects, and even internal creative projects. Here are some examples of different types of briefs:

Content Brief: This is what you send to a freelance writer or a staffer in the content department. Content briefs outline either a specific article or a content project (e.g., an article/story series).

Advertising Brief: An advertising brief is designed for advertisement projects to be distributed both online and offline. It lays out the ad campaign and the clear approach the advertising team should take. This type of brief is heavily anchored on making sales as an end result.

UX/UI Design Brief: This brief is mainly for web developers and graphics designers. Its goal is to provide guidance on a website, software, or an app’s interface and user experience.

The Role of the Visual Artist in the Briefing Process

Having a visual person in the room when creating and finalizing your creative brief can greatly impact the outcome. Most briefs are composed of words and more words. Which is very helpful. But it can be boring.

Visual artists have a keen eye and can contribute to making your briefs better by injecting images and other visual guides like graphs and charts. Source images from quality photo licensing websites and curate them before using them. Make sure they are in line with your project or with what the creative brief is for, and that they can spark creativity among your team.

7 Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Too vague: A common pitfall is not being specific enough in the brief. This can lead to confusion and misinterpretation. How to fix it: Be clear and concise with your objectives, target audience, and desired outcomes.

Too much information: While it’s important to be thorough, including too much information can overwhelm the team and dilute the main focus of the project. How to fix it: Stick to the most relevant information.

No clear objectives: Without clear objectives, it’s difficult to gauge the success of a project. How to fix it: Every creative brief should have clear, measurable objectives. 

Ignoring the audience: The brief should always consider the target audience. Failing to define who the project is for can lead to ineffective messaging and design.

No Unique Selling Proposition (USP): The USP sets your product or service apart from the competition. If it’s not clearly defined in the brief, the creative team might struggle to highlight it in their work.

Neglecting the Timeline and Budget: These are super important details that can significantly impact the project. Not including them can lead to unrealistic expectations and potential overspending.

Skipping the Review Process: A creative brief should be reviewed and agreed upon by all key stakeholders before work begins. Skipping this step can lead to misunderstandings and potential rework later on.

Final Thoughts

From the key consumer benefit to the distribution plan to everything in between, a good creative brief should be able to direct your team to produce a solid project without limiting their ingenuity.

It’s not just some additional document that directors or managers create or an additional document that designers need to study. It’s a roadmap to a successful project where everyone’s expectations are met, and no one’s need is compromised.

License the cover image via Vijay Sarathy

The post 20 Essential Elements That Make a Great Creative Brief appeared first on Stills Blog.

Fundamentals of grid systems

Layout design is the practice of arranging various elements with one another. A great layout has specific visual points of interest that guide the viewer through the design. The easiest way to create a successful layout is by using a grid system. A grid system allows these layouts to have a structural foundation to follow throughout a website, advertisement, or magazine. 

An effective use of grid systems can be found in a book cover design where the text, images, and negative space all work in harmony to draw a potential reader in. An organized layout here marks the vital information and then draws the viewer deeper in with more secondary elements that work to pique the interest enough to open the book.

Another example of how a grid system creates impact is through a magazine layout. There are usually competing elements that need to work together on a page. Each page differs from the next which is why it’s key to have an organized pattern of how text, page numbers, and images are consistently placed. This allows the reader to easily navigate through different types of content in the magazine.

Selecting the right grid

Various layouts and mediums can benefit from different grid systems. Depending on the project, you can choose a grid that anchors your content in the right way. The different grid types consist of manuscript, modular, column, and hierarchical.

Manuscript grid

Starting with the simplest grid, a manuscript system is contained with a large text box of typical page margins. The secondary border is a guide for headers, footnotes, and page numbers. This grid is most effectively used in books, professional documents, and long essays. These are typically not used for more complex and creative layouts.

Modular grid

If you need a multifaceted layout, a modular grid system is a beneficial option. This grid system contains columns and rows that make up modules or boxes on a page. These modules have gutters between them to create space from one piece of content to another. These types of layouts can be seen on our phone home screens and are often used in e-commerce, schedules, or charts.

Column grids

Our next grid system makes longer text easier to read. These are great layouts for newspapers, magazines, and websites. A column grid is a system that is set up with several columns ranging from 2 to 4. This system relies on vertical guides for text and images to be laid out consistently. These columns are usually the same size although you can create asymmetrical columns to add a unique visual interest.

Hierarchical grids

This grid system is most commonly used in website design as it organizes content in order of importance. A hierarchical system leaves room for the most creativity while remaining intentional about how the information is perceived. These grids are usually set up with customized proportions instead of a more predictable pattern. This is helpful to use when a layout requires a more unconventional approach.

What is grid flexibility?

With any design project, it’s important to know when and how to break the design rules. A designer can be flexible when it comes to a layout without breaking the integrity of the design. Adjusting an element outside of a set grid can add depth and diversity to a layout. This can be done by creating an obvious placement of a component outside the grid. This shows the viewer this was an intentional design choice instead of a mistake.

Grid flexibility should be kept limited to 1 or a few elements to still retain the structure of the layout. When breaking these design rules, it’s essential to still be mindful that text is legible, branding stays consistent, and photos are high-quality. Images are one of the most common elements that can be pushed outside the margin. If you are looking for exceptional images, Stills can be a perfect resource for your ideal layout design.

Responsive design and grid systems

When designing for different screen types, grid systems need to adapt to the changing dimensions. Overall when it comes to designing for mobile, the number of columns will change. Mostly, you will be limited to one column where the viewer can scroll through the content. The content must make sense when it is forced to be stacked on top of each other. A fluid grid system will help stay consistent with a layout. This allows the breakpoints to change the design to fit the desired screen size. It’s also important to take into account background images that bleed over and if the impact of that image remains in another screen size. Some images can work well in all screen sizes, and Stills has an extensive library to choose from.

Typography and grids

Typography always plays a key role in any graphic design project. It’s important to be intentional about how text is set up on a grid system to create an even flow. Since grids are about creating an organizational structure, getting exact placements for typography can make reading information easier especially when working in multi-page documents.

Alignment is a key element in how text can be set up on a grid system. Staying consistent in alignment on a grid will help the information flow through a layout. If you have a text-heavy design, a visual hierarchy can be created to guide the viewer through the information in a sequential manner.

It’s best to start your design project by laying out all your text on the side of your artboard space. From there, you can quickly access your content and start planning which text is most important. This will help you determine your text hierarchy. Next, you can set up a grid system that works best for your layout and place your text consistently throughout.

Here is text on an effective grid system on an e-commerce listing page. You can see the text is laid out concisely to create a hierarchical structure that allows you to easily flow through the content.

Invitations are another place you can see typography laid out on a grid system. Here you can see the headlines of the text are treated in a way to highlight the key information. The secondary text follows in a more subtle approach.

Using grids for visual hierarchy

Visual hierarchy and grid systems work together to oversee the position of text, images, and graphics in any layout. The visual hierarchy gives guidance to what information needs to be the focal point and what is secondary. It’s important to create a sequential system for how you want the viewer’s eye to flow through a layout.

Once you have established what content needs to be emphasized, it’s essential to understand the visual weight of each element. This can be achieved by size, negative space, and contrast. An effective layout achieves a smooth flow from all elements with each other. 

Photos are also an effective way to give the viewer’s eye a break from a more text-heavy layout. It’s important to use photos that help communicate your message and give it the proper placement in your hierarchy, as they can oftentimes evoke more emotion than text so let it enhance your layout by becoming the focal point.

Grid systems in print design

Print design benefits greatly from a wide range of grid systems. Newspapers were some of the first print materials that relied heavily on exact layouts and grids. If you look at any newspaper today you will see a common 6-column grid that allows the reader to easily move through stories. There has not often been grid flexibility in these types of layouts. Today we use them more creatively in advertisements, books, and posters.

A grid system will look different depending on the project. A more exact grid system in print design is needed for a multi-page document so you can keep a more organized structure throughout. For one-page designs, you have more flexibility to create a grid that only needs to benefit that one-off design. For example, a poster design can benefit from a hierarchical grid and allow some space for breaking outside the margins.

Grid systems in digital design

Designing in a digital space comes with different opportunities and challenges. These days, a user is used to scrolling through content so a grid must align with that setup. Not only does a grid system create a visual hierarchy in a digital space but creates a more enjoyable user experience.

Website grids are used to guide a viewer through its pages and eventually convert into either sales or subscribers. A clear organizational flow creates seamless harmony through the flow of content. Grid systems can have some variety here to create more visual interest. It is important to keep the outside structure of the grid consistent from page to page. This means keeping a constant page width but changing up what happens within those margins.

Grids come in many shapes and sizes and can be altered to fit your exact project needs. It may have been one of the first techniques you learned as a new designer but can be revisited to create more dynamic designs. Now that you have an understanding of different types of grid systems, combine various ones that work for your layout. In graphic design, it’s important to break the rules when it makes sense to do so. Think of grids as a set of patterns, rather than restrictions placed upon your design. A great layout has the power to improve a visual experience, and readability, and boost conversions.

The cover image via GS & Co

The post An In-Depth Exploration of Layout and Grid Systems appeared first on Stills Blog.