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Three Ways to Make Your Images Pop

Have you ever heard the expression, “a picture paints a thousand words?” It’s true. While words can limit our ability to communicate ideas effectively, even a split-second glance at an image can convey volumes of information. Whether you’re a marketer or a design specialist, it is essential to employ tactics that add power and clarity to your communication.

Here are three techniques you can experiment with in print marketing to amplify your visual messages:

Signs

On a basic level, signs are the combination of a word and a picture to create meaning.

Bleed, No Bleed

What comes to your mind when you see a red plus sign, an image of a dog with a slash through it, or a photo of a distressed person clutching their neck with two hands? Signs convey simple, universal ideas that viewers can understand immediately. Even colors themselves can have inherent meaning! Signs are especially helpful when communicating with mass audiences at a glance.

Typograms

A typogram refers to the deliberate use of typography to express an idea visually.

Magnify Glass

For example, the word “half” displayed with only the top half of each letter showing might imply an eraser effect. The word “volleyball” with the “o” popping out above the text brings a playful, spirited message. Typograms use basic visual enforcement to add subtext to the words you display. Logos, taglines, or custom envelopes are a great place to put typograms to work.

Symbolic Imagery

While signs communicate a very straightforward message, many images have connotative meanings with far more complexity.

Womens Eye

While a house denotes a place where you live, a home has far greater connotations (like family, security, and love). A subject, the objects surrounding it, and the editing techniques you use can all play a role in the cognitive messages you bring. Consider these examples:

  • Cropping a woman’s face to only the eye can make viewers wonder what she is thinking
  • Cropping a man’s body to only his head and shoulders may suggest he’s leaning in to hear more
  • Inverting colors may insinuate a flashback scene or a memory
  • Increasing contrast between the back and foregrounds might indicate the object behind a person is about to surprise them
  • Larger contrasts or color saturation can elicit feelings or arousal or cheerfulness
  • Increased sepia tones can give an aged or vintage look (like a photo carried in a wallet)

While language can limit our ideas, an image communicates on many different levels. Proficient designers know the more clarity or complexity you bring to your print pieces, the greater impact you will have on your target audience. Use signs, typograms, and symbolic imagery to add emotional weight, to increase the efficiency of your communication, and to achieve a greater return from your marketing dollars.




Basics Design 04: Image
by Gavin Ambrose and Paul Harris

REVIEW
Images are used everywhere, from cinema posters to perfume packaging, they have the power to elicit a response and impart information. Images can, quite literally, 'paint a thousand words', but understanding what they mean, when to use them and how to control them is becoming ever more crucial. The ability to alter images is made far easier through technological advances. Importantly though, what we're altering needs to be understood and controlled. "Basics Design: Image" will look at two distinct areas: what images mean and how we can create them. A primer in basic semiotics, "Basics Design: Image" will unravel the often complicated terminology associated with image 'reading'. On a practical level, this volume will introduce some of the many ways images are created; from reportage photography to illustration, computer generation to iconography and computer and print manipulation. "Basics Design: Image" aims to equip the contemporary designer with a series of tools and ideas. Inspirational examples from design agencies help support the 'basic' sections discussed and allow the reader to see the relevance of fundamental principles in practice.

Eco Friendly

Eco-friendly promotional products are good for the environment and good for getting your message across to your target audience.

Tradeshows

Promotional items that endorse your business are great items to give away at tradeshows. They offer endless opportunities to get your message across to new audiences.

Corporate Gifts

Show employee appreciation and build company morale. Items such as flash drives, picture frames, desk accessories and computer mice make great employee gifts.

New Products

View our newest promotional products! We are constantly adding new items to our 300,000+ inventory to give you fresh and up-to-date choices every day.

Awards

Awards and recognition gifts say thank you to employees for a job well done. We carry awards, plaques, trophies, ribbons and much more.

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Promotional Products

We carry promotional items such as eco-friendly gifts, awards, corporate gifts, new products and tradeshow items.

Business Stationery

Our business card program streamlines your order process yet gives you complete control over your content. Letterhead, envelopes and pocket cards too!

Occasion Cards

We carry holiday and occasion cards, moving announcements, thank you notes and more. Customize your cards with logo imprints and other options!

Memos & Notepads

We print company phone pads, note pads and forms in various sizes. Personalize them with your company logo, names and contact information.

Programs & Announcements

Full color announcements and programs for fundraisers, trade shows, banquets and agendas. We also foil stamp, emboss and die cut.

Brochures

We print full color single to multi-sheet newsletters, product sheets, tri-folds, rack cards, handouts and promotional literature.

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Offset Printing

We print items such as business stationary, brochures, occasion cards, memos & notepads, programs and announcements.

Tips & Tricks

Design and tech tips to make designing your job a little easier, marketing tips to assist your advertising efforts and print tips for faster, less expensive buying.

Tutorials

Check out our video on how to sign in to your account and place orders online.

Printing Terms

Look here for a glossary of the most common terms in the printing industry.

Templates

Find different templates to design your full-size banners.

FAQ's

How do I send a file? How do I save a document as a PDF? What is a CMYK color format? Answers to your most frequently asked questions.

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Click here for FAQ's about our tips and tricks.

Tips & Tricks

Design and tech tips to make designing your job a little easier, marketing tips to assist your advertising efforts and print tips for faster, less expensive buying.

Presentations

Pitch books and investment books help you communicate your message with PowerPoint presentations, graphs, and charts. Custom binding and tabs available.

Manuals

We can print 1-5000+ copies of your training, safety and operational manuals and technical documents. Full color, B&W, binding, inserts, index tabs, even lamination.

Black and White Copies

Our high-speed, high quality B&W laser printers produce crisp, clean copies of legal documents, RFP's, variable data, digital output of files, manuals and more.

Archiving

Do you need digital scans of your important documents? Letter, legal, 11 x 17, oversize? We can PDF your documents or OCR scan your files to create searchable, editable text files.

Color Copies

Our high-quality digital color presses turn out beautiful invitations, flyers, brochures, newsletters, rack cards, coupons and more. We can also print large format prints and maps.

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Digital Printing

We print B&W and color copies of presentations, product sheets, manuals, newletters, brochures, postcards and more. We also do archival scanning.

Maps & Prints

We print oversized, digital prints of well-logs, operational flow charts and pipe line maps. Turn your maps and prints into digital files for emailing and archiving.

Banners

Full color, affordable, retractable banners make great trade shows displays, point of purchase signage, directional signage and outdoor vinyl banners.

Oversize Scans

We scan large format documents such as well-logs, engineering plans and maps to digital files. Your PDF digital scans can be easily archived to CD.

Posters

Our digitally printed posters and prints are exceptional, with crisp, vibrant colors and photographic quality. Custom stock, mounting and laminating available.

Event Signage

Catch people's attention with color signage! We produce banners stands, pop up and hanging displays, full color table covers and tabletop displays.

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Large Format Printing

We print event signage, maps, banners, well-logs, posters, prints and more. We also do oversize scanning.

Eco Friendly Tradeshows Corporate Gifts New Products Awards ? Promotional Products Promotional Products Business Stationery Occasion Cards Memos & Notepads Programs & Announcements Brochures ? Offset Printing Offset Printing Tips & Tricks Tutorials Printing Terms Templates FAQ's ? Tips & Tricks Tips & Tricks Presentations Manuals Black and White Copies Archiving Color Copies ? Digital Printing Digital Printing Maps & Prints Banners Oversize Scans Posters Event Signage ? Large Format Printing Large Format Printing Send A File Forms Factory My Jobs Place Order Request Estimate