What is the structure of the content?
The content of the spread is mostly contained in body text. There is a short lead, followed by two sections divided by subheadings.
The headline is placed over some art, with a short deck underneath it. A large drop capital indicates the start of the body text. A single caption on the right page outlines where the all the photographs are taken in clockwise order. On the bottom right of the right page, there is information about flights to the locations in the article. Beneath this sidebar is a call to action, directing readers to the website of the sponsor of the article.
What resources did the designer use to visually represent the structure of the content, to create a visual hierarchy on the page?
The entire spread uses three different typefaces. A simple, legible typeface is used for the body text, captions, deck and headline. This typeface is placed in bold or altered in scale to create a clear visual hierarchy. A narrow, bold typeface is used for subheadings and the call to action at the bottom right of the spread. The subheadings, headline and call to action are typed out in caps to mark them as visually important and distinctive from the body text. A serif typeface is used for the drop capital ‘B’ at the beginning of the intro.
Art is generally used exclusively for decoration. However, placing the headline and deck on top of art makes it clearly distinct from the rest of the spread, and places it higher up the visual hierarchy.
What do you think works and why?
The visual hierarchy is simple to understand, and the divisions between headings and text is clear. The balance of elements is harmonious, and the spread pleasingly simple. However, using the same simple body text typeface for the headline fails to draw the eye and attract interest. Additionally, using a separate typeface exclusively for the drop capital at the beginning of the body text feels unnecessary and visually incongruous.
The use of only two subheadings with the given volume of body text leaves the content feeling overwhelming, especially for an advertisement. The subheadings, while clearly separate from the body text, are too small to visually break up the block of text they sit within. This, along with a lack of white space, contributes to the page feeling cluttered or overwhelmed with content.
Overall, while the spread’s typographic hierarchy is clean, it feels too homogenous and lacks sufficient contrast to attract the attention it otherwise could.
Design Changes
I first decided to put the headline in the same serif typeface as the drop capital. This helped improve the contrast between the headline and the rest of the spread, while also making the drop capital ‘B’ feel visually harmonious rather than out of place. I also decided to play with the font sizes in the headline, in order to create visual interest and catch the eye.
As the block of text was too overwhelming, I added more subheadings in order to break it up. Increasing the spacing before the subheadings also added a good amount of white space, and made it clearer when a new segment of the article began.
One of the main changes I made was to add pull quotes, to further break up the text and draw attention to the most marketable and important parts of the article. As an advertisement, it is unlikely that readers will engage with all the content, so putting the most appealing quotes in a larger typeface better works within article’s context.
Additionally, putting these pull quotes in the serif typeface allows it to be both visually separate from the rest of the text, but not mistaken for a subheading. Due to the typeface being thin, and the subheadings quite bold, the contrast between body text and subheading is very clear. While typeface of the pull quotes is larger, it is not significantly thicker than the typeface of the body text. This prevents it from compromising the balance of the page. The indentation and quotation marks also aid in making sure that the pull quotes are easily understood to be pull quotes.
Placing the photograph info directly over the photographs aids in making it easier for the reader to see an image and instantly find out where it comes from. As a marketing spread, this is vital to making sure readers can quickly find out what is on offer, and how to access it. Additionally, without a bundle of text explaining the photographs in a clockwise order, the page is given more white space and helps it feel less cluttered and unbalanced.
Overall, my alterations to the spread are minor, but I believe aid greatly in improving the contrast and balance of the page, while maintaining the simplicity of the original layout.
