ba0663pictureyourgroup
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Before&After ® XiBAmagazine.com U
Continued Picture your group 0663
Have a dozen or more mug shots? A grid of squares gets that gang of yours looking good—together.
Continued
Picture your group
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Before&After ®
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Picture your group 0663
Picture your groupHave a dozen or more mug shots? A grid of squares gets that gang of yours looking good—together.
Equal divisions yield page-shaped fields. This has two assets: 1) The photos have a familiar, portrait shape, and 2) every shape, including the page, is identical. Downside: Letter-shape proportions are visually ambiguous.
Divide the page into a grid. Two types:
Square divisions are sym-metrical, simple (all four sides are the same) and unambigu-ous. This imparts an unusually sharp, intentionally designed look. Downside: Square mugs are harder to crop.
We people are social creatures. We congregate. We work together, attend
school together, form clubs together. We network. We rub elbows. We’re reaching out to touch someone, it seems, all the time. And yet for all
our similarities, we look plenty differ-ent. We have different faces, hairstyles,
body builds, clothing. Put us together on a page, and we can make a motley herd.
So how do we picture a group of us? The key to a great design is to get uniform. Get the scale, cropping and backgrounds of your photos as similar as possible, then arrange the results on a neat grid. A few ideas:
81/2”
11”
Before&After ® Picture your group 3 of 9
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Picture your group 0663
Scale and crop for uniformityThe first step is to get your photos looking as similar as possible. Heads should be the same size, eyes at the same level, backgrounds smooth as possible.
After Start with the most closely cropped original (above, left), then scale and crop the others to match. Center each face in its frame, and put everyone’s eyes on the same level. Male and female adult heads should be pretty much the same size. Head shape, hairstyle and tilt affect the perceived size, so make small adjustments by eye.
Except for your school pictures, a group of photos is rarely taken under uniform conditions and so will benefit from post-production work. Lighting is key; adjust it as well as you can. The things to avoid (left, left to right) are heavy shadows
(the kind a flash makes against a wall), washed out highlights (often from a flash), odd color casts and blurry images. Similarly, a dark photo in a field of light ones, or vice-versa, will draw unwanted attention.
Before Well-lit photos taken at different view-ing distances.
Start with the image that has the least cropping room, and make the others match.
Before&After ® Picture your group 4 of 9
4 of 9
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Picture your group 0663
Faces inward (mostly) Distribute by value Soften with color
Place your photosPlace your photos on the grid, facing the perimeter photos inward (mostly) and distributing the dark-light values as evenly as you can.
Adding a dark field will lower the contrast, which softens the message. The dark also makes a canvas out of which to reverse the name (left).
Snap your photos to the grid. Face the perimeter photos inward or straight ahead. Where possible, distribute the dark-light values evenly (note the lighter images are highlighted above). Once grouped, look for things you missed earlier—for example, are all the faces centered, and are they really the same size? Make small scale and cropping adjustments.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
Note the alignment.Centered.
Before&After ® Picture your group 5 of 9
5 of 9
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Picture your group 0663
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
Variation 1 Big imagesOne or two big images in a field of small ones can add emphasis or context. Be sure to maintain the visual balance of the layout.
A mug shot enlarged One mug shot bigger than the others will draw special attention. Square format is retained.
Offset Similar-but-different image will broaden the story and lessen the impact of the first image. Different proportions and absence of alignment help it remain different.
A different kind of image Completely different images give the mug shots context. The page now conveys sev-eral stories in one. ALUMNI
ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
Before&After ® Picture your group 6 of 9
6 of 9
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Picture your group 0663
Variation 2 Add wordsReplace some photos with colored squares, which can function as a table of contents, highlights or links. Centered words mimic the centered faces.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
ClassmateSearch
Sponsored Events
Alumni Groups
Career Services
Reunions & Societies
Membership Services
Student Programs
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
Center focus The strength of a square is its natural pull into the center. Centered faces and text take advantage of that and yield a sharp, repetitive design of real clarity. Note the tiny shadow behind the text.
Reunions & Societies
Reunions & Societies
A single color flattens the page (Left) Distributing photos yields an interesting checker-board pattern, but same-color squares flatten the design—note how they “connect” and form a single field.
(Right) Bring the design to life by eyedroppering from the photos a palette of desaturated colors (below). Note how the squares no longer connect but form a vibrant tapestry.
Before
After
Before&After ® Picture your group 7 of 9
7 of 9
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Picture your group 0663
Variation 3 SubtractIt’s the same grid, but here the white field shapes the design. It’s now full of dynamic forces that move the eye left, right, up and down, full of energy, very modern.
Put the focal point on the axis Who says white space is passive? Here, it’s incred-ibly active, pressing in on all four sides and defining the central shape, which radiates from the center logo like a pinwheel.
LINCOLNCOMMUNITY COLLEGE
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
Hard and soft edges The higher the contrasts, the more energy a design has. (Above, left) Against white, the photos’ hard edges actively move the eye left, right, up and down. (Above, right) Dark field has soft edges, and what a difference! It’s the same layout, but the page is much quieter.
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLN
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ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLN
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
Before&After ®
8 of 9
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Picture your group 8 of 9
ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
Typefaces
1 (a–b) ITC New Baskerville Italic a) 18/18 pt, b) 16 pt
2 ITC New Baskerville Bold | 28/28 pt
Images
3 (a–k) iStockphoto.com | a b c d e f g h i j k
All others (www.rubberball.com)
Related articles
0625 | 0659 | 0633 | 0634 | 0654 | 0674
Article resources
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C45 M40 Y70 K40
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7
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11
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ALUMNI ASSOCIATION BOARD
LINCOLNSTATE UNIVERSITY
ClassmateSearch
Sponsored Events
Alumni Groups
Career Services
Reunions & Societies
Membership Services
Student Programs
Connect. Motivate. Have Fun.
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Article revised on 08/24/10
Before&After ®
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Picture your group 0663
Picture your group 9 of 9Picture your group 9 of 9
Before & After magazine Before & After has been sharing its practical approach to graphic design since 1990. Because our modern world has made designers of us all (ready or not), Before & After is dedicated to making graphic design understand-able, useful and even fun for everyone.
John McWade Publisher and creative directorGaye McWade Associate publisherDexter Mark Abellera Staff designer Before & After magazine323 Lincoln Street, Roseville, CA 95678 Telephone 916-784-3880 Fax 916-784-3995E-mail [email protected] www http://www.bamagazine.com
Copyright ©2007 Before & After magazine 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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Be
fore
&A
fter | w
ww
.bamagazine.com
1 of 5
Pictu
re yo
ur g
rou
p 0663
0663 P
icture
you
r gro
up
Have a d
ozen or m
ore mu
g shots?
A grid
of squ
ares gets that gan
g of you
rs looking good
—togeth
er.
Picture your group
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
NSTATE U
NIVER
SITY
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
Eq
ua
l divisio
ns yield page-
shaped fields. This has two
assets: 1) The photos have a fam
iliar, portrait shape, and 2) every shape, including the page, is identical. D
ownside:
Letter-shape proportions are visually am
biguous.
Divid
e th
e p
ag
e in
to a
grid
. Two
type
s:
Sq
ua
re d
ivision
s are sym-
metrical, sim
ple (all four sides are the sam
e) and unambigu-
ous. This imparts an unusually
sharp, intentionally designed look. D
ownside: Square m
ugs are harder to crop.
We p
eop
le are social creatu
res. We
congregate. W
e wo
rk togeth
er, attend
sch
oo
l togeth
er, form
club
s togeth
er. W
e netw
ork. W
e rub
elbow
s. We’re
reachin
g ou
t to to
uch
som
eon
e, it seem
s, all the tim
e. An
d yet fo
r all o
ur sim
ilarities, we lo
ok p
lenty d
iffer-en
t. We h
ave differen
t faces, hairstyles,
bo
dy b
uild
s, cloth
ing. P
ut u
s togeth
er on
a p
age, and
we can
make a m
otley h
erd.
So h
ow d
o w
e pictu
re a grou
p o
f us? T
he
key to a great d
esign is to
get un
iform
. Get
the scale, cro
pp
ing an
d b
ackgrou
nd
s of yo
ur
ph
oto
s as similar as p
ossib
le, then
arrange
the resu
lts on
a neat grid
. A few
ideas:
81/2 ”
11”
Be
fore
&A
fter | w
ww
.bamagazine.com
2 of 5
Pictu
re yo
ur g
rou
p 0663
0663 P
icture
you
r gro
up
Scale
and
crop
for u
nifo
rmity
Th
e first step
is to get yo
ur p
ho
tos lo
okin
g as similar as p
ossib
le. Head
s sho
uld
be
the sam
e size, eyes at the sam
e level, backgro
un
ds sm
oo
th as p
ossib
le.
Afte
r Start with the m
ost closely cropped original (above, left), then scale and crop the others to match. C
enter each face in its fram
e, and put everyone’s eyes on the same level. M
ale and female adult heads should be pretty
much the sam
e size. Head shape, hairstyle and tilt affect the perceived size, so m
ake small adjustm
ents by eye.
Except for your school pictures, a group of photos is rarely taken under uniform
conditions and so will benefit from
post-production w
ork. Lighting is key; adjust it as well as
you can. The things to avoid (left, left to right) are heavy shadow
s (the kind a flash makes against a w
all), washed out highlights (often from
a flash), odd color casts and blurry im
ages. Similarly, a dark photo in a field of light ones, or vice-versa, w
ill draw unw
anted attention.
Be
fore
Well-lit photos
taken at different view-
ing distances.
Start with the im
age that has the least cropping room
, and make the others m
atch.
Faces inward (m
ostly)D
istribute by valueSoften w
ith color
Place
you
r ph
oto
sP
lace you
r ph
oto
s on
the grid
, facing th
e perim
eter ph
oto
s inw
ard (m
ostly)
and
distrib
utin
g the d
ark-light valu
es as evenly as yo
u can
.
Adding a dark field w
ill lower
the contrast, which softens
the message. The dark also
makes a canvas out of w
hich to reverse the nam
e (left).
Snap your photos to the grid. Face the perimeter photos
inward or straight ahead. W
here possible, distribute the dark-light values evenly (note the lighter im
ages are highlighted above). O
nce grouped, look for things you missed earlier—
for exam
ple, are all the faces centered, and are they really the sam
e size? Make sm
all scale and cropping adjustments.
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
NSTATE U
NIVER
SITY
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
Note the alignm
ent.C
entered.
Variation 2 Ad
d w
ord
sR
eplace so
me p
ho
tos w
ith co
lored
squ
ares, wh
ich can
fun
ction
as a table o
f co
nten
ts, high
lights o
r links. C
entered
wo
rds m
imic th
e centered
faces.
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
NSTATE U
NIVER
SITY
Classm
ateSearch
Sponsored Events
Alum
ni G
roups
Career
ServicesR
eunions &
Societies
Mem
bership Services
Student Program
s
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
Ce
nte
r focu
s The strength of a square is its natural pull into the center. C
entered faces and text take advantage of that and yield a sharp, repetitive design of real clarity. N
ote the tiny shadow
behind the text.
Reunions &
Societies R
eunions &
Societies
A sin
gle
colo
r fla
tten
s the
p
ag
e (Left) D
istributing photos yields an interesting checker-board pattern, but sam
e-color squares flatten the design—note how
they “connect” and form
a single field.
(Right) B
ring the design to life by eyedroppering from
the photos a palette of desatu-rated colors (below
). Note how
the squares no longer connect but form
a vibrant tapestry.
Before
After
Be
fore
&A
fter | w
ww
.bamagazine.com
3 of 5
Pictu
re yo
ur g
rou
p 0663
0663 P
icture
you
r gro
up
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
N
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
Variation 1 Big
imag
es
On
e or tw
o b
ig images in
a field
of sm
all on
es can ad
d em
ph
asis or co
ntext.
Be su
re to m
aintain
the visu
al balan
ce of th
e layou
t.
A m
ug
sho
t en
larg
ed
O
ne mug shot bigger than
the others will draw
special attention. Square form
at is retained.
Offse
t Sim
ilar-but-different image
will broaden the story and
lessen the impact of the first
image. D
ifferent proportions and absence of alignm
ent help it rem
ain different.
A d
iffere
nt k
ind
of im
ag
e
Com
pletely different images
give the mug shots context.
The page now conveys sev-
eral stories in one. A
LU
MN
I A
SS
OC
IAT
ION
B
OA
RD
LIN
CO
LN
STATE UN
IVERSITY
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
N
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
N
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
Be
fore
&A
fter | w
ww
.bamagazine.com
4 of 5
Pictu
re yo
ur g
rou
p 0663
0663 P
icture
you
r gro
up
Variation 3 Su
btract
It’s the sam
e grid, b
ut h
ere the w
hite fi
eld sh
apes th
e design
. It’s now
full o
f dyn
amic
forces th
at move th
e eye left, right, u
p an
d d
own
, full o
f energy, very m
od
ern.
Pu
t the
foca
l po
int o
n th
e
ax
is Who says w
hite space is passive? H
ere, it’s incred-ibly active, pressing in on all four sides and defining the central shape, w
hich radiates from
the center logo like a pinw
heel.
LIN
CO
LN
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
NSTATE U
NIVER
SITY
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
Ha
rd a
nd
soft e
dg
es The higher the
contrasts, the more energy a design
has. (Above, left) A
gainst white, the
photos’ hard edges actively move the
eye left, right, up and down. (A
bove, right) D
ark field has soft edges, and w
hat a difference! It’s the same layout,
but the page is much quieter.
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
N
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
N
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
NSTATE U
NIVER
SITY
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
Article
reso
urce
s
Co
lors
C50
M45
Y70
K20
C65
M55
Y55
K30
C58
M55
Y78
K50
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M55
Y75
K40
C42
M52
Y82
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46
85
79
1011
12
AL
UM
NI
AS
SO
CIA
TIO
N
BO
AR
DL
INC
OL
NSTATE U
NIVER
SITY
Classm
ateSearch
Sponsored Events
Alum
ni G
roups
Career
ServicesR
eunions &
Societies
Mem
bership Services
Student Program
s
Connect. M
otivate. Have Fun.
3k
3j
Type
face
s
1 (a–b
) ITC N
ew B
askerville Italic a) 18/18 pt, b) 16 pt
2 ITC N
ew B
askerville Bold | 28/28 pt
Ima
ge
s
3 (a–k
) iStockphoto.com |
a b c d e f g h i j k
All others (w
ww
.rubberball.com)
Re
late
d a
rticles
0625 | 0659 | 0633 | 0634 | 0654 | 0674
Article revised on 08/24/10
Be
fore
&A
fter | w
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Pictu
re yo
ur g
rou
p 0663
0663 P
icture
you
r gro
up
Be
fore
& A
fter m
ag
azin
e
Befo
re & A
fter has b
een sh
aring its p
ractical app
roach
to grap
hic d
esign sin
ce 1990. Becau
se ou
r mo
dern
wo
rld h
as mad
e design
ers of u
s all (ready o
r no
t), Befo
re &
After is d
edicated
to m
aking grap
hic d
esign u
nd
erstand
-ab
le, usefu
l and
even fu
n fo
r everyon
e.
Joh
n M
cWa
de
Pu
blish
er and
creative directo
rG
ay
e M
cWa
de
Asso
ciate pu
blish
erD
ex
ter M
ark
Ab
elle
ra Staff d
esigner
Be
fore
& A
fter m
ag
azin
e323 Lin
coln
Street, Ro
seville, CA
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lep
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ne
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