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Special graphics can enhance a catalog presentation, but if overused, or used unnecessarily, can divert too much attention from the merchandise.
Some simple guidelines can help you determine whether or not the use of special graphics should be considered.
• If ten or more items are to be shown on a spread, avoid the use of swash cap lead-ins to your copy. They will require too much visual attention from the consumer.
• If grid-system design is used, where four photographs are clumped together in a box shape, consider using white rules to separate the photos for a clean, organized presentation.
• A simple border can be used going across a spread or down the side of a page to unify diverse elements of photography and copy.
• Ask yourself if call-outs are really necessary to explain the merchandise. If not, eliminate them to simplify the presentation.
• In fact (and in judgment), are any special graphics needed? If their use will add personality to the display, use them carefully and consistently.
The catalog designer has many different special effects available. There are rules, fancy borders, plain borders, cap and swash lead-ins, reverses, cartouches, type treatments like flush right/ragged left, etc. The question is usually when and where (or whether) to use them. It requires good design judgment to use them at all, and even then the usage should be carefully, consistently and discreetly done.
Borders and rules, for example, may help to tie in the elements of a busy spread. They can actually help to hold the graphics together. If a spread has an unusually high number of items to be depicted, delicate rules or thin borders may provide the visual unity needed. However, if the border chosen is bold and strong, it may just compete for attention and further confuse the issue. We’ve chosen to use simple, thin rules throughout the S. D. Warren Catalog of Catalog Design to provide design continuity for the many elements of our presentation, and to give us a clean frame, along with the white space and composition, for the editorial content.
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