BrandSquare’s Session 1 of 3 with Nancy Duarte on resonate. This session expands a little bit on Duarte’s TEDxEast Talk. I’ll post Sessions 2 and 3 later this week.
BrandSquare’s Session with Nancy Duarte
11 Sunday Dec 2011
Daily Archives: December 11, 2011
Interior Design: The 60-30-10 Rule
11 Sunday Dec 2011
Since my husband and I purchased our first home back in August, I’ve frequented interior design websites and blogs on my quest to make our house gorgeous. I came across an amazing color tip: the 60-30-10 rule. According to HGTV, ”Decorating a space in terms of color is as easy as 60-30-10. [...] Why this works is anybody’s guess. Perhaps it is the human tendency to see an overall theme in the 60 percent hue, unifying the coloration. The 30 percent provides visual interest and the 10 percent, not unlike jewelry, provides that little spark of sparkle” (Source).
HGTV explains that when it comes to interior design, the 60-30-10 breakdown is similar to a man’s business attire: “60% of the outfit’s color is the slacks and jacket; 30% of the outfit’s color is the shirt; 10% of the outfit’s color is the tie” (Source). It’s most certainly an interesting concept.
I thought this rule could also be applied to slide design. Color is important to audiences; they pick up on the meaning behind the color. A black and white image is more elegant; an all-red image is energetic and stimulating; a green image could hint at nature or at the green-eyed monster of jealousy depending upon the context. To learn more about the psychological effects of color, Color Wheel Pro is comprehensive and easy to understand.
So let’s look at two slides I am currently working on in light of the 60-30-10 rule:
I think this is a stunning example of color, and I gravitated toward this photo because of the bright yellow pop against the blue sky background. While the proportions are not precise, I think the 60-30-10 rule is at work. Most of the image is blue – our 60%. Next, we have the visual interest, the yellow, making up about 30% of the photo. Last, the white is the perfect accent color. I went for white text to match the white cloud wisps along the bottom of the picture. The white makes up about 10%.
This one is a little tricky because of the two accent colors. The rosy pink/brown/yellow-hued sky comprises 60% of the image. The medium brown of the field easily makes up the 30%. And then we have two accent colors – the pink/red of the boy’s shirt and umbrella as well as the black of his tie/suspenders and the text. Are they 5% each? I think the 60-30-10 rule is still in play here because of the overall color scheme of the image. Just like in interior design, an unexpected extra accent color in that 10% can be a beautiful thing.
What do you think about the 60-30-10 rule? Do you use it in your home to decorate your spaces? How else do principles of interior design translate to slide design?
Image of the Day: Shandi-lee
11 Sunday Dec 2011
Posted in Image of the Day
The thing I love the most about the holiday season is eating delicious, homemade Southern food when I travel to visit my family. December’s Image of the Day theme will depict my 3 other favorite holiday things. Today? Let’s focus on the beauty of twinkling white lights. Whether on a tree, wrapped around a mantle or banister, or displayed (modestly) on the front of the home, I adore white lights that sparkle.
Nancy Duarte at TEDxEast
11 Sunday Dec 2011
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How in the world have I not shared Nancy Duarte’s TEDxEast Talk with you? She discusses her work in resonate and shares an important presentation analysis tool: the sparkline. Many key components from her book are explained, so if you loved this TEDx Talk, you’ll definitely want to purchase your own copy of resonate.
Infographics: Obesity in America
11 Sunday Dec 2011
This morning, I found 3 infographics depicting obesity in America. The first one comes from NPR and is called “Obesity In America, By The Numbers.” The second is from my favorite infographic website, Daily Infographic, and is called “Being Overweight Costs More.” The third infographic from Chart Porn is called “We Are FAT” but is actually a link to an interactive map from the Center for Disease Control.
Examining all 3 will show you similar facts. You can visualize that 25 years ago, we weren’t an obese population. From the early 1990s to today, the country had an average BMI of 10-19%. In 2010, 12 states had a BMI of greater than 30%, and 24 additional states had a BMI of 25-29%. You can visualize that now, in present day America, 72 million people are obese. That is 1 in 3 or 72 million Americans.
David McCandless tells us that successful information design should contain integrity; interestingness; form; and function. So let’s analyze each of the 3 infographics on obesity in America to see which is the most successful data visualization.
The Daily Infographic was helpful because it was comprehensive, but it was also hideous. The structure, beauty, and appearance – the overall form of the infographic - was seriously lacking. Similarly, the CDC infographic from Chart Porn would not be useful in all situations because it is an interactive map needing a “play” button. The function was lacking because of the ease of use, usability, and fit: this map cannot work in every presentation situation.
So we are left with NPR’s exquisite “Obesity in America.” It’s comprehensive. Integrity is clearly represented by the source material below the data. NPR took the CDC information and made a side-by-side comparison using an appropriate color scheme. NPR’s infographic has interestingness and form because information is presented in a new, meaningful way with repetition, gorgeous color, and attention to visual presentation design. Lastly, it is the easiest to use because it requires no “play” feature or clicking of “forward” and “back” buttons.
Which infographic did you like the best, and how did it fulfill the requirements David McCandles has set for good information design?
