How to Use Contrast to Improve Your Graphic Designs

This one principle can help you draw readers in

By

Jacci Howard Bear

Updated on March 4, 2021

Design

What to Know

Size: Place two similar elements next to each other, but make one larger than the other. The larger one draws attention.
Value: Use light and dark values of the same color. The further apart the values, the more the contrast.
Color: Contrasting two colors draws attention to the element that stands out.

This article explains several ways to use contrast to improve graphic designs.

How to Use Contrast to Improve Your Graphic Designs

Contrast is a design principle that occurs when two visual elements are dramatically different. The greater the difference, the greater the contrast. Contrast gets your message across by emphasizing what's important and directing the reader's eye, aids in readability by making section headers stand out, and gets the reader's attention by adding interest to the page. You can create contrast in size, value, color, type, and other elements.

Size

Placing two elements next to each other that are similar in every respect except the size is one way to bring in size contrast. It can be big and small images or big and small typefaces, for example. Leaving plenty of white space around a small object is another way to contrast size.

Large and small portions of spaghetti — Jose Luis Stephens/Getty Images

Readers' sight will be drawn to larger items first, so enlarge the objects you want to emphasize.

Value

The relative lightness or darkness of two elements can create a contrast in value. Whether with shades of gray or tints and shades of a single color, the further apart the values, the greater the contrast.

You can use more than one contrasting element together. For example, large, white text on a black background, followed by gray text on the same background combines value and size.

Color

Use harmonizing, complementary, and opposite colors to create contrast. When you contrast colors, be careful with the value. Harmonizing colors (colors that are adjacent to each other on the color wheel) can appear washed out if there's not enough difference in value between them.

Green umbrella contrasting a sea of black umbrellas — Filograph/Getty Images

Consider the effect on viewers when determining contrasting color pairs. For example, bright red and bright blue contrast but can cause eye strain when viewed together.

Type

Use size, value, and color to create contrasting typographic treatments. Make certain words stand out more by using one of the following actions:

Add bold or italics.
Mix large type with small type.
Combine serif with sans serif (non-serif) type.
Set portions of text in contrasting colors or varying values.
Change type alignment or spacing.
Use complementary, yet differing typestyles.

The word 'love' in red print blocks — seraficus/Getty Images

Using typography strategically in your design is an art in itself. Learn the principles of combining typefaces, such as limiting the number of types to two or three.

Other Contrasting Elements

Other elements that create contrast include texture, shape, alignment, direction, and movement. The key is to use a substantial difference. A font size change that's barely noticeable or colors that are too close in value may come across as a mistake rather than an attempt to provide emphasis or interest.

headless girl with heels, upside down, hanging off edge of table — PeopleImages/Getty Images

Use your imagination to come up with additional ways to use contrast. For example:

To offset tall, narrow columns of text, include wide or irregularly shaped photos.
In a series of static images, add one showing movement.
Make one element of a black-and-white photo pop by adding color to it.

Contrast can be overdone. If everything contrasts highly with everything else, you end up with competing elements, which confuse, rather than help, the reader. So, be careful about how you put contrast to use.

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