Effective use of images in design

In this article, you will learn about the effective use of images in UI/UX Design.

Images are an important part of content in any UI/UX Design project. Images capture the attention of viewers quickly and can help to pass a message with ease.

90% of information transferred to human brain is in the form of visuals. Human brain can process visuals 60,000 times faster as compared to text.

If not used correctly, the imagery can even break the user experience. So let’s find out what factors to consider while using images and the effective use of images in design.

1) Use meaningful images

The images you are using in your project should be relevant to the context. They should tell a story, pass a message or give demonstration of your product or service. Avoid using images just for decorative purposes.

2) Good image quality

Make sure the image quality is good and it is clearly visible. It should be in high resolution and shouldn’t appear blurry. The image should hold its ratios without any distortion.

You can get high quality free images from platforms like unsplash and pexels.

3) Consider different screen sizes

Test your images on different screen sizes like desktop, tablet and mobile. The images should look clear and effective on all screen sizes. If needed, create different sized images for different platforms.

Some web design tools help in automatically adjusting image size according to the device screen. For examples, if you are designing a website on WordPress, it uses responsive resize and adjusts all your content including images according to mobile, tablet and desktop.

4) Image file size

Take care of the image size too. High quality images can be really heavy. As a result, they increase the overall size of the project. Reduce the size of images and keep it optimized.

5) Labels, captions and alt text

Give proper labels and captions to the images wherever necessary. Also provide alternative text to the images for visually impaired people who use screen readers. The alt text should contain information to describe the meaning and purpose of image.

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6) Layout

You can use different types of layouts to bring right emphasis to the images. You can experiment with vertical and horizontal grids. Or, you can have one hero image with other supporting images.

7) Color Contrast

Make sure the elements of your image have enough contrast to be easily distinguishable. The elements shouldn’t appear mixed in each other. If there is text in the image, it should have clear contrast to improve its readability.

8) Details

Having too many details in one image can make it look cluttered. The details can also be lost on reducing the size of the image or viewing it on smaller device screen. Only include the important details which will be clearly visible.

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Conclusion- Effective use of images in design

Images can have a huge influence on your project so they should be definitely taken care of. They can literally make or break your project and impact the overall user experience.

You will be able to use images in an effective way in your UI/UX Design project while taking care of the factors mentioned above.

FAQ – Effective use of images in design