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The Golden Ratio For Balancing Your UI Design

March 14, 2020 |
Blog, Design, Technology, UI Design
UI Design

The key element of an effective design is a clear UI Design. Each and every element must be well-balanced and placed in sync so that users could easily perceive the information on the screen and interact with a product without efforts.

Art, science, and basic mathematical theories, all come in handy when it comes to creating an efficient design composition. Amongst the most commonly used tools for designing is a mathematical proportion known as the ‘golden ratio’. In the article, we’ll define this technique and check out the benefits of using this ratio in design.

The Golden Ratio

The Golden Ratio is a formula that has been derived basis a general observation that everything designed by mother nature has a specific shape that’s near perfect. People enjoy everything which has a natural touch. In pursuit of discovering the secrets of shapes and the mystery behind creation, mathematicians calculated a formula that appears in the majority of things on the Earth.

In simple words, the golden ratio is a mathematical proportion between the elements of different sizes which is thought to be the most aesthetically pleasing for human eyes. The golden ratio equals 1:1.618, and it is often illustrated with seashell-shaped spirals.

UI Design Golden Ration

The golden ratio is believed to be followed for 4000 years now. The likes of Leonardo Da Vinci and Salvador Dali were known to use the golden ratio theory in their artworks.

Use Of Golden Ratio In UI Design

Striking the right composition and balance is a core part of any design. The elements need to work well with each other and complement each other to maximize the viewing experience. Also, the elements should be created with a balance within themselves. 

Graphic designers are keener to apply the golden ratio as it is a great way to understand how to work with proportions. Designers use this ratio to create various graphics, especially for the small but meaningful design elements such as a logo. The golden ratio allows creating illustrations where each element is placed in harmony and appropriate proportion to the others.

The UI design needs to have a clear visual presentation of the components so that people could use a product without problems. The golden ratio is often applied to place UI Design elements effectively. First of all, it can be used at the stage of wireframing. This way you can plan a structure for the layout placing and sizing user interface components according to the golden proportion. In addition, the golden ratio scheme can help professionals to crop images for web design so that it could make sure the composition of the photo remains balanced.

Advantages of The Golden Ratio

Well-balanced content

Designers often face the situation when a product needs to contain a great amount of various content and each part of it is vital and cannot be replaced. To unite all the components in a pleasant composition, the golden ratio can be applied. Divide the layout into different sections using a proportion of 1:1.618 and put the content in the sectors according to their importance. Such a content composition is sufficient for users’ perception and it helps to organize all the components.

Effective visual hierarchy

Speaking of the content organization, we can’t forget about visual hierarchy. As we mentioned in our previous articles, it’s a technique of efficient structuring content components. Combining principles of these two techniques designers maximize the chances of building a powerful UI design composition.

Powerful typography levels

To create efficient typography, designers need to divide copy content into different levels. They usually include various kinds of copy including headers, subheadings, body copy, caption, etc. Applying golden ratio professionals can quickly define an appropriate proportion between the typographic levels, for example, you can choose a certain size for the header and then divide it by 1.618. The result will show you the most appropriate size for subheaders.

Pleasing first impression

When users try a product for the first time, they scan the user interface to understand if they like it or not. The psychology principle known as a visceral reaction states that people decide whether they like something or not within a few seconds of looking at something. This reaction goes faster than our consciousness so we don’t even realize it. That’s is why it’s vital to make sure the first impression of a product will be pleasing. UI Design created by using the golden ratio has a positive influence on users’ minds and their visual perception and it works from the first sight at a product.

Appropriate white space

White space is the area between elements in design composition. Designers always need to care about the amount of white space in the UI since the unity of composition highly relies on it. The golden ratio can make the process of spacing much easier and faster. Applying golden proportions you will be able to define the right white space which will work well for the UI design.

To discuss more on your design needs, talk to our team of experts.

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