Mood Boards

I decided to put together a few mood boards of inspiring fonts, logos and navigational bars. As I think mood boards are great ways of showing your research and development when designing an idea. Especially with something as visual as designing a webpage.

Logos

A logo is probably the second most important aspect of a brand and website (behind content), if not the most important aspect of the brand. It is often what will draw the client in, or turn the client off. It can say a number of things about the brand – it can connote a relaxed, easy to use company or a complex and unwelcoming one. One of the main similarities between them is that they are simple; when designing a logo simplicity is nearly always key to creating a successful one.

Here I’ve picked a few of my favourite logos that have inspired me in creating my own logo.

Fonts

I think the font used in an interface is a really important aspect of a brand, website and logo; it’s one of the first things a possible client will notice and can convey a lot about the website and the brand. Here I have picked a few fonts that I like and that apply to the brand image I am trying to display. I also wanted the fonts chosen to stand out as something different to the standard choices of fonts often used online and I think I have done that.

When designing my interface I may use a couple of different fonts; I was thinking a slight differentiation in font for ‘ether’ and ‘real’ in the logo, but I’m not sure if it will look good or not so I will have some experimentation.

Navigation

Navigation is another key element when designing and creating a website. Buttons are also a major defining point for a website as that is what the user will be clicking on (most of the time), to navigate around a website. Buttons need to be simple but also punchy, as you need to know they’re there so the user can find their way around the site. However, it is important not to over complicate as this can send the user into confusion. I find the ones with white backgrounds often work the best as they stand out the most.

I’ve picked out a few of my favourite navigation interfaces from various websites, some of them are from photographers websites and others are just random interfaces I have come across when trawling the Internet.

Navigation buttons bibliography: bjp-online.com, joshredman.co.uk, antro.ca, audreyazoura.fr, cambrianhouse.com, chasejarvis.com, from-the-couch.com, auberge-de-l-ill.com, narrowdesign.com, theoatmeal.com, paulunderhill.com, powertotheposter.org, realitypod.com, riotindustries.com, robertjwilson.com, stevemorganphoto.co.uk, store.hipstery.com, tripplanner.travelalberta.com, vllg.com, wallbase.cc, yeedor.com