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Grids
Grids
The word grid might sound scary. Like
cage its a word that does not imply
creativity. In editorial design, however,
a grid is not about restricting creativity,
but about creating orderly relationships
between the elements on your page.
2.0 Columns
2.1 How many columns should you use?
3.0 Rows
3.1 Rows and baselines
3.2 How many rows should you use?
3.3 Flowlines
3.4 Some examples
If your type has 12pts of leading, the height of your content area should
be a multiple of 12. On this page, 468pts exactly fits 39 lines of type.
The top and bottom margins are also multiples of the 12pt leading.
This helps to maintain a relationship between the contents and the page.
468pts
=39 lines with 12pts of leading.
60pts
1.2 Inner and outer margins
Traditionally, the horizontal space of a printed page is measured in a
unit of measurement called a pica.
1 pica = 12pts, or 1/6 of an inch.
On this page the inner and outer margins are smaller than the top and The 2 leftover
bottom, but they maintain a relationship by being exactly three fifths columns are also
useful for captions in
of the bottom margin, and three quarters of the top margin. 7/9 PT Serif.
They also accommodate an ideal measure for this 9/12 PT Serif
type when a text block is set 7 columns wide.
23p1 5p11
3p0 3p0
30p0
1.3 Accommodate
headers and footers
If you have numbers at the bottom of
your page, or running headers at the
top, be sure that your margins can
accommodate them with adequate
spacing so that they are not confused
as belonging to the main text.
Grids 1.3 Accommodate headers and footers
12pts
This header is separated from the top margin by 12pts, which provides
adequate space for it to be clearly distinguished from text inside the
margins. It is also distinguished by a different typeface, weight, and size.
24pts
11
2.0
Columns
Columns allow you to easily integrate
your text with other elements, like
photography, illustration, diagrams,
pullquotes, or captions.
1p0=12pts
3.0
Rows
Rows divide your page horizontally. They
are generally treated with much more
malleability than columns, but they help
to compose the page, and to direct the
readers eye flow (see more on eye flow
in the Design lesson 3.0)
3.1 Rows and baselines
The rows on your page, and their
gutters, should line up with baselines
of your text.
Graver, Amy, and Ben Jura. Best Practices for Graphic Designers: Grids
and Page Layouts: An Essential Guide for Understanding & Applying Page
Design Principles. Beverly, Ma: Rockport, 2012. Print.
Grid Systems
by Kimberly Elam
This book is a thorough and in-depth analysis of different types of grids,
and how complex structures are used to design simple and elegant layouts.