Who is a web designer and what is web design? What is web design and what is it used for? The final product of a web designer’s work is

The tasks of which include designing user web interfaces for websites or web applications.

Web designers:

  • design the logical structure of web pages;
  • think through the most convenient solutions for presenting information;
  • are engaged in the artistic design of a web project.

As a result of the intersection of two branches of human activity, a competent web designer must be familiar with the latest web technologies and have the appropriate artistic qualities. Most specialists working in the field of design usually concentrate in such creative education as a design studio.

Web designer is a relatively young profession, and professional education in the field of web design is not yet widespread in Russia. Due to the increasing demand for representation on the Internet, the demand for website design is also growing, and the number of web designers is increasing. Currently, web design services are provided by both web studios and individuals (web designers who are freelancers).

Explanation of the term

Process and result

A unique design is more expensive, but also involves drawing from scratch, a completely unique development for a specific order. Depending on the professionalism and/or policy of the company, the web designer either develops the idea and design concept completely independently, or receives a number of requirements (color, style, etc.), expectations and ideas from the customer or creative director (art director) and tries to stick to this direction when developing the layout. Most customers mistakenly identify a web designer and a webmaster, entrusting him with the publication of the site.

Sometimes a designer can offer a design solution based on templates (his own or even someone else’s), this speeds up the work and will cost the customer less. Some designers even specialize in producing design layouts for sale as ready-made templates, which can then be purchased and used by less experienced designers or webmasters to produce generic websites (essentially without a unique design). Sometimes web design development refers to a small rearrangement and adaptation of such a template for a specific order.

The final product The work of a web designer is a design layout: a picture representing the intended future appearance site pages. This picture is multi-layered, where, at the discretion of the designer, almost every detail is a separate layer attached to other picture layers, due to which modification, replacement, rearrangement and other tasks can be easily performed. Depending on the idea and goals, the layout may include photographs, complex collages, illustrations, text layers, and unique icons. For home page and internal ones, sometimes separate layouts are drawn with additions or changes in accordance with the theme of the page.

The image may initially be a vector or raster image made in Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, GIMP or another visual editor (such as Scribus or Inkscape), but for the layout designer the image is usually converted to a raster format.

To demonstrate to the client, the image is usually converted into a simple single-layer and familiar image format.

see also

Notes

Literature

  • P. McNeil. Web design. Ideas, secrets, tips = The Web Designer's Idea Book, Vol. 2: More of the Best Themes, Trends and Styles in Website Design. - P.: "Peter", 2011. - P. 272. - ISBN 978- 5-459-00650-6.
  • J. Bird. Web design. Developer's Guide = The Principles of Beautiful Web Design, 2nd Edition. - P.: “Peter”, 2012. - P. 224. - ISBN 978-5-459-00901-9.
  • Jakob Nielsen, Kara Pernice. Web design: analyzing the usability of websites by eye movement = Eyetracking Web Usability. - M.: “Williams”, 2010. - P. 480. -

From the author: Greetings to old and new readers of my blog. In today's article I will share with you factual data and my thoughts on what web design is. There are many erroneous opinions regarding the deciphering of the definition itself, the complexity of this profession and many other issues that, one way or another, relate to the chosen topic.

When asked by new acquaintances about how I earn my living, I have to answer twice. At first, from my lips it sounds proudly: “Web designer,” to which the other side flies in: “Um, web design - what is it?”

Then I have to explain what my responsibilities are, but in the end it all comes down to a simplified version, they say, I create websites, gentlemen. After another similar answer, I wanted to dive deeper into this topic and explain to people in detail what’s what.

Today I propose to figure out together what web design is, understand its key stages and basic principles. As a bonus for beginners, I will add information on how to start a career as a web designer, as well as how long it will take to study before you can earn your first money.

What kind of creature are you, web designer?

To formulate a clear answer regarding what is called web design, I took into account the opinions of many authors teaching aids, my authoritative colleagues and personal experience in this domain. Do you want to hear the uncensored version (with technical swearing) or in simple Russian? I think the second option is more suitable.

Web design is the process of website production, which consists of technical development, creation of a convenient web page structure, graphic design and transmission of information to the network.

The basic principles of this direction include the balance of the main elements in the picture, their organic nature, rhythm, focus, overall contrast and proportionality.

Web design stages

We seem to have sorted out the wording, now let's move on to studying each stage separately.

1. Technical specifications.

The first step is to understand the purpose of creating a website, to understand what functionality, structure and appearance it should have. Each of the above points is thought out in detail in the technical specifications, after which the project is agreed upon with the customer. After confirmation, the stage can be considered completed.

2. Structuring information on the page (usability).

This stage includes the creation of a common modular grid and shaping the future content delivery structure. Here the main task pursued by the web developer is to create the most convenient form of providing necessary information users.

3. Graphic design.

Next in graphic editor The website design is being developed. This is probably the most favorite stage of every representative of this profession. Here you can create and try to realize your most non-standard (if, of course, the customer is aware of your amateur activities) ideas.

What is website design? This is the embodiment of your vision of the future project on a model. It includes thinking about the fullness of space, the thickness of lines, the arrangement of elements, colors, fonts, textures, etc.

4. Layout.

At this stage, separation occurs graphic image pages on individual elements. The design is transformed into code using HTML and CSS technologies. This process is performed to ensure that web browsers can display your site accurately.

5. Webmastering.

The final stage is to transfer the site to hosting and further search engine optimization so that other people can see your creation on the Internet.

What is the difference between a designer and a web designer?

A web designer is a generalist who independently performs each stage of website development and carries out its further launch. However, it must be taken into account that he can delegate some tasks to other professionals. This is done in order to save personal time. However, he himself controls the entire process of creating a future project.

A designer is a person who specializes only in the development of graphic elements. He is solely responsible for the visual part, so his responsibilities include only creating a beautiful and convenient layout, all kinds of icons, avatars and other images. I hope you understand the difference between a designer and a web designer and will not be confused in the future.

Is it possible to quickly learn web design and make money from it?

Often, having found out and compared a web designer’s earnings with the amount of time spent on receiving it, the interlocutor comes up with an unobtrusive (and sometimes very, very intrusive) question about whether it is possible to learn this, or whether the gift was sent by Zeus from heaven? I always answer positively, since in my practice there have been many cases when people came to this profession at the age of 30–40 and, after some time, became quite successful specialists.

In this matter, age does not play a fundamental role. Of course, it is better if you are 20, you are energetic, and the jellied meat has not yet frozen in your head, but here patience, the desire for knowledge and constant development are much more important.

Do you think web design is some kind of quantum physics? Although even this can be understood over time. Of course, nothing will come right away, but the learning process is no different from other areas. To begin with, pay sufficient attention to the theoretical basis, and then move on to practice.

To study the principles of this area, I recommend following the articles on my blog, where you will find a lot of valuable information and useful tricks that will be useful for implementing new projects. After 2–3 months of effort and practice, fueled by theoretical information, it will be possible to complete more or less decent work.

I hope today’s article was useful and helped you understand whether you want to become a web design master or whether it’s better to abandon this disastrous business and go carry bricks at a construction site. I share valuable information for free, and in return you subscribe to my blog and share the link with your friends.

In the future, even more useful content will be posted here, which will help you gradually develop in the field of web design. Until next time.

Modern tendencies and approaches in web development

Learn the algorithm for rapid growth from scratch in website building

I am often asked offline “Who is a web designer”, I usually answer that this is a person who makes websites. Recently I wondered if this is really true. As a result, I decided to clarify this question and find out what web design is in the broad sense of the term, and who then can be called a web designer. To find out, let's take a step-by-step look at the stages, principles, and elements of web design.

1. Definition of web design
After reading many definitions of web design, I settled on the following. Web design is the process of producing websites that includes technical development, information structuring, visual (graphic) design, and web delivery.

2. Stages of web design
Let's take a closer look at the stages of creating a website. A detailed understanding of the website creation process will give us the opportunity to determine who does what at each stage and who, based on this, should be called a web designer.

1. Terms of reference (TOR)
Based on a clear understanding of the purpose for which the site is being created, the volume of the site, and its functionality, the main parameters of the visual presentation and structure of the site are set. The stage ends after the technical specifications are approved by the customer. The project manager is in charge.

2. Structuring information (usability)
This includes the form and organization of the site's content. Includes a wide range of issues from thinking through the logical structure of web pages to choosing the most convenient forms of presenting information. Responsible for the designer and project manager.

3. Graphic design
In a graphic editor, the visual space of a site is arranged using graphic elements as decoration or navigation. The actual page design is a graphic file. Performed by the designer.

4. Layout
At this stage, the graphic image is cut into individual elements and, using HTML and CSS technologies, transformed into code that can be viewed using a browser. Performed by a coder or programmer.

5. Webmastering
At this stage, activities are carried out to facilitate the dissemination and effective delivery of the site across the network. Includes hosting and search engine optimization. Performed by the administrator, webmaster.

3. Who is a web designer
A web designer is someone who independently launches a website and performs all stages of creating a website on their own. It should be understood that a web designer can delegate to third parties performing some stages, but at the same time controls the entire process. And the web designer himself must be a generalist and understand all aspects of web design.

So, we see a significant difference between the concept of designer and web designer. A designer is someone who develops the usability and graphical components of a website. I think that in our country these two concepts have merged due to the lack of narrow specialization of performers. And the main focus is on creating the graphical component of the site, although this is not all.

4. Web design elements
Web design elements are those abstract materials that a designer has to work with. The main elements of design include: space, line, figure, color, texture, font, shape, chiaroscuro, size. It is from them, like bricks, that the entire design composition is built.

To use them correctly, you need to know their characteristic properties, strengths and weak sides, behavior in different situations. You can read more about design elements in the article ““, where each element is discussed separately.

5. Web Design Principles
But to learn how to build buildings, it is not enough to know the properties of bricks. It is the principles of web design that determine the rules for the interaction of all elements. The basic principles of web design include: balance, contrast, subordination, direction of attention, proportions, scale, rhythm, unity.

Fundamental design principles determine what is good and what is bad among countless combinations of elements. You can read more about design principles in the article ““, where each principle is discussed separately.

6. How to learn web design
I am often asked what it takes to learn web design and whether it is possible to learn to design as an adult. Firstly, you can learn web design at absolutely any age. The main thing here is not age, but the desire and patience to learn. And secondly, the process of learning web design is practically no different from other learning processes.

Therefore, for starters, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with theoretical part. One good book will give you a general idea of ​​the subject being studied. For example, D. Kirsanov’s book “Web Design” helped me a lot at one time. More details about useful books can be read in the article ““.

But the main thing in the process of learning web design is practice. You need to start with the simplest lessons for beginners. What is needed are simple lessons, because when they succeed, it gives a strong incentive to move on. By training in lessons, you acquire the necessary skills that need to be developed in the future.

Along the way, it is very useful to look at the best examples of design creativity. Then you can try to do something similar on your own. And you should always believe that you will succeed! I shared my design experience in more detail in the article ““.

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web design lessons, web designer is
(from the English Web design) is a branch of web development and a type of design whose tasks include designing user web interfaces for websites or web applications. Web designers design the logical structure of web pages, think through the most convenient solutions for presenting information, and handle the artistic design of the web project. As a result of the intersection of two branches of human activity, a competent web designer must be familiar with the latest web technologies and have the appropriate artistic qualities. Most of the specialists working in the field of design usually concentrate in such a creative education as a design studio.

A web designer is a relatively young profession, and professional education in the field of web design is not yet widespread in Russia. Due to the increasing demand for representation on the Internet, the demand for website design is also growing, and the number of web designers is increasing. Currently, web design services are provided by both web studios and individuals (web designers who are freelancers).

Explanation of the term

Web design is a type of graphic design aimed at developing and designing objects of the Internet information environment, designed to provide them with high consumer properties and aesthetic qualities. This interpretation separates web design from web programming, emphasizes the specifics of the web designer’s subject matter, and positions web design as a type of graphic design.

Currently, the term web design refers specifically to designing the structure of a web resource and ensuring ease of use of the resource for users.

An important part of resource design recently has been to bring the resource into compliance with W3C standards, which ensures accessibility of content for people with disabilities and users portable devices(see usability - “ease of use”), as well as cross-platform (in this case, the so-called cross-browser) layout of the resource. Also directly related to website design are marketing on the Internet (Internet marketing), that is, promotion and advertising of the created resource, search engine optimization.

Process and result

A unique design is more expensive, but also involves drawing from scratch, a completely unique development for a specific order. Depending on the professionalism and/or company policy, the web designer either develops the idea and design concept completely independently, or receives a number of requirements (color, style, etc.), expectations and ideas from the customer or creative director (art director) and tries stick to this direction when developing the layout. Most customers mistakenly identify a web designer and a webmaster, entrusting him with the publication of the site.

Sometimes a designer can offer a design solution based on templates (his own or even someone else’s), this speeds up the work and will cost the customer less. Some designers even specialize in producing design mockups to sell as ready-made templates, which can then be purchased and used by less experienced designers or webmasters to produce generic websites (essentially without a unique design). Sometimes web design development refers to a small rearrangement and adaptation of such a template for a specific order.

The final product of a web designer’s work is a design layout: a picture representing the expected future appearance of the site’s pages, approximately 960x640 px (pixels) in size - a size that corresponds to the average standard, associated with the need for further reference to different monitor screen resolutions. This picture is multi-layered, where, at the discretion of the designer, almost every detail is a separate layer attached to other picture layers, due to which modification, replacement, rearrangement and other tasks can be easily performed. Depending on the idea and goals, the layout may include photographs, complex collages, illustrations, text layers, and unique icons. Separate layouts are sometimes drawn for the main page and internal pages with additions or changes in accordance with the theme of the page.

The image can initially be vector or raster, made in Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, GIMP or another visual editor (for example, Scribus or Inkscape), but for the layout designer, the image is usually converted to a raster format.

To demonstrate to the client, the image is usually converted into a simple single-layer and familiar image format.

see also

  • Web page layout
  • Graphic design
  • Responsive Web Design
  • Usability
  • webmaster
  • JavaScript
  • Adobe Flash
  • Web 2.0

Literature

  • P. McNeil. Web design. Ideas, secrets, tips = The Web Designer's Idea Book, Vol. 2: More of the Best Themes, Trends and Styles in Website Design. - P.: “Peter”, 2011. - P. 272. - ISBN 978- 5-459-00650-6.
  • J. Bird. Web design. Developer's Guide = The Principles of Beautiful Web Design, 2nd Edition. - P.: “Peter”, 2012. - P. 224. - ISBN 978-5-459-00901-9.
  • Jakob Nielsen, Kara Pernice. Web design: analyzing the usability of websites by eye movement = Eyetracking Web Usability. - M.: “Williams”, 2010. - P. 480. - ISBN 978-5-8459-1652-5.
  • Jakob Nielsen. Web design. - St. Petersburg: Symbol-Plus, 2003. - 512 p. - ISBN 5-93286-004-9.
  • Jakob Nielsen, Hoa Loranger. Web design: ease of use of Web sites = Prioritizing Web Usability. - M.: “Williams”, 2007. - P. 368. - ISBN 0-321-35031-6.
  • Robbins D. Web design. Directory. - "KUDITZ-PRESS", 2008. - P. 816. - ISBN 978-5-91136-039-9.
  • Goncharov A. Yu. Web design: HTML, JavaScript and CSS. Pocket guide. - "KUDITZ-PRESS", 2007. - P. 320. - ISBN 978-5-91136-024-5.
  • Borodaev D.V. Website as an object of graphic design. Monograph. - Kh.: "Septima LTD", 2006. - P. 288. - ISBN 996-674-026-5.

Links

  • W3C - Web Standards (English)
  • Web design in the Open Directory Project (dmoz) link directory.

Notes

  1. Borodaev D.V. Website as an object of graphic design. Monograph. - Kh.: “Septima LTD”, 2006. - 288 p. - Bibliography: p. 262-286

web design, web design lessons, web design this, web designer, web designer this

Web Design Information About

Web designer is a person with artistic taste and knowledge of Internet technologies who creates Web pages and combines them into Web sites. the main task web designer - to design an Internet project so that as many users as possible are interested in it. The profession is suitable for those who are interested in drawing and computer science (see choosing a profession based on interest in school subjects).

The profession of a web designer appeared only with the emergence of the world computer network World Wide Web (WWW), in which it is possible to create websites for advertising purposes (late 1980s - early 1990s). A Web designer is a person with artistic taste and knowledge of Internet technologies who creates Web pages and combines them into Web sites.

The specific task of a web designer is to be able to develop a stylistic design for a project taking into account the specifics of the Internet. That is, in addition to the design of the project being simply stylish, it must meet the standard requirements set by the network: graphic elements (logos, banners, drawings, etc.) must be optimized; when choosing a color and font, it is necessary to take into account the fact that the user will see the graphic embodiment of the project on the monitor, and not on paper. A web designer is responsible for how a website looks and feels. He comes up with logos, banners and other graphic elements, thinks through site navigation, and determines where the text should be placed. A designer needs to not only create an interesting website, but also take into account its loading time. Creating interactive websites is the pinnacle of web design.

To make such a site, a web designer must not only know HTML language and have an artistic flair, but also simply must know “classical” programming and understand databases.

In addition to websites, web designers develop banners, Internet postcards, and electronic presentations.

Features of the profession

Web page design is information design, not graphic design.

In progress web work- the designer solves the following tasks, on which the success of the created project directly depends in the future:

  • determining the goals and objectives of site visitors;
  • design and planning of the site structure;
  • interface development;
  • navigation development;
  • care about user interaction with the system;
  • content preparation and quality control.

Main functions of a web designer:

  • website design;
  • creating an idea and developing a server layout;
  • creating a server layout execution style;
  • ensuring the best perception of web documents on the monitor screen, taking into account the loading time of documents, bandwidth data channel, size graphic files document, color palette quality;
  • determining the rules for the layout of web pages, choosing the format, background, quantity and quality of design elements;
  • creating style samples for web documents;
  • work with Internet node, Internet;
  • writing software and page code;
  • management of hypertext documents;
  • carrying out the company's information policy on the World Wide Web (WWW);
  • installation and work with tools for preparing and checking web pages;
  • creation of interactive web applications;
  • updating, modernizing a web document;
  • creation and work with applications for static processing.

Pros and cons of the profession

Pros:

  • constant demand in the labor market,
  • work is not limited to one country,
  • possibility of remote work,
  • ample opportunities for professional growth,
  • you can implement almost any idea without spending money,
  • decent wages.

Minuses:

  • a discrepancy (sometimes) between the artistic vision of the customer and the performer, which is why you have to either convince of the need for a specific design solution or agree with amendments.

Place of work

  • design studios;
  • companies involved in website development;
  • any organizations that use a personal website in their work and want to develop and modernize it;
  • Freelancing or custom work to develop an individual style for a company website.

Important qualities

  • developed aesthetic and artistic taste;
  • high level of development of distribution, volume, concentration and switching of attention;
  • high level of development of imaginative thinking;
  • high level of memory development;
  • logical thinking;
  • analytical thinking;
  • creativity;
  • thoroughness, systematicity in work;
  • attentiveness;
  • patience;
  • accuracy;
  • perseverance;

A qualified web designer must have relevant knowledge both in the field of design computer programs, and in the field of graphics.

Need to know: Adobe Photoshop, HTML/CSS

It is advisable to know: Corel Draw, Illustrator, Macromedia Flash.

Web designer training

Annual practical course "Web design from 0 to PRO" for those who want to master web design from the very beginning with an individual mentor, make an excellent portfolio and get their first orders (or an internship in the studio). At the end of the course, students create their own project based on a brief from a real customer. After a successful presentation of the work, course graduates have the opportunity to receive an invitation to an internship. Web design training from scratch to professional.

Salary

Salary as of July 16, 2019

Russia 23500—90000 ₽

Moscow 30000—130000 ₽

Salary depends on the prestige of the studio and the experience of the designer. It also all depends on the number of design orders. The range of prices for website design is very wide - everything is determined by the quality of work and services. Creating a design for a website is a creative process. It may take varying amounts of time. There are certain fixed-price “service packages,” but they do not accurately define price and design quality. The same work can be done for both $50 and $1,500.

Career steps and prospects

A successful aspiring designer in the future can apply for the following positions: web programmer, banner maker, project manager.

Outstanding web designers:

Artemy Lebedev. Born February 13, 1975. The son of the writer Tatyana Tolstoy and philologist Andrei Lebedev. After school, he entered the Faculty of Journalism of Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov, who never graduated, having dropped out of the 2nd year. In the summer of 1992, he and his partner founded the A-square studio, where he worked until the end of the year. In January 1993, he founded an independent studio “Artographics”, in which he was engaged in graphic, printing, calligraphic and other types of paper design. He took part in the creation of books and magazines. From 1993 to 1995, he worked part-time as art director of the MakTsentr company. In 1995 he founded the WebDesign studio (in 1998 renamed Artemy Lebedev Studio), which is one of the first and largest web design studios in the RuNet. Since 2001, Artemy Lebedev Studio also began to engage in industrial design.

Activity. Artemy Lebedev founded the studio, which has produced more than 1000 works, including corporate styles, books, magazines, signs, logos, graphic and physical interfaces, websites, industrial design and industrial graphics objects, shop windows. Lebedev is not only a designer; he spends most of his time setting and inventing problems, developing information architecture, and researching ergonomics and ease of use of websites. The design discoveries of his studio are widely used on the RuNet.



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