Ask HN: How do I teach myself design?
7 comments
1. Get inspired. Keep bookmarks of interesting beautiful designs you like. Think about what makes it beautiful. Similarly, think about why you don't like any particular design. How it can be improved.
2. Learn. Learn both practical things like HTML5, CSS3, Graphics Design for web(icon/logo etc) and theoretical things like color theory, grid system, UX design, etc. Read books, blogs, html/css code for it.
3. Practice. Use what you have learned to design some sites. You can design your own sites, templates, or redesign some existing site you like.
4. Share your work with other people and get their feedback. Make improvements based on their suggestions.
5. Rinse and Repeat. Be patient. Like all arts, designing improves with time and effort put in.
Some resources you may like to use -
http://www.awwwards.com/
http://www.smashingmagazine.com
http://www.cssmania.com/
http://dribbble.com/
http://www.uiparade.com/
http://patterntap.com/
http://ui-patterns.com/
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatterns/
http://www.welie.com/patterns/
http://www.alistapart.com/
http://siteinspire.com/
http://designingwebinterfaces.com/explore
http://www.reddit.com/r/webdesign
http://forrst.com
http://paulstamatiou.com/startup-web-design-ux-crash-course
http://www.slideshare.net/Wolfr/design-for-developersonlinev...
http://52weeksofux.com/
2. Learn. Learn both practical things like HTML5, CSS3, Graphics Design for web(icon/logo etc) and theoretical things like color theory, grid system, UX design, etc. Read books, blogs, html/css code for it.
3. Practice. Use what you have learned to design some sites. You can design your own sites, templates, or redesign some existing site you like.
4. Share your work with other people and get their feedback. Make improvements based on their suggestions.
5. Rinse and Repeat. Be patient. Like all arts, designing improves with time and effort put in.
Some resources you may like to use -
http://www.awwwards.com/
http://www.smashingmagazine.com
http://www.cssmania.com/
http://dribbble.com/
http://www.uiparade.com/
http://patterntap.com/
http://ui-patterns.com/
http://developer.yahoo.com/ypatterns/
http://www.welie.com/patterns/
http://www.alistapart.com/
http://siteinspire.com/
http://designingwebinterfaces.com/explore
http://www.reddit.com/r/webdesign
http://forrst.com
http://paulstamatiou.com/startup-web-design-ux-crash-course
http://www.slideshare.net/Wolfr/design-for-developersonlinev...
http://52weeksofux.com/
Most people often attribute design to making something pretty, or using photoshop, or tweaking a color, true design is about functionality not aesthetics.
At the core of it design is functionality done right. Most of my engineering/programming/logical friends look at me strangely when I try to explain this but it is true.
It's about human interaction, what is your desired response, how will people react to this, how will it be used, etc.
Color theory is only important because it invokes certain emotions, font's because it conveys they tone you are speaking in, using lines and the other elements of design all work together to lead they eye and evoke a desired response.
There are a lot of things out there that are considered good design but are ultimately useless in achieving their goals, these are simply works of art done in a designed style and not true design.
It's about purpose and intention.
I'm willing to bet you know more than you think you do, that you've been exposed to so much design your whole life that your guesses would be more educated than you think, and that coming from a background in software your ability to run tests (like A/B tests) would be invaluable.
To conclude, everyone thinks that design is art but really it's psychology combined with rapid iteration(thumbnail sketches) and lots of tests (color swatch tests etc) based on best guesses. That and most great design just rips off something else anyways.
At the core of it design is functionality done right. Most of my engineering/programming/logical friends look at me strangely when I try to explain this but it is true.
It's about human interaction, what is your desired response, how will people react to this, how will it be used, etc.
Color theory is only important because it invokes certain emotions, font's because it conveys they tone you are speaking in, using lines and the other elements of design all work together to lead they eye and evoke a desired response.
There are a lot of things out there that are considered good design but are ultimately useless in achieving their goals, these are simply works of art done in a designed style and not true design.
It's about purpose and intention.
I'm willing to bet you know more than you think you do, that you've been exposed to so much design your whole life that your guesses would be more educated than you think, and that coming from a background in software your ability to run tests (like A/B tests) would be invaluable.
To conclude, everyone thinks that design is art but really it's psychology combined with rapid iteration(thumbnail sketches) and lots of tests (color swatch tests etc) based on best guesses. That and most great design just rips off something else anyways.
You could try to apply your current learning pattern first; read books on color theory to get going.
Another thing that could be fun for you just to get going is to re-design services you like and try to improve them, in your eyes.
I clone ideas from Dribbble. Great resource for people looking to learn and create stimulating visuals.
Read books & blogs on design, design a lot, throw a lot away, find small projects to work on to hone your skills, dissect other designs, design more, throw more designs away, build up your font collection, build up your photoshop layer styles collection, talk with other designers, learn how to make wireframes and write the content before you start to design, find a design mentor who will help you learn, design more, throw away more designs, find non-profits you can do some free designs for, find some startups you can design for, google about color theory and font theory and read up on it, learn how to design around themes (an "underwater" theme, a "cartoon" theme, a "western" theme), design more, throw more away...
Same here, but I have learned that first start understanding UX and usability and then with the help of frameworks like bootstrap(there are many)anyone can easily put up a nice layout.Once you have that then it can be improved with nice graphics,logos and images.
I am an advocate of looking at what makes pieces you find are designed well, and keeping a "scrapbook" (for lack of a better phrase) of those patterns. Then as you design you can refer to those scraps for things that worked in UI, design, or just enhanced experience. While I don't advocate copying, I think its always better to stand on the shoulders of giants than to start from nothing.
Here's a nice site to get you going on scrapbooking: http://www.csszengarden.com
But I feel that I am at an impasse. I have no training at all in color-theory, design, or anything like this. The learning process is so different from what I'm used to, I think.
If I need to know how to do something in an API, I look it up. If I'm new to a language, I read a book.
I understand that just doing it over and over is pretty much the process for anything, but I feel that I could use some refinement now, rather than later.