Medium #10 — (Nov. 9–13) Matrices + Developing Visual Voice

After developing our content from last week, we started off this week with basic explorations of typography and layout on our spreads. As a start, we explored ways to layout the text with the diagnosis info section of our booklet.

After talking to Kristin on Monday, we realized that we needed to explore more and have a more systematic approach, leading us to explore matrices of typography and visual graphics.

Matrices

• Tone — First, we explored tone through text and images. Through the three different tones (informative, empathetic, uplifting), we mainly explored the writing and color. We realized that using both typography and graphics will be beneficial for us since large, contrast text and patterns / graphics are more legible for the visually impaired. During the process of exploring the tone, we realized that we needed to do a matrix for the type and to do a color contrast test.

• Type — Since we hadn’t explored type extensively before, we went in more depth and created a matrix exploring all combinations of header and body type. We also artificially blurred the type, to try and see which combinations work the best even for people with blurred vision. In the end, we chose Roboto (Black) and Noto Serif for our header and body type, and switched to using those two typefaces for the rest of our drafts.

Color Contrast Test

• To further explore the color combinations we had touched upon in our tone matrix, we started to test various color combinations with each other to try and find pairs that had both high contrast and a pleasant pairing. However, after considering that most health centers are unlikely to have color printers (or want to print many pages in color), and that some patients would likely have difficulty making out or differentiating colors, we decided to go simple and just do black and white.

Refined Visual Style

• Based on the matrices we created, we looked at the intersections that were most effective for our concept. While we wanted to be informative and uplifting in our language, we found that the empathetic tone was the most effective. We found that showing empathy in our language would help put the patient at ease if they are worried about their diagnosis or future procedures. While the copy was aimed to be empathetic, we thought that our spreads could be more compelling by combining text with graphic elements. In our morphology matrix, we explored illustrations and iconography as two forms of graphic elements that could enhance our visual voice. While exploring the illustrations and icons, we wanted to prioritize making them high contrast and easily understandable. One approach for illustrations was to use a pattern based visual style to explain symptoms of cataracts. By illustrating symptoms through patterns, we found that there was the opportunity to make the patterns high contrast and interesting to look at. However, we wondered if the pattern based illustrations were too abstract and not easily understandable. Another approach for representing cataracts symptoms was through iconography. The icons were a little bit more literal compared to the pattern based illustrations, which might be more appropriate for our audience so that they do not have to take the extra effort to decipher a pattern. In addition, because we planned to combine the graphics with the copy, we hope that adds another layer of clarity.

illustrations

iconography

Applying the Visual to Spreads

After deciding on the combination of tone and method of communication, we attempted to apply the visual style to the spread. We plan to use this as a guide for the other spreads in the booklet and test out its effectiveness to users.

Next Steps

• Applying to other pages within the booklet
• Test out the effectiveness of tone and visuals