White Space is Not Your Enemy: A Beginner's Guide to Communicating Visually through Graphic, Web & Multimedia Design 2nd Edition

Very easy to use. Lever is super simple and never fails. Highly recommend this tosster!

I had to get this book for a Graphic Design course I was taking. First thing I'll say about this book? What a great price! Good change from all those hundred dollar textbooks I always dread to buy. Some say that price is an indication of the level of information provided. True, but it isn't always a terrible thing. This book is geared towards those who are beginners, and I should know I was a complete beginner in this topic!The chapters are organized so they build upon the knowledge you gain from the previous one, however if one were to skip ahead you won't be lost. I'm sure you can start from the end, but that takes the fun away from starting at chapter one. This book teaches you the do's and don't's when creating designs. Starting with the mistakes every beginner will most likely make, duh. While you won't be creating some professional looking brochures or posters, you will have knowledge of what makes a design pleasing to an audience. There are several devices it presents that are useful and can be built upon should you proceed in that direction. I like to look back at the book too, I usually just skim the pages. The images themselves are nice to look at and can get those creative juices flowing.And always remember that white space isn't your enemy.

After skimming through “White Space Is Not Your Enemy” by Rebecca Hagen and Kim Golombisky, I have found that this book is best used as a reference manual for timely and helpful advice, that can sometimes be read in one’s spare time to achieve a deeper understanding of the referenced material. Although the book does list itself as a beginner’s guide, to me it seems to be meant more for serious designers with some prior experience in the design field because only students of this caliber and connection would be able to properly apply these techniques to meaningful pursuits.The book lists the proper procedures for every chunk of design as a whole, in the proper order that the chunks should be learned. Starting with an explanation of what design actually is, the book leads readers through detailed explanations and examples of brainstorming, research, layout, layout sins, all the way up through storyboarding, web design, and print.The format of each chapter makes it easy for readers to understand the information conveyed, and the typography communicates the information in the least-strenuous format for the eye, which speeds up rate of comprehension and increases the ease of reading. The lists of important information are concise and specific, elaborated on later in great detail alongside pictured examples and helpful captions. The images in this book provide comfortable breaks from the well-spaced reading.Even when I simply flip through the pages, my eye is greeted by pleasing visuals and comfortable reading space that capture my attention. I have had an easier time reading this class-required book than most others that I have been assigned to read. Over the years, a few of them have quite literally put me to sleep in multiple instances, no matter what way or position I read them in. I find that this is likely due to the poor, typographic layout coalesced from too many columns, minuscule type, congested margins, pages overstuffed with type, bland wording on the subject, and a lack of visual breaks from the reading.In terms of effectiveness of communication, this book has convinced me it is worth a read. In terms of interest generated through text, I am also sold on the friendly, but professional tone the text communicates while teaching. Whether you are a visual or textual learner, the book should satisfy both, and help make you a better designer in the process.

This is one of those books that is so good you want to buy it again as if having a second copy will make you feel twice as good. It is like design school in a book. It covers a lot of topics from the basics to more advanced concepts. This is also a book that is best purchased as a paper book rather than a digital book. The book is so well made that it will open flat without breaking the spine. It is so well written that you will probably find what you seek. It's all good.

I've been doing some design work for my job recently and I found this book to be quite helpful. It clarified some of the mistakes I was making and gave me practical skills to fix those errors. If you are a beginner like me, I would highly recommend this book.

Great information for design model dos and don'ts

There are some interesting practical tips, but this book is not for beginners. It glosses over the principles of good design, and it contains a trite list of what not to do. I found the advice rather vague--a lot of "don't do this" without many tips or examples of what TO DO to fix common issues. "Use your judgement" is not helpful advice. Also, in case you're not sure what book you're reading, the text will frequently remind you: white space is not your enemy (in italics).For beginners, I recommend reading The Non-Designer's Design Book for a firm foundation on the core principles of alignment, proximity, repetition, and contrast. WSINYE might be useful for intermediate designers and web developers or freelancers who are looking for professional production tips.

Book came in well condition, as expected

Adore this book. 101 on graphic design for amateurs and experts alike.

Perfect

I was looking for something that described the fundamentals of design in an engaging, informative and, dare I say it, a well-designed way. This book did not disappoint!

Book looks great. Just getting into it.