Poster Design Basics

Now that you know what goes on your poster, how do you arrange it?!Let’s look at some examples.

Poster Design

1. Words are not visual aids

2. Make it easy for the viewer

3. Think about the flow of the poster

4. Think about the focus of the poster

5. Stick to and highlight the key information

Poster Design

1. Words are not visual aids

2. Make it easy for the viewer

3. Think about the flow of the poster

4. Think about the focus of the poster

5. Stick to and highlight the key information

The AFM consists of a cantilever with a sharp tip (probe) at its end that is used to scan the specimen surface.

The cantilever is typically silicon or silicon nitride with a tip radius of curvature on the order of nanometers. When the tip is brought into proximity of a sample

surface, forces between the tip and the sample lead to a deflection of the cantilever according to Hooke's law.[4] Typically, the deflection is measured using a laser spot reflected from the top surface of the cantilever into an

array of photodiodes.

AFM

Flowcharts Diagrams

Images Plots

Poster Commandments

1. Words are not visual aids

2. Make it easy for the viewer

3. Think about the flow of the poster

4. Think about the focus of the poster

5. Stick to and highlight the key information

Material 10 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

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- colorblind friendly colors - large, legible labels with units - replace legends with colored labels - no unnecessary information

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Be consistent with your colors!

Poster Commandments

1. Words are not visual aids

2. Make it easy for the viewer

3. Think about the flow of the poster

4. Think about the focus of the poster

5. Stick to and highlight the key information

Intro

Most Important Results

ConclusionMethods

Poster Commandments

1. Words are not visual aids

2. Make it easy for the viewer

3. Think about the flow of the poster

4. Think about the focus of the poster

5. Stick to and highlight the key information

What draws attention?

• shapes

• LARGE • bright

• Bold

If everything is designed to draw attention, nothing will! Be selective about what you draw attention to.

Poster Commandments

1. Words are not visual aids

2. Make it easy for the viewer

3. Think about the flow of the poster

4. Think about the focus of the poster

5. Stick to and highlight the key information

Stick to and highlight the key information

• It is tempting to put every experiment you’ve ever done on your poster, but only include the information you need to tell your story!

• Use color selectively for emphasis

• Make the key information easy to find

• If you have more information, you can have a handout or put a QR code on your poster

Design Activity

• Sketch a poster on an 8.5 x 11 piece of paper

• Share with a partner and get feedback

Wrap up

• What was hard about these activities?

• What was easy?

• What did you like about someone else’s design or story?

Additional Resources

• Hume Center for Writing and Speaking

• Adobe products in Stanford Computer Labs

• Tutorials at Lynda.com

• STAR!

• http://scienceteachingthroughart.com/

• Online color tools

• https://color.adobe.com/create/color-wheel/

Poster Reminders

• 22 x 34 inches

• Posters are due August 27, but try to print early because printers break!

• Good posters take TIME! Start now!