Editorial Design · Page 5 of 7

Same grid, many layouts

This is the heart of magazine design. Below are three spreads from one article. The grid, type, color and image treatment never change, but no two layouts are the same.

Spread 1: openerA full-bleed photo and a big headline.

Spread 2: continuationA wide photo crosses the spine; the pull quote spans 4 columns.

Spread 3: closerA pink color field stands in for a photo; images break into a group of three.

Consistent and varied. The faint lines show the same 6 × 4 grid under all three spreads. The typefaces, the pink accent, the image treatment and the folios never change. Image sizes, column spans and the pull quote’s position change on every spread.

Too consistent. Every spread is identical. It’s organized, but readers stop noticing new content.

Too much variety. New colors, shapes and margins on every spread. It no longer reads as one magazine.

Practice: Spot the System

Train your eye with the Spot the System studio activity. Study real editorial spreads and name the constants and variables that hold each one together.

Ways to create variety without breaking the system

Change the scale. Let one image take 4 columns and 2 rows on one spread and a single module on the next.
Cross the spine. An image or headline that spans both pages ties the spread together.
Change the column span of text. Use 3 narrow columns on one spread and 2 wide columns on the next, both on the same 6-column grid.
Use white space as an element. An empty module is a choice, not a mistake.
Move the pull quote and color blocks to different modules, always aligned to the grid.
Don’t repeat a layout too often in one section. Design a few layout options and rotate them.

Apply it: Exercise 1 storyboards

When you sketch your concepts, all of the spreads in one concept should look visually consistent (same grid) with enough variety to create visual interest. Compare your sketches to the two examples above. Are you closer to “too same” or “too different”?