After finding out that there was a particular sort of website design that used large background images, and being something I love, I decided to try going down this route.
I incorporated some of these designs into Photoshop, trying to make them real life products. It is often at this stage where I meet the most trouble. The idea can be wonderful in my head but getting that down into an actual visual product is difficult!
This first one I think holds the most potential. It nails the contemporary, simplistic kind of look that M&S and Waitrose go for. The knife and fork idea was gained from the original Antibo website, however I took the idea further and have setup an actual dining table! The coloured table cloth uses a pattern incorporating quite suave colours, and this contrast provides visual interest, drawing in the eye. Furthermore, the olive green works extremely well. It is in the family of hues from the original site, albeit lightented a lot etc and mixed slightly!
This next one didn't really bear in mind the colours that the survey response sought. Instead, I thought I'd try and take on the colours from the original Antibo logo. However, I am hesitant over this design for a number of reasons. The red and black chequer effect can become a little jarring. When the viewer would want to be focusing on the actual content in the middle, this may hinder that. Furthermore, it seems more American diner than Italian restaurant. Frankie and Benny's is Italian American and they get it right, whereas mine veers a little too much one way. Perhaps a simple change to the colour of the tiling would remedy all this?
Needless to say, I do like the logo with the nav bar. The red text with a black indent effect nicely associates with the nav bar colouring, whilst the straight line of this joins up effectively with the red underline of Antibos. Of everything, the typeface used (Market Deco) has potential. It may seem a little Art Deco, but I think in the right context it could serve as being Italian. Also, I don't know if it would be suitable, but putting a faded gradient on the bottom of the page lifts the white section up, as if it is a menu card.
This last one admittedly does seem to be random bits thrown together. Firstly you will notice three different typefaces. In trying to achieve a chalkboard I had to use a handwriting mimicing font, yet this then limited me later on in the site's headings as it meant too much chalk board, not enough sophistication - it just doesn't fit well with a design scheme aiming for contemporary and sophisticated. The wine glass also seems tacked on. Obviously certain items fit better than others alongside web content. I think this design definitely could have worked, yet I wasn't able to successfully piece a sophisticated chalk board look together. This sort of idea still has potential for something though.
It is easy to see which design I will follow up on. Changes to be made will include addressing the table, the logo and then seeing what potential content boxes could be used.
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2 comments:
out of the three on here i like the first design the most. the colours are fresh and inviting and the layout would develop and work well. i aslo liked the idea of the wine glass and feel it gives the restaraunt a more refined feel so if thats what your after go with that! however if you do wasnt keen on the black background as felt it was too dark :)
I much prefer the first design much more coherent and more eye catching. Its a very clean design and it does actually hint at being italian without using the cheesy flag designs you quite often get. The second reminds me of an american diner while the third as you say, does look a bit thrown together although i like the wine glass element and the idea of using a chalk board is one you could maybe develop and incorporate in the first design. Stick with the first!
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