https://anthonyhobday.com/sideprojects/quickstart/visualdesign.html
Have you heard of the Pareto principle? It says that 80% of the results come from 20% of the effort. It’s true for visual design. You can get 80% of the way to good visual design with 20% of the knowledge. Here’s the 20%.
Guideline: You will see these guidelines throughout
These aren’t rules. They give you a quick start with sensible defaults. You can ignore them when you’re better at visual design. But you won’t find many designers who think these guidelines are bad ideas.
Visual design should communicate something to the viewer beyond the content in it. A fashion brand website wants you to think “luxury”. A themepark wants you to think “fun”.
If you have an idea to communicate, you can ask “does this help communicate [idea]?” every time you make a design choice.
This is easier if you have content already. You can look at the content to see what kind of idea it already tries to communicate. Try to communicate the same idea in your visual design.
Guideline: Write some adjectives
Before you start, write down a list of adjectives you want the visual design to communicate. “Funny”, “serious”, “approachable”, “technical”, “luxurious”, “cheap”. Refer to those as you create your visual design. For every decision you make, ask “what would represent these adjectives best?”.
You should use high quality typefaces in your design. You don’t have to pay for them. Some free typefaces are good enough.
Guideline: Use typefaces from famous designers
Typefaces that come from well-known and respected designers are usually reliable.
A high quality typeface means that the text in your design looks better. Most websites are mostly text. Choosing a high quality typeface is one of the simplest ways to make the visual design better.
Different typefaces communicate different ideas. A sans-serif typeface usually feels more modern and approachable. A serif typeface usually feels more old-fashioned and formal. You should choose a typeface that supports the idea behind your design.
Guideline: Pair typefaces easily with a super family
Some typeface designers will design both a serif and sans-serif typeface that belong together. Source Sans Pro and Source Serif Pro are part of the same super family. If you use a super family like this it is very easy to pair typefaces. They were already designed to work well together.
The text in your design should be readable. Especially if it’s long, like in an article. Proper line length is one of the easiest ways to make sure the text is readable.