Graphics Design

Graphics design is the process of creating a visual representation for information on a web site. These images can range from logos, such as Antare's logo, to the various button images used to create the navigation bar at the top of this page.

Graphics design is very important...the old saying about "a pictures says 1000 words" is quite true, particularly in Cyberspace.

Graphics design also involves modifying pictures, both from an artistic point of view in that many images are a combination of multiple pictures; or to making pictures more efficient to place on a web page. For example, the default output of a digital camera is frequently too large in terms of both physical size and data size for a web page. These pictures must be modifed, trimmed down, and sometimes made into thumbnails. (Examples of these types of pictures can be found on our portfolio page.)

Graphics design requires careful consideration and attention to detail, because it is very easy to over-power a web page in graphic imagry. It is also even easier to make a very pretty and ornate web page, but that pretty and ornate web page can frequently load into the browser very slowly, even on the fastest of Internet connections. We strive to balance graphics with function. A picture can convey a thousand words, but a picture for the sake of a picture is a waste of valuable page real estate and bandwidth.

Multi-Media

Antares Development can also create multi-media files, such as embedded sound, video, and Macromedia Flash. Most of this media requires a very specific use. Multi-media files are also quite large and can degrade web page performance considerably, so extreme care must be taken in using these type of files.

The Flash slideshow above is a slightly different method of displaying some of our portfolio web sites using Flash as the presentation mechanism.

P.S. Turn your speakers on and up; this little show has music attached to it!