Free Course

Graphic Design Basics

89,144 students

What you'll learn

How everyone can learn to think like a designer
How to choose the right image to tell a story
Learn the difference between shading and tinting
Learn how to use different font styles to match your message
Understand the color wheel, looking at primary and secondary colors
Learn the difference between warm and cool colors

No signup required

by Canva

Lessons

Design to communicate

  • What we mean when we talk about design
  • Why design matters to you
  • How everyone can learn to think like a designer


Moodboard magic

  • How to begin the design process
  • How to create a moodboard
  • Where to find inspiration


Practise proximity

  • How to use visual space to enhance your content
  • The importance of grouping related items together
  • How to use negative space effectively


Ace alignment

  • The purpose of alignment
  • How to use grids to keep your content organized
  • How to align your elements in one consistent way


What the font!?

  • Understand the difference between serif, sans serif and display fonts and when to use them
  • Learn how to use different font styles to match your message
  • Create a go-to list of your favorite fonts


Opposites attract

  • Learn how to pair fonts by staying within one family
  • Learn how to avoid conflict in font pairing
  • Learn that opposites attract when it comes to fonts


Make it pop!

  • Use visual hierarchy to make the most important information stand out
  • Create contrast with size, weight, colour, style
  • Be bold when it comes to contrast


Color wheel basics

  • Understand the color wheel, looking at primary and secondary colors
  • Learn about complementary, analogous and triad color relationships


Tints and shades

  • Learn the difference between warm and cool colors
  • Learn the difference between shading and tinting
  • Learn how to add richness and variety to your color palette


Color combos

  • How to choose your colors based on a logical approach
  • How to pick colour to fit your theme
  • How to seek inspiration for your color palette


Photo love

  • How to choose the right image to tell a story
  • How to work with negative space and composition
  • How to give contrast to text


Share and publish

  • What file formats you can download your design as
  • What file format should you choose
  • The difference between JPEGs, PNGs and PDFs

No signup required

by Canva