This document provides tips for designing a newspaper layout, including using minimalist and grid-based designs with easy-to-read fonts, consistent sizing and alignment of elements, managing white space, and using color schemes carefully. Key recommendations are to avoid clutter, maintain consistency, and focus on clean, readable designs.

1. Prepared by: Wendell Taraya
SPA FILIPINO

2. COMMONLY USED APPLICATION:
MICROSOFT OFFICE PUBLISHER
NEWSPAPER SIZE
STANDARD:
12 INCHES (width) X 18 INCHES (Height)

4. BASIC PAGE LAYOUT
1. Headlines are centered, sub-headlines only have the
FIRST word capitalized. 14 font size.
2. Pages are always five columns across.
3. Vertical lines are used to divide the page between
articles. Horizontal lines are also used to separate text.
Lines are 1pt, solid, black.
Lines are NOT used if an article on the page has a
shaded background.

5. 4. If you will put a shaded box behind an article, the
easiest way is to find one a place in the paper, copy
and paste, and fit the box to the area you need.
If you need to make the box, use the rectangle tool,
Make sure the shaded box has been ‘sent to back’,
and just slap your text box right on top.
The box has a .25 black border.

6. 5. Make sure to leave an aesthetically pleasing
margin around the actual text and the border of the
shaded box. TEXT CANNOT LOOK CRAMMED. Make
sure nothing is too close to anything else, space is
important.

8. Headlines are in Myriad Pro, Bold.
Size is up to your discretion.
Sub-headlines are Myriad Pro, Regular.
Size for this is also up to your discretion.

9. In bylines, names are in ALL capitals,
Trade Gothic, bold #2, 9.5.
Please make sure all names are spelled
right and all articles are credited
correctly!.

10. Article text is Minion Pro, regular, 9.5.
This one should definitely be set under
‘paragraph styles’, called ‘article text’.
Have the text selected, click ‘article text’,
and you should be set.

11. Picture credits are Trade Gothic,
Medium, size 4.
Picture captions are also Trade Gothic,
bold for the first part of caption,
medium for the explanation of the
caption.

12. Pull quotes are Trade Gothic,
Medium, size is up to your discretion.
Use horizontal lines to separate the
pull quote from the article text. A line
width of 1 is usually good.

14. A. Photographs need to be of the highest
resolution possible. When you get photos
off Google, place the filter on the ‘large’ so
you get the high-res photos. With cartoons
and stuff it doesn’t matter.
B. Photos have a .25 width solid black
border.

15. C. Make sure text is wrapped nicely around the
photos, use your judgment, make it look nice.
To wrap text around the edges of an oddly shaped
picture:
1. Click the picture
2. Right click, format picture
3. Click layout,
4. then select Through.

16. D. All pictures need to be credited, even if it just
says google.com, or the person’s name, or
whatever. Get the credit box as close to the
picture as you can; this is going to require some
messing with the text wrapping. It usually helps
if there isn’t a text wrap on the credit box.
E. When you select photos to place in the paper,
look at it and decide if it will look alright in black
and white. So nothing too dark, with too much
shading, etc.

18. DESIGN TIPS FROM A NEWSPAPERADVISER
Modern design styles are oftenin a stateof flux.
The list below are eightof the common design
styles that are currently beingimplementedby
the professionals. Using themwill give your
project a clean, stylish look thatis
sure to be appealing.

19. TIP #1 - MINIMALIST DESIGN
Don’t make your newspaper look
crowded or too busy. Use lots of
white space where you can.
Newspapers have always looked
crowded in the past, but modern
design tends to use more white
space, thus giving more importance
to the images and text you
do have on a page.

20. TIP #2 - HAVE GOOD COLOR SCHEMES
Don't use too many colors. That just looks
messy. Know what colors go well together
and which ones clash. On a newspaper,
colors will always print darker than what
is on your computer screen, so it is
important to lighten up your colors.
Colors are important, but clashing colors just
because they happen to be your favorite ones
will not be looked upon well. Colors should
be designed to point the reader in the right
direction, not distract him or draw the eye away
from your main message.

21. TIP #3 - FLAT LOOK
Try not to use 3D effects, bevels, or too many
shadows. Those styles went out last decade
when they were novelties at the time. It is the
flat appearance that looks clean and stylish.
Clean is the operative word. Design now-a-days
reflects a clean look instead of a busy, loud,
in-your-face look. This concept works well for
newspapers. You don't need a lot of effects.
You aren't showing off effects. You want people
to read your newspaper. Clean is better.

22. TIP #4 - GRID OR GEOMETRIC PATTERNS
Modern design often employs images in a grid or
geometric pattern. Again, this gives your project a
fresh, clean look with straight lines and easy on the
eyes visuals. A newspaper is often laid out in columns.
Each column should be the same proportions
--particularly in width.
Try to keep your columns the same width and aligned
with each other up and down. Leave more space
between columns than not. There is a tendency to want
to cram the columns together to get more information
on the page, but that create a very busy and loud design

23. TIP #5 - CHOOSE EASY-ON-THE-EYES FONTS
Your articles and stories are central to your
newspaper design and layout. Don't use fonts
that are difficult to read or make out. Use fonts
that the eye can pick up on easily and avoid
using many different kinds of fonts. Stick with
the same font for each of your different text
groupings: your main text, your titles,
your subtitles, and your headings.

24. TIP #6 - STAY CONSISTENT IN YOUR FONT
SIZES
Different sized fonts can be used, but stay
consistent. When your copy text suddenly gets larger
in the column next door, it has an unconscious
impact on your readers.
Not only does it look messy, but it creates a visual
detraction from the message. Typically, an 11 pt or
12 pt font is used for copy. Your main newspaper title
can be as big as you like, and article titles range
between 14 and 18pt font sizes.
What ever you choose, remain consistent.

25. TIP #7 - ALIGNMENT IS ESSENTIAL!
It may seem tedious, but a well-aligned
newspaper will standout as being far superior
to those that are not aligned properly.
Here are some areas of alignment you
should consider:

26. •Columns - Make sure your columns are the same
width and either aligned at the top or the bottom
and evenly spaced between themselves.
•Pictures - Align pictures to each other where you can
and to text where appropriate.
Always try to show straight lines.

27. •Titles - Align titles vertically or horizontally where
obvious. Centering titles over columns will also
look good.
•Horizontal and Vertical Spacing - If you have space
on the right, make sure there is the exact same
amount of space on the left. If you have space
between a title and a textbox, make sure that
you keep the same spacing between other titles
and textboxes.

28. Keep picture aspect ratios - If you need to
shrink a picture on only one side only
(vertically or horizontally) to make it fit a
particular space, don't shrink it. This will only
make your picture look fat or skinny instead of
natural. Instead, crop it.
It is always better to crop the picture to align
it than to make an image look unnatural.

29. TIP #8 - MANAGE FREE SPACE
Empty space is as important as the space
you do use. Leaving large holes in your
newspaper design is not wise, but trying
to use all the free space up may not be
wise either. Well positioned empty or
white space can make a newspaper
really stand out, look clean, look fresh,
and look elegant.