Structure

• Even the most innocuous poster has an underlying structure. Often, even if the objects in the design are flowing and irregular, they are placed into the pattern of the graphic according to an underlying grid pattern. The placement of elements in a graphic are kept in balance by an unseen grid that regulates where those elements should be placed and how large they should be. Look at posters, paintings and professional photos. Make a grid in your mind to see how each of the elements are placed. You will see almost mathematical models that are aesthetically pleasing even when you remove the specific elements on the grid. Take some of the patterns you discern and make a poster using entirely new elements in the same pattern. You will discover that almost all design is attached to a grid pattern of vertical and horizontal lines. As you mentally see those grids, you will improve your own underlying composition.
  
  

Framing

• Once you see the underlying grid patterns, you will discern how vertical and horizontal lines are used to frame the focus of a picture or design. Sometimes these lines will be overt, such as a scene viewed through a window. At other times, the lines will be hidden in the posture of a leg and an arm or the shape of a group of trees. Look at designs, both purely graphic and a combination of graphic and copy. Note how the overt or subtle lines in the design frame the main subject. Often, the main subject is framed dramatically off-center. It is through the use of overt or subtle horizontal and vertical lines that the framing shows what is the visual, rather than the geographical center of the picture.
  
  

Mood

• Lines create mood in a design, including those lines that are only inferred. Vertical lines create a sense of dignity, strength and grandeur. Think of a tall oak as compared to a squat bush. Horizontal lines convey a sense of peace and tranquility. Consider a picture of a sunset over the ocean. All the important lines are horizontal. Look at pictures and graphics that evoke a strong emotional response or mood in you. Then, examine the sweep of the lines in that picture. As you discern the patterns, you will begin to create designs that evoke similar moods.
  
  

Movement

• The lines in a design convey a sense of repose or movement. Horizontal lines project a sense of repose and tranquility. Vertical lines project the potential for movement, while diagonal lines project movement. Think of something as simple as the famous fish food chain chart. Each fish is smaller than the one behind it that is prepared to eat it. Together, the lines from the shape of the fish form diagonals at the top and bottom, indicating the movement of fish along the food chain. Lines can be used to lead the eye to the main subject of the picture. Contemplate a landscape picture featuring a majestic mountain peak in the distance. The vertical line of the peak creates a sense of grandeur, the horizontal line of the landscape and horizon create a sense of peace, while the slope of the mountain and any road leading to it create a sense of movement.