Background images are often the starting point to your designs. It gives you colors to sample and a style to incorporate. Where can you use backgrounds? That’s what we’re about to explore.
Steps
1. Art.
If you’re making your own art, having a starting point can cut down on creation time. Art doesn’t have to be a full canvas, it can be artist trading cards, inchies, coins or any other individual piece of art. Look at the art others have created. How could a pre-made background help the process?
2. Art journals.
Art journals are full of backgrounds. While art (above) is normally one background per piece, art journals use many. My first art journal was my experimentation with making backgrounds. I felt I could use it for reference later. Look at art journals and see how backgrounds play a part in them.
3. Books.
Children’s books are a great way to utilize pre-made backgrounds. Simply make a few backgrounds, then move your characters around to tell your story. Any book that uses images can be created the same way. Check out a few children’s books to see the use of backgrounds in action.
4. Fabric.
Yes, you can design your own fabric. A background is one way to do this. Spoonflower is just one site that allows you to make your own fabric. Check out their offerings . . . as well as other sites . . . to see how a background pattern can be incorporated into fabric.
5. Mixed media.
I deliberately separated mixed media from art. Usually when you think art, it’s more of a flat piece. Mixed media may be flat or dimensional. The background may not be the foundation of the art. Instead, it might be ripped into shreds and applied to a mixed media piece. Of course, there are other ways to manipulate it while keeping the “background” in the piece. Look at some mixed media pieces. How might you incorporate a “background” that isn’t really in the back?
6. Online.
Using a background in your online graphics allows your branding to carry through a variety of social media sites. This might be headers, ads or other ways you use to identify yourself. Find a brand online and look through their sites. See what elements are carried throughout. This includes colors, images and graphic treatments.
7. Photos.
Using a background with photos can add a similar look even if the photos don’t match. For example, if you create a photo calendar, a consistent background frame to put each photo in would tie them all together. A series of bookmarks with the same background but replacing photos of the grandkids is a great gift. Look at different crafts where you can incorporate both a background and a photo. How would that change the final look as opposed to random designs or a constantly white background.
8. Printables.
When you’re selling printables, you want your files to be recognized as yours. Using backgrounds can help with this. Look at the instruction or identification pages for printables, not the printables themselves.
You’ll see certain elements carried over. In addition, backgrounds can be used in a variety of ways with the printables themselves.
9. Printed.
Consistency through the printed pieces you create establishes or reinforces your branding. A background element can help with this. In this case, the background may not solidly cover the page. For example, the Enrichment Project supplements have the bars at the top and information along the left edge only. This counts as a “background” as it identifies the piece through the designed background and is consistent.
If you’re looking for a more “artsy” brand, you can do background strips as part of your letterhead, brochures, business cards, etc. Explore how you might incorporate background images in to your designs.
10. Quotes.
Most quotes have some sort of background image with them. You may think that you must have a different background for each, but reusing backgrounds will save you time. Most people will not realize you occasionally repeat backgrounds. In addition, you can use the same background if your quotes come on a full-size piece of paper, quarter-sheets to hand out to friends and then small ones that can be slipped into your wallet. One background . . . multiple uses. Brainstorm other ways you could present a quote and use the background multiple times.
11. Scrapbook.
I actually won a contest with a digital scrapbook page I made. It featured a background of autumn leaves that my husband and I had raked up. When you’re a kid, jumping into pile of leaves seems like a huge adventure and you feel so small in the huge pile. That’s what I duplicated in my page. Over the years, I’ve reused that autumn leaves background with other projects. How might you use backgrounds you create into a scrapbook?
12. Storyboard.
Creating storyboards is another way to use backgrounds. Have you noticed that videos, animations and video games often have the same background repeated? Like producing children’s books, this saves a lot of time. You just need to change the characters and other images in front. How might you use a background you created in a video?
13. Zines.
In a zine, a background can be used with a piece of poetry or as a full-page image. You can use it as a design element for the front of your zine. Look at zines and see how background images are incorporated. Are they merely placed there or are they part of the theme of the zine?
14. Brainstorm.
What other ways might you be able to use backgrounds? Continue searching the web to learn more about backgrounds and uses for them.
Badge and Supplement Files
Member Level
- EP_Badge List_Background Explorer_larajla — list of badge items
- EP_Badge Set_Background Explorer_larajla — list of badge set and related badges
- EP_Supp_List_Background Explorer_larajla — list of supplements for the badge
- SUPP_BPG_Background Explorer_2in_12up_larajla — generic badge printable
- SUPP_Background Explorer_Journal_larajla — badge journal
- SUPP_Background Explorer_Planner_larajla — badge planner
Supplement Fun
- N/A
Sites to Explore
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Background_artist
- www.arttutor.com/backgrounds
- www.vecteezy.com/free-vector/free-vector-background-art
- design.tutsplus.com/courses/the-fundamentals-of-background-art-for-video-games (Watch the intro video.)
- www.pinterest.com/mbu66155/background-techniques
- pixabay.com/images/search/abstract
Get the infographic here > larajla blog post
Get the PDFs of the badge program / supplements here