UI/UX Design for Rookies
By: Xola Digital
Tags: UI, UX, UI Design, UX Design, Ui Ux Design

Once upon a time…

There was that time where design was “just design” or so to say and the people that did the design was known as graphic designers.

Design as a discipline has evolved so much over the years. We now have different branches to it. From visual identity design to data visualization design, there are quite a few but today I will like to introduce you to User Interface and User Experience design.

In recent times the term UI/UX has been popularized, so today we want to take a look at what UI/UX is, what you will need to know if you want to get into it.

What then is UI/UX;

First off, UI/UX does not mean or represent the same thing. UI is an abbreviation that means User Interface whiles UX is User Experience. But these two fields are mostly used together because of their collaborative nature in solving human problems. We will surely be looking at the differences some time to come. Be sure to watch this space.

Let’s break it down a little more;

User Interface Design

User interface design represents the visual aspects of web and product design, dealing with UI design you normally concern yourselves with visual hierarchy, wireframes, patterns, and everything aesthetics. Some of these visual cues are:

Typography

Color Schemes

Layouts

Icons

User Experience Design

User Experience design, on the other hand, deals with the experience a user gets when interacting with a product. With UX design, you focus on building products and websites that are easy to use and understand and to achieve this means conducting research to interpret user personas and psychology. With UX design some of the things to watch out for are:

Usability

Accessibility

Findability

Credibility

Now that we have leveled the ground on what UI/UX is. The next question will be how do you become a User Interface or User Experience designer?

Like earlier said, the two are not the same thing and so there are different principles or schools of thought associated with them but for this post, we will be treating them as one.

Here are 5 things that you will need to know in order to get into the field of UI/UX;

First, you must have the eye for good design;

I know this is something very basic but good design is not “everyday design”. Think of it this way, have you ever seen a billboard and you immediately get the message? Well, you could also see another and you will have no clue of the message. Develop the eye for good design.

Some portfolio websites to check out;

Behance

Dribbble

Understand the principles in UI/UX design;

there are principles and guidelines that help you to understand how to design and apply them to solving problems. We advise that you understand them.

Interaction design

Read…Read…Read…Read;

there are lots of blogs on design that can obtain knowledge from. A lot of design-related blogs out here. A lot of topics have been covered in various fields and that will really help you kickstart. Its always good to learn from your predecessors.

Read more; medium

Familiarise with the tools in UI/UX;

Image from creative tim

There quite a number of tools for UI/UX, some are free to use and others paid. Free doesn’t mean they are not good. Some of the very best is free to use. You don’t have to master all; you can get explore them and find out which one best suite you.

Here are a few to check out;

Adobe XD

Figma

Sketch

Invision studio

Lastly, Practice;

Never stop practicing when you get a grip on how to use the tools in line with understanding the principles. Take what you have learned and put it into use by practicing. You can practice by redesigning what others have done.

Whew! That should do it, these are the 5 things you will need to kickstart. We hope we have been of help to you and clear the air on User Interface and Experience design.

Like we mentioned earlier, we will break down each further in the days to come. Until then Adios!

author: Benny Bumbi