NCEA L1 DVC cheat sheet
NCEA L1 DVC · Keep the key ideas within reach.
Design and Visual Communication - NCEA Level 1 Core Reference
Design elements are the building blocks of a visual composition: line, shape, form, tone, colour, texture, space and pattern; design principles describe how they are arranged: balance, contrast, emphasis, rhythm, proportion, scale and unity.
Balance is either symmetrical (mirror-image mass about an axis), asymmetrical (unequal mass balanced by visual weight such as size, tone or colour), or radial (elements radiating from a centre point).
The design process follows a cycle: brief and research → concept sketches → development and refinement → outcome and evaluation; each stage is evidenced in the portfolio, not just the final product.
A design brief states the need, the intended user, constraints (size, cost, materials, safety) and specifications that the outcome must meet; specifications are testable, briefs are general.
Concept sketches are rapid, exploratory and annotated; working drawings are precise, to scale, and communicate dimensions for manufacture - they serve different purposes and are not interchangeable.
Oblique projection: the front face is drawn true shape and size, and depth lines are drawn at 45° (or 30°/60°) at half or full scale; it is a pictorial method, not an orthographic one.
Isometric drawing uses three axes at 120° to each other (30° from horizontal on the page); all three axes are drawn to the same scale, and circles appear as ellipses.
Orthographic projection shows a 3D object as related 2D views; first-angle places the top view below the front view and the left view on the right, while third-angle places the top view above the front view and the right view on the right.
Scale is the ratio of drawing size to real size: 1:1 is full size, 1:2 is half size, 1:50 means 1 unit on the drawing represents 50 units in reality; a scale bar remains valid if a drawing is photocopied, a written ratio does not.