web designs

A couple of my favorite web designs.  I'm not exactly sure how to get a shot of the web page on the post yet but if you feel so inclined here are the links so that you can pull them up and take a look for your self.

http://www.chipotle.com/en-US/Default.aspx?type=default
http://www.davematthewsband.com/

 Chipotle Mexican Grill

This web design I have to say is one of my favorites.  it not only gives you the facts, but by the use of clever design it keeps you intrigued as well.  This sight pulls of it success by combing a lot of elements. It uses attractive type, image, and movement to hold your attention and keep your eye wanting more.  Although I would probably right this one up to a flash sight, it keeps its movements and and navigations in check, not allowing there to be to much to distract from the web sights purpose of teaching you about there food.  This also made navigating the sight fun and interactive while being able to keep it simple to get to where you wanted to go.

The navigation of this sight is made interesting and simple in several ways.  First like most web sights it gives you a menu bar with each section having its own pull down menu giving a quick way to its sub-topics.  But to separate itself from the norm it uses color, and fonts to give it a bit more of a flare.  as you role over each topic on the menu, the font changes from a simple sanserif  to a more stylized hand written font, while at the same time highlighting the words in a simple red color.  Once we meander from the home page it gives us large headings on each page to let us know where we are at all times.  The main menu bar is always at hand in the same place on each page making it as easy to find our way the on the tenth page as it was the first.  On each page navigation is made fun and simple by giving sub-topics either photos with slight motion or more interesting elements such as notebooks with animated pull out tabs, or rotating picture menus.  But as I said earlier, although it has these more interactive elements involved it keeps them to a minimum and for the most part keeps the important aspects of each page the same from one to the next. 

when it comes to communicating the information, elements like color, texture, typography, etc, kept pretty similar from page to page.  This helps to keep it less confusing and it keeps the theme prevalent on each page.
There are several different texts used to keep titles, info, and menu bars.  The very slightly but for the most part are nicely designed sanserif fonts unless the are wanting to pull your eye in which they use a more colorful and hand written font approach. One of the themes that this restaurant is trying to get across is that there ingredients that are used are organic and better for you then most fast food chains.  the best way that they portray this other then their written information is simply by their use of colors.  All there colors stay consistant through the whole web sight and they are kept to more muted earth tones, giving us as the viewers the feel of a more natural feel. The most that you will see size and color change on any of these pages is when they are wanting to create a hierarchy.  Pictorial information such as graphs are colored a little more brightly and textual info is given a change in size and color as well.  All these elements simply are used to keep drawing you in to what is important, while at the same time still keeping it interesting and fun.

The content of this sight is for those that want to know more about the food that the are consuming at this particular restaurant.  For both those that are interested in great flavor and also for those that are concerned where those flavors are coming from. This company brings this to us by successfully bring us a web sight that use an interesting combination of visual, and textual elements to keep its themes consistent and interesting in the viewers eyes.

I posted another web of interest at the top here but I will leave this one to you all to decide what it is that makes it great.