[psmith2.0]

Okay, years ago it was the lickable blue, orange and green translucent plastics that showed up on office supplies and home appliances (sparked by the jellybean iMacs). The past few years, we've seen that clean, white glossy plastic look come into vogue on clock radios, lamps, household accessories. Silver aluminum, too.

Print/design-wise, we went through a period where everyone was applying the "poochy gel" look to their logos and design elements (like the blue iMac-era Apple logo six or so years ago). We saw rounded corners come back some. The three little "stoplight" buttons of an OS X window seemed to find its way everywhere, with thousands of website buttons (and TV commercials graphics) sporting this "gel pill" appearance.

Here lately, after first seeing it in iLife 06 on those photo reflections, and throughout the iTunes store, it seems the big trend Apple has jump-started is the "reflection on a glass platform" look.

I was watching TV last night and I started keeping count. In the course of about 90 minutes, I saw a good 8-10 commercials all taking that approach to their logo or to graphic elements on the screen.

So I thought it would be fun to corral all these - via TV, the web, etc. - here into this thread.

For those who don't know what I'm talking about, it's this "glassy reflection" look seen in so much of Apple's stuff here lately (including the upcoming Leopard dock):



The "glossy tabletop look", I call it. This has really taken off in the past year or so, and I never really saw it much at all prior to 18 or so months ago, so, once again, I'm thinking it's another case of Apple setting the trend and others jumping on it in the ensuing months.

Where are others? List/link/show 'em here! It'll be fun. Or, at the very least, next time you're thumbing through a magazine or watching TV, pay attention to the ads and commercials and you'll see it everywhere.



Quite easy to do in Photoshop, so I'm guessing this is the "soft drop shadow" or "translucent gel-like bevels" of 2007:

[curiousuburb]

Lickable buttons have been done. And rounded boxes. And gradients.

Now the reflection thing is the next web 2.0hNoes trend.

[BuonRotto]

So what comes next? I'm guessing blurring everything is the next wave.

[dmegatool]

Is it a general trend and Apple use it too or is it really Apple that created that buzz ? ... Personnaly, I don't know

[chucker]

I do believe Apple introduced it.

[BuonRotto]

I'm sure you can find some seriously vanguard sites or apps that used it before, but almost certainly Apple had a large hand in passing it off to the mainstream.

[autodata]

Reflections jumped the shark a long time ago. We explicitly banned them at my company earlier this year.

[BuonRotto]

Which is why they're mainstream now. Only once it's passed its prime does it become ubiquitous. Once it is ubiquitous, it's lost any interest.

[psmith2.0]

Originally Posted by dmegatool Is it a general trend and Apple use it too or is it really Apple that created that buzz ? ... Personnaly, I don't know

I've certainly seen them before, sure. But it wasn't until iLife 06, some iTunes store refinements and the past 18 months of Apple's website that I really saw it take off (and subsequently spread to everywhere).

I'm not saying Apple invented it, but I do believe they've played a solid role in making it trendy and something everyone has jumped on (just like the translucent plastics, candy colors, aluminum, dimensional/beveled graphics and logos, etc.).

How many companies, in the past 6-8 years, have modified their logos or graphic elements to take on a more realistic, shaded and dimensional look, like Apple started with their gel Apple back in 1998-2000? Tons, that's how many.



And how many places are now using that "reflected on a glass table" look the past 6-12 months?

I'm not saying Apple is some supernatural design god, with freakish powers over everyone or whatever. But I am saying "think about it": designers and in-house art departments worldwide are often Mac-based, and staffed by Apple and Mac junkies. So it just makes sense that those visual elements and design cues are going to be emulated and gradually slip into the work of some guy designing a new identity package for MetLife or PepsiCo, and their accompanying typography and graphic elements.

I've certainly been guilty of it myself over the years (subtle soft shadows, giving the glossy/gel treatment to a logo or icon, etc.), and I'm just small potatoes. Imagine how it with those working on major, high-visibility clients? That's how you wind up with this stuff, IMO.

I pay attention to this kind of stuff, and have for years. It's a little hobby of mine...



Actually, I've always wanted to see Apple put out a product that looked like it was made from wood and grass...just to see how long it took others to adopt a blatant "back to nature" look to their stuff. You know they would. The Zune would come with etched leaf motifs and faux woodgrain finishes, Xerox would film all their commercials in the woods and talk about they used trees as inspiration for their latest line of copiers, the Sharpie website would sport bamboo and rock graphics, etc.

You know I'm right...

[drewprops]

There are some services/organizations out there that provide seasonal color palettes so that manufacturers can kind of key in on certain overarching themes in 1st world marketing. It's expensive, from what I understand... and I'm uncertain as to whether it still holds sway over this digitally shared world of ours... and yeah, of course Apple influences the design industry... it's simply because so many designers use Apple products.


Dammit Paul!! You can't be writing while I'M writing!!!!

.

[dmegatool]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 I've certainly been guilty of it myself over the years, and I'm just small potatoes.

Who hasn't ? (I'm not talking about being a small potatoe but the use of reflections ). I use it from time to time. I try to not abuse it cause I would put it everywhere

[psmith2.0]

Well I was just talking in general terms of Apple-y design cues.

I've actually not done the "glassy table reflection" thing that much, for some reason (I do a lot of text-based work, so the opportunity doesn't always present itself).

[herodian]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 I've certainly seen them before, sure. But it wasn't until iLife 06, some iTunes store refinements and the past 18 months of Apple's website that I really saw it take off (and subsequently spread to everywhere). I'm not saying Apple invented it, but I do believe they've played a solid role in making it trendy and something everyone has jumped on (just like the translucent plastics, candy colors, aluminum, dimensional/beveled graphics and logos, etc.). How many companies, in the past 6-8 years, have modified their logos or graphic elements to take on a more realistic, shaded and dimensional look, like Apple started with their gel Apple back in 1998-2000? Tons, that's how many. And how many places are now using that "reflected on a glass table" look the past 6-12 months? I'm not saying Apple is some supernatural design god, with freakish powers over everyone or whatever. But I am saying "think about it": designers and in-house art departments worldwide are often Mac-based, and staffed by Apple and Mac junkies. So it just makes sense that those visual elements and design cues are going to be emulated and gradually slip into the work of some guy designing a new identity package for MetLife or PepsiCo, and their accompanying typography and graphic elements. I've certainly been guilty of it myself over the years (subtle soft shadows, giving the glossy/gel treatment to a logo or icon, etc.), and I'm just small potatoes. Imagine how it with those working on major, high-visibility clients? That's how you wind up with this stuff, IMO. I pay attention to this kind of stuff, and have for years. It's a little hobby of mine... Actually, I've always wanted to see Apple put out a product that looked like it was made from wood and grass...just to see how long it took others to adopt a blatant "back to nature" look to their stuff. You know they would. The Zune would come with etched leaf motifs and faux woodgrain finishes, Xerox would film all their commercials in the woods and talk about they used trees as inspiration for their latest line of copiers, the Sharpie website would sport bamboo and rock graphics, etc. You know I'm right...

how many iProducts are there now? and iCompanies? P2.0, i know you're right