At the end of each year, Adobe takes a look back, surveys the Adobe community and identifies visual trends that stood out throughout the year.

Here are the top three visual trends for this year:

1. Tangerine orange

Who doesn’t love this bright, wake-me-up, color? The top Adobe Behance projects included tangerine orange this past year. It’s a color that demands our attention and gives us a feeling of hope for the future. This color can be used in so many ways to add a pop of color, draw attention or be used in combination with more subtle colors to add a bit of drama. Put it together with other bold colors and make a statement about the project you’re working on.

Tangerine orange

2. Voluminous forms

When I first read that one I thought, what the heck does that even mean? Well, Adobe has pulled examples from Behance projects to show us all what exactly

Voluminous Forms are in design, art and advertising. Mostly they found these forms in graphic design, 3D work and illustration. Think pillowy surfaces and organic shapes. These forms give a sense of comfort and welcome.

Voluminous forms

3. Friendly faces

The third of the visual trends is friendly faces. Awww, how can that not make you smile? Fun and approachable characters were introduced within brand identities and packaging designs in this past year. Of course, friendly faces make us all feel warmth and comfort, especially in times of uncertainty.

Friendly faces

How can you incorporate these visual trends into your photography? Color is relatively easy, just look for more Tangerine colors in the scenes or add them to your clients’ clothing or backgrounds. It doesn’t take much. For Voluminous Forms maybe search out some big fluffy pillows or poofy furniture to use in your sessions. Hopefully, you’ll find your clients’ faces are friendly and won’t need to really add a character to them.

You can read more about the Adobe 2021 visual trends and see examples from several Adobe Behance portfolios.