What is Poster? and How can I shape it?

What is Poster..?

Posters are one of the ways researchers share results at seminars and conferences and advertise activities. A poster may be part of a display for new students. On school situations they are very useful for presenting ideas and displaying students' work. Moreover, they may be part of a passive presentation or more interactive when the authors are available to answer questions. 

Posters have limited space, so the presenter is forced to concentrate on the essential elements, and express them creatively through brief, concise statements and explanations. Most departments display the posters produced by staff and postgraduates for conference presentations; corridor, office and foyer walls are possible sites. 

Posters and essays

To overload a poster with information is one way of losing marks. Similarly, printing an essay in 14pt type and sticking it on card will lead to instant failure, no matter how well the academic content. 

The main difference between posters and essays is that essays let you explore indepth many ideas whereas in a poster you summarize to leave only the highlights. Be selective, you are trying to communicate your ideas simply and quickly enough.

BUT please don't leave out essentials; it still has to be self-explanatory.

Samples of posters…

How can I shape a poster? 

• Posters may contain visual elements, hand drawn montaged from newsprint, prints, photographs - any and every visual media. The academic argument or evidence needs to be added in text boxes to any poster. Drafting a poster first without text can help you produce a creative image. 
• Be careful not to let the background overwhelm the message 
• Do not bias the message with an inappropriate, stereotypical image. 
• Whatever the shape, ensure the width and height are within the maximum size guidelines. 
• Mount pictures and text on to contrasting coloured card or paper to highlight them. 
• Virtual posters are designed electronically in word processing or graphics packages. They have the advantages of being low cost, easy to store and can be viewed via the www projected in class. 
• A virtual poster may be an electronic version of a physical poster.