8 Rich Web Site Designs for Inspiration

I love collecting links to sites that inspire me to push my own design further, and I thought I'd share my favourites to help inspire you too.

This bunch of sites are all graphcally intense, using a lot of pixels to create a rich experience.

Rich effects and Pixel-saving?

Of course, while Saving the Pixel should be a constant discipline when designing web sites, when your goal is to impart a lot of “soft” information, sometimes you need to splash out. The trick is to keep disciplined about removing anything that really doesn't need to be there. And a big splash, while using a lot of detail in a certain area, can still be read by the visitor as a simpler effect or entity.

Think about a beautiful sky with clouds and lots of variation in light and colour. It's intense pixel-wise, but the overall effect washes over you, creating a “sit-back” emotional reaction without requiring a lot of eye work or thinking.

When a rich web site works, the same thing happens. A lot of detail can be presented, but it works in a way that you can take in and enjoy the soft info passively, leaving you free to get the harder info (facts, links, data) without hassle.

My list of favourite Rich Web Designs