National Parks

National Geographic

iOS
c. 2012

“National parks are the best idea we ever had.” – Wallace Stegner

“National parks are the best idea we ever had.” – Wallace Stegner

In late 2011, National Geographic was looking for a design and development partner who could help them create an app for iPhones and iPads. They wanted to build their brand, create revenue, and distribute their high-quality content. This app needed to hold its ground as a break-out product in an otherwise crowded space. It needed to intrigue users to actually get outside and visit the U.S. National Parks. More than just another digital guidebook, Nat Geo wanted to rebrand National Parks.

Together we created a universal iOS app that has been downloaded over 2 million times. We broke all of National Geographic’s annual business goals for the product within a mere three months. The app was featured twice on the iTunes homepage marquee for iPhone App of the Week, as well as iPad Editor’s Choice, and also won an FWA Mobile of the Day award. Perhaps the most prestigious award, however, was winning the 2012 Apple Design Award and a W3 Best in Show Award.

Dribbble

We chose crisp, traditional fonts to align with National Geographic's established brand and history. Generally muted colors were used to make the beautiful National Geographic photography shine, with limited use of primary accent colors. The visuals were heavily influenced by the early iOS ecosystem's tendency towards skeuomorphism, which we brought our own design sensibility to. Perhaps the most important visual choice, however, was the creation of a unique stamp design for each park, allowing each park its own brand identity.