SatVu vignette designs: the votes are in
7 of the 9 people invited voted before the Thursday 6 August deadline. Hanna and Manuel didn't vote, which we agreed means they're happy to go with the group. Two extra people joined in: Toby and James OC. Hover over any bar to see who voted for what.
Design 1 · the classic
Design 2 · the panel
Design 3 · imagery first
Not tied to one design
Design 1 - the classic. Story as one paragraph, thermometer down the edge, details in a bottom strip. Click to open full size.
Design 2 - the panel. All the text in a solid column on the left, imagery kept completely clear. Click to open full size.
Design 3 - imagery first. The picture dominates, details tucked small into the corners. Click to open full size.
Design 3 won. Now we blend in the best bits of Design 2.
- 5 of 7 people picked Design 3 (imagery first) as their favourite.
- Nobody picked Design 1.
- But part by part, people kept choosing Design 2: its four-section story, its icons, its see-through callout boxes, its temperature bar.
- So the final template = Design 3's big, imagery-led look + Design 2's parts.
- In Matt's words: "the best design is somewhere between 2 & 3".
5 of 7
people picked Design 3 as their favourite
4 of 7
people picked Design 2 as their second choice
0
people picked Design 1 ("feels like a marketing poster")
Which design is closest overall? DECIDED
Design 3 - imagery first5
Scott, Mykola, Toby, James OC, Matt
Design 2 - the panel2
Amanda, Rob
Design 1 - the classic0
No votes
What is this + the winning call
The big one: which of the three full designs becomes the starting point for the master template that every future vignette is built from.
Winner: Design 3, imagery first. 5 of 7 picked it. Ella builds from Design 3's layout, then blends in the Design 2 parts that won their own questions below.
And second choice? D2 CLEAR
Design 2 - the panel4
Scott, Mykola, James OC, Matt
Design 3 - imagery first2
Amanda, Rob
Design 1 - the classic1
Toby
Everyone's top two were Designs 3 and 2 in some order, except Toby (3 then 1).
What is this + the winning call
The back-up vote. It tells us which design supplies the "best bits" that get blended into the winner.
Winner: Design 2, the panel. Its parts (the four-section story, the icons, the see-through callouts, the temperature bar) are what we fold into Design 3's layout.
Where should the information sit? TIED - NEEDS THE CALL
Full-height panel (D2)3
Amanda, Mykola, Rob
Minimal, tucked in corners (D3)3
Scott, James OC, Matt
Strip along the bottom (D1)1
Toby
The biggest open question. Open the pop-out for the two options.
What is this + the two options to discuss
Where all the written information lives on the vignette: the story, target, location, coordinates, sensor, filter and temperature bar.
Option A: the panel (Design 2) - Amanda, Mykola, RobA solid column down one side holding all the text, so nothing ever sits on top of the image. Design 2 shows it on the left but it can sit on either side: flip it right when the interesting part of the image is on the left. The case: most real thermal images are busier than the Cuba one, and a panel keeps text readable on any image. If it wins, Rob wants the image to fade softly into the panel, not stop at a hard edge.
Option B: tucked into the corners (Design 3) - Scott, James OC, MattThe details sit small over the imagery, so the picture stays as big and clean as possible. The case: the image is the product; let it dominate.
Toby's one vote for Design 1's bottom strip is unlikely to carry. A possible middle ground: Design 3's look as standard, with the panel as the back-up layout for busy images.
Decider: Hanna and Amanda, on the call.
How should the story be told? DECIDED
Four short headed sections (D2)5
Amanda, Scott, Rob, James OC, Matt
One single paragraph (D1 and D3)2
Mykola, Toby
Amanda says the four-step version is easiest for an international defence audience to follow. Mykola asks that the sections can flex per story rather than being fixed.
What is this + the winning call
How the written story is told: one flowing paragraph, or broken into four short steps with headings (Design 2's The Detection, Collected at Day, Completing the Picture, Outcome and Value).
Winner: four short headed sections. 5 of 7. The headings flex per story rather than being fixed to those four names.
Callout boxes on the imagery DECIDED
Transparent, fine outline (D2)6
Amanda, Scott, Mykola, Rob, Toby, Matt
Solid colour fills (D1)1
James OC
One warning from three voters: see-through boxes only work here because this image is dark. The template needs a back-up style for bright or busy images.
What is this + the winning call
The style of the boxes drawn on the image that point at features (the port, the ship, the storage tanks): solid colour blocks, or see-through with just an outline.
Winner: see-through with a fine outline. 6 of 7. Ella also designs a back-up style for bright or busy images where see-through would vanish.
Text inside the callouts DECIDED
Left aligned5
Amanda, Scott, Mykola, Rob, Toby
Centred2
James OC, Matt
What is this + the winning call
How the text lines up inside those callout boxes: pushed to the left edge, or centred in the box.
Winner: left aligned. 5 of 7. Locked into the template.
Full stops in callout text? CLOSE - NEEDS THE CALL
Yes - full sentences with full stops4
Mykola, Rob, Toby, James OC
No full stops3
Amanda, Scott, Matt
Too close to call. Open the pop-out for the two options.
What is this + the two options to discuss
Whether the text in the callout boxes is written as proper sentences ending in full stops, or as short clipped labels without them.
Option A: full stops - Mykola, Rob, Toby, James OCReads as finished, considered sentences. Feels more like intelligence reporting.
Option B: no full stops - Amanda, Scott, MattReads as quick labels. Less visual clutter in small boxes.
The kind of text we mean, from the current designs (this one has the full stop):
A tiny detail, but it gets locked into every vignette forever, so it needs one answer.
Decider: Hanna and Amanda, on the call.
Icons for the key details? DECIDED - KEEP THEM SMALL
Yes - use icons (D2)5
Amanda, Scott, Rob, Toby, James OC
No icons (D1 and D3)2
Mykola, Matt
Matt strongly dislikes them ("gimmicky and unprofessional... except the target"). Mykola would use 2 or 3 at most. So: keep icons, but only a few, and keep them plain.
What is this + the winning call
Whether the key details (target, location, coordinates, sensor, filter) each get a small icon next to them, like Design 2 does.
Winner: yes to icons, but only 2 or 3, plain and serious. The exact set gets agreed on the call because the two "no" voters felt strongly.
Keep "Acquisition 1" on artwork? DROP IT
No - drop it5
Scott, Mykola, Rob, Toby, Matt
Yes - keep it2
Amanda, James OC
Mykola couldn't work out what "Acquisition 1" even meant, which proves the point. Only bring it back if a story compares images over time.
What is this + the winning call
The label "Acquisition 1" that currently sits on the artwork. It means "the first image captured in this tasking", but nobody outside SatVu reads it that way.
Winner: drop it. 5 of 7. It only returns when a story genuinely compares images over time (Acquisition 1 vs 2).
Day or night marker CLEAR FAVOURITE
Both icon and word4
Amanda, Scott, Mykola, Rob
The word only2
Toby, Matt
Icon only1
James OC
Fits Hanna's wording rule from Monday: the label reads "Filter: Day" or "Filter: Night".
What is this + the winning call
How the artwork shows whether the image was captured in daylight or at night: a little sun/moon icon, the word, or both.
Winner: both the icon and the word. 4 of 7, and it matches Hanna's agreed wording: "Filter: Day" or "Filter: Night".
Brightness Temperature scale CLOSE - NEEDS THE CALL
Horizontal bar with details (D2)5
Amanda, Toby, James OC + Mykola and Rob (ticked both)
Small, bottom corner (D3)4
Scott, Matt + Mykola and Rob (ticked both)
Thermometer down the edge (D1)0
No votes. Toby: "totally missed it - looked like a frame"
Mykola and Rob ticked both options, meaning happy either way. Open the pop-out for the two options.
What is this + the two options to discuss
Where the colour scale sits: the little strip that explains which colours mean cold and which mean hot.
Option A: a horizontal bar with the written details - Amanda, Toby, James OCSits alongside the story and key details, so readers find it where they're already looking.
Option B: small in a bottom corner - Scott, MattKeeps the frame clean and the image uninterrupted.
Mykola and Rob ticked both, so either way wins them. Already decided regardless: the colours always run cold to hot, and Design 1's full-edge thermometer is dead (nobody voted for it, Toby mistook it for a frame). You can even see the rule in the two snippets above: Design 2's bar runs hot to cold (the wrong way), Design 3's runs cold to hot (right).
Decider: Hanna and Amanda, on the call.
The imagery attribution CLEAR FAVOURITE
Smallest legible, on imagery (D1/D3)5
Scott, Rob, Toby, James OC + Amanda (ticked both)
Inside the reference image box (D2)3
Mykola, Matt + Amanda (ticked both)
New idea from two voters: the credit line should name SatVu too, not just the other companies' imagery. "It adds this professional element" (Mykola).
What is this + the winning call
Where the small credit line goes when the vignette includes someone else's imagery (like the reference photo): written tiny on the image itself, or inside the reference image box it belongs to.
Winner: smallest readable text on the image itself. 5 votes to 3, with Amanda happy either way. And the credit should name SatVu too, not just the third parties.
The satellite name line VOTES SAY KEEP, COMMENTS SAY CUT
Sensor: HotSat-2 MWIR (D2)6
Amanda, Scott, Rob, James OC, Matt + Mykola (ticked both)
Something else2
Toby + Mykola (ticked both)
The votes and the comments point different ways. Open the pop-out for the two options.
What is this + the two options to discuss
The line on the artwork naming the satellite and sensor, currently "Sensor: HotSat-2 MWIR".
Option A: keep it - what the tick boxes say (6 of 7)It shows off SatVu's own technology on every vignette, and almost everyone ticked to keep it. This is the line we mean:
Option B: cut it from the artwork - what the comments say (Toby, Matt)Other imagery providers don't put sensor names on artwork, so why spend the space? The detail could live in the caption or data sheet instead.
Decider: Hanna rules on this one, on the call.
Ella's build list: all of this is decided, so build it in
- Start from Design 3's big, imagery-led layout.
- Tell the story in four short sections with headings, like Design 2. Let the headings flex per story.
- Callout boxes are see-through with a thin outline, text left aligned.
- Keep icons, but only 2 or 3, and keep them plain and serious.
- Remove "Acquisition 1" from the artwork.
- Day or night is shown as an icon AND the word, labelled "Filter: Day" or "Filter: Night".
- The temperature scale always runs cold to hot. Never use Design 1's edge thermometer again.
- Image credit in the smallest readable text on the image, and add SatVu's own name to the credit.
- Coordinates: four decimal places, letters not minus signs (like 20.0003N, 75.8745W).
Five questions left: Hanna and Amanda decide these on the call
- Where does the written info live? A side panel (3 people) or tucked into the corners (3 people)? Suggested middle ground: Design 3's look with a panel as the back-up for busy images.
- Full stops at the end of callout text: yes or no? 4 people said yes, 3 said no.
- Temperature scale: a bar next to the details, or small in a corner? 5 v 4, with two people happy either way.
- Do the satellite name and filter go on the artwork at all? The votes said keep them, but the comments said cut them.
- Icons: agree exactly how many and what style.
Warnings from the comments (read before locking the template)
1. This Cuba image is the easy caseIt's dark, calm and centred. On bright or busy images, see-through boxes and small text may be hard to read. The template needs a back-up rule for those images.Scott, Mykola, Rob, Amanda
2. The sharp photo inset can backfireThe crisp black-and-white photo makes our thermal image look blurry next to it. Toby's words: "it does exactly what we complain about other people doing". He also spotted that the ship callout has no visible signal, and the filter number on the artwork is wrong for a daytime image.Toby
3. Labels have to fit every story"Target" and "Location" don't make sense for something like London urban heat. Printed versions need a contact line or website. Local time may be worth adding next to UTC.Mykola
4. Ideas for later (save, don't act yet)A map scale, side-by-sides with optical and radar images, graphs of heat over time, heat values in the callouts, and status labels. Good ideas, next phase.Amanda
Full vote table (all seven ballots)
| Question | Amanda | Scott | Mykola | Rob | Toby | James OC | Matt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Closest overall | D2 | D3 | D3 | D2 | D3 | D3 | D3 |
| Second choice | D3 | D2 | D2 | D3 | D1 | D2 | D2 |
| Info placement | Panel | Corners | Panel | Panel | Strip | Corners | Corners |
| Story format | 4 sections | 4 sections | Paragraph | 4 sections | Paragraph | 4 sections | 4 sections |
| Callout fill | Transparent | Transparent | Transparent | Transparent | Transparent | Solid | Transparent |
| Full stops | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Alignment | Left | Left | Left | Left | Left | Centred | Centred |
| Icons | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Acquisition 1 | Keep | Drop | Drop | Drop | Drop | Keep | Drop |
| Day/night marker | Both | Both | Both | Both | Word | Icon | Word |
| BT scale | Bar | Corner | Bar + Corner | Bar + Corner | Bar | Bar | Corner |
| Attribution | Both options | On imagery | In ref box | On imagery | On imagery | On imagery | In ref box |
| Platform line | Sensor | Sensor | Sensor + other | Sensor | Other | Sensor | Sensor |
| Submitted | Aug 6, 1:53pm | Aug 6, 1:43pm | Aug 6, 12:51pm | Aug 6, 11:57am | Aug 6, 11:46am | Aug 5, 4:41pm | Aug 4, 1:14pm |
Source: the SatVu Vignette Template feedback form (Notion), answers collected 4-6 August 2026. 7 of the 9 people invited voted; as agreed, not voting counts as going with the group. "Decided" means 5 or more of the 7 agreed. "Needs the call" means the vote was too close, so Hanna and Amanda choose. Where someone ticked two options on one question, both ticks are counted and it says so in the small print.