TYPOGRAPHY
Typography is, in essence,the type-arrangement art and technique. This is fundamental to a designer’s expertise and is so much more than just making the words legible. Your typeface choice and how you work with your layout, chart, color scheme, etc. will make the difference between good, poor and great design.
A designer took the time, behind the scenes, to understand the relationship between the text’s look and what the text says.
Type exist everywhere from historic time place to everywhere around us. Typography can be intimidating subject but it doesn’t have to be. Even learning few things about typography will make big difference in everything you make.
Common Types of fonts:
Serif — This font have little stroke attached to the main part of the letter. Because of their classic look they are good choice for more traditional project. They are popular in print releases, too.
Sans Serif — They don’t have that extra stroke. Hence the word is french which means without “Serif”. They are considered more clean and modern than serif fonts and tends to be read easier on computer screens including smart phones and tablets.
Display — Comes in many different styles like Script, Blackletter, All Caps and just plain Fancy. Because of their decorative nature, for example title and headers and more graphic heavy designs, they are better suited for small amount of texts.
In a way font have their own language. Beyond the words on the paper, they all have something to say.They can come across casual, neutral, exotic and graphic. That’s why it’s important to think about your message, and choose a suitable font.
Some fonts come with extra baggage like Comic Sans, Curlz, Hobo and many more. There is nothing wrong with these fonts but they have certain reputation of being outdated and over-used. There are many fonts with same look and feel that less likely to distract you from the message you are trying to give.
While deciding which font to use: Less is More
It’s best to use one or two font per project. If you need more contrast try repeating one of your font in a different size, weight or style. This trick is full proof for creating interesting combination that works.
Opposites Attract = The same applies to Fonts
Don’t be afraid to mix different types of font, but complementary to serif, short to big, or decorative to simple, like sans serif.This could be challenging in the first. Look other designs for inspiration ans sooner it will be cooler. Kerning, Leading, Tracking and Hierarchy are the concepts that are essential for creating a professional looking designs.
Some concluding points:
· Use a midpoint for separation rather than a vertical tab or bullet.
· Set body text with a large font size on desktop screens but smaller size on mobile and in prints.
· Keep your line length between 45 and 120 characters however 65 is ideal.
· Set your line height to 1.5 or a little lower. Line Height — 125% or 1.25, since 16*1.25 gives exactly 20.
· Choose a typeface family that contains regular, italic, bold and bold italic styles.
· Use only regular, normal, book or medium weights for body text.
· Never set body text with a display face.
· Avoid setting long stretches of body text with a monospace font.
· Never add letter spacing to body text.
· Don’t add too much space between paragraphs.
· Avoid overusing center-aligned text.
· Avoid justified text on the web.
Originally published at https://medium.com on April 8, 2020.
