My journey with typography included falling in love with movie title sequences and a jaw- dropping awe of Saul Bass – Psycho, Anatomy of a Murder, Not with My Wife,You Don’t! His use of type and image-builds to evoke story is inspiring. He is renowned in print and film.
http://www.artofthetitle.com/designer/saul- bass/titles/
I am a recovering perfectionist and blame all of the fabulous teachers I have had throughout my design journey for making me this way (and my parents). Bad typography is one of my pet peeves and the entrance of the computer for design and publishing is to blame for an onslaught of BAD typography. I have seen student and professional work that just makes me cringe – there seems to be a lack of awareness and appreciation for good type – can we please stop using Comic Sans – it’s designed as a speech bubble font! For those who complain about the over-use of Helvetica, respect what it did for type design, watch the documentary Helvetica, by Gary Hustwit.
http://www.helveticafilm.com/
Presentation software – especially Microsoft Power Point – often used by agencies, corporations and students, has destroyed all standards of typogra- phy. It is presentation software ONLY. Don’t try to over-design with it. Go for simple clean/clear communication. Use the classics like Helvetica, easy to read and neutral or Futura – understated yet elegant and very readable. For a bolder distinct serif use Rockwell or try Garamond for a profes- sional and clean serif.
One of my students used a typewriter font for a presentation on a tech gadget and I wanted to run from the room. Forget that the font persona didn’t mesh with the story and was distracting. The font auto-spacing at a large point size was hideous with kerning that was too tight or had gaping holes and the word spacing made it difficult to read.
If you are using Display fonts or small amounts of copy take the time to fix kerning and word spacing. This is easier to do in design software like Adobe Illustrator.
This is a great game to test/improve your kerning skills.
http://type.method.ac/
I liken font choices to dress (fashion). Would you wear a clown outfit to a black-tie event? There is a time for experimentation and pushing boundaries this is not a referendum on being creative. Be appropriate. Don’t know what that means? Most fonts were designed with a specific purpose or inspired by an insight/need. For basic presentation or straightforward communication choose fonts that are workhorses. Familiarize yourself with the family, the range of functionality (Open Type) differ- ent weights/cuts and the versatility that allows them to be used again and again like Helvetica Neue. Have a strategy behind what fonts and versioning you use and realize the constraints of your medium e.g. web vs. print.
Understand the various buckets of typefaces, it helps you make informed choices – just as you might have a spring, summer, fall and winter ward- robe – dressing for the season. This is a quick tool and an interesting site with some good learning
http://typedia.com/learn/only/typeface- classifications/
If you are going to mix and match typefaces, like adding an accessory to an outfit – make a statement. Small differences that are neither here nor there look that way and tend to just add vanilla noise or look like an error.
Type as a design element can be engaging and a time to break the rules. There are always new trends in typography. Handwritten fonts are trend- ing as are flat fonts like Transat and the trend of mixing and matching fonts that appear hand crafted yet polished like Mercury Script. Make time for typography – it’s fun and done well it is
T POWERFUL. Josephine Eke
VP Design Intelligence Recovering Perfectionist
abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36