Typography isn’t just freely drawing a font, there are a wide range of complex components that go into it. I found it beneficial to cover the an atomy of typefaces to familiarise myself with the different forms and variations of typefaces that I will come across. Fonts heights are divided in a range of ways. X-Height determines the height that lowercase letters will reach, determined by the height that the letter X reaches in a font. X-Height ensures that a typeface will appear consistent and neat, as mismatched letter heights would make it difficult to differentiate between lower and uppercase letters, as well as giving the typeface a disorganised appearance.
Serif fonts can be identified by the small strokes at the boarders of letters. These are often seen as more traditional, ideal for printed works such as newspapers or books. Some examples of commonly used serif fonts are Georgia and Bodoni.
Sans-serif fonts are similar, but lack the strokes at the boarders of letters that is seen in serif fonts, making them appear more modern. Some examples of sans-serif fonts are Futura and Helvetica.
Slab-serif fonts are characterised by thick serifs, often resembling a slab or block. Some slab-serif fonts are seen as traditional, but others are seen as more modern as increasing the weight of the font gives it the blocky feel associated with many modern fonts. Some examples of slab-serif fonts are Chaparral and Kulturista.
I used ‘Type Method’ to test my knowledge of typeface formatting. This interactive tool allows users to move letters to positions that they feel are appropriately spaced. I was quite impressed with my score of 84/100, however I did still struggle with some of the formatting.
Type Method - typemethod.ac
Using Figma, I experimented with typography by adding or removing a single element of a letter. I decided upon removing part of the letter and adding an equally sized element elsewhere, giving the appearance that I moved part of it. I completed this activity on two different letters to allow myself to experiment with different shapes. Overall, I was very happy with how this turned out, however I preferred the appearance of the R than the L.
Distorting letters: Figma.
I found this activity very helpful in understanding the basics of typography and how it does not need to be overcomplicated. Both of these slightly altered letters could be seen as some form of logo, despite being very simple. I feel that I will be able to implement this knowledge into future projects to encourage me to avoid overcomplicating designs when possible.
To further experiment with this simple yet effective design approach, I used Figma to merge two letters/numbers. I found this more difficult, as I wanted to ensure that they lined up and blended together perfectly, so this required more complex thinking such as varied fonts, sizes and rotations. Similarly to the last activity, I opted for creating two of these to give myself plenty of opportunities to experiment.
Merging two letters/numbers: Figma.
Kerning refers to the amount of space between letters. Kerning is vital for ensuring good readability of text. Letters too close together will make text difficult to read, while letters too far apart may be mistaken for spaces. In most software, kerning can be adjusted as ‘spacing’. Wider spacing will produce letters further apart, lower spacing will leave them closer together. Kerning also refers to the consistency of spacing between letters. I previously experimented this using the ‘Type Method’ website.
