The Basics of Typography
Paul Rand a famous graphic designer was quoted saying “Typography is an art. Good typography is Art.”
Typography is defined as the art or process of setting and arranging type for printing. However typography is used in so much more than just the printing process, it is any visual form of type. Web designs, e-blasts, and TV commercials all use the art of typography.
Type should never be neglected. In advertising, type can make or break a design. If type isn’t aligned properly, or if there are gaps and spacing issues it can completely throw off the project. One letter out of place can prevent the natural flow of a design. The human mind wants things to be orderly and patterned. When people see imperfections their eyes automatically navigate towards it. Good designers can use this principle to their advantage. Sometimes they will purposely put a letter or word out of place to help it get noticed.
Many businesses try to tell their whole story in their advertisements. They should remember to keep copy simple and to the point. It is difficult to make type look good is when there is an abundance of copy and only a little space to work with. A message doesn’t have to be a book to be effective – A picture is worth a thousand words. Copy should be simple, creative, strong, and have a powerful impact.
The following are some basic elements of typography.
Alignment – Left, Center, Right, or Justified
Typeface – Roman, Italic, Bold, light, Condensed, E x t e n d e d
Tracking – Kerning and Letter-spacing.
- Kerning is the adding or removing the space between 2 letters.
- Letter-spacing is the adding or removing of space between all the letters.
Leading – The white space between lines
