Transcript Principles of Designing with Type

Lesson 2.2
Principles of Designing with Type
PHOTOSHOP
DOWN & DIRTY TRICKS TOUR
Principles of Designing with Type
1. Weight
2. Scale
3. Letter spacing
4. Contrasting form
 We’re going to start with one of the “oldest
tricks in the book” (so to speak), & we use this
trick when combining 2+ fonts to create
logos, nameplates, etc.—it’s the design
concept of “contrast”
 Graphic designers use contrast as 1 of the key
building blocks of page layout & design &
type design is . . . well . . . Design!
 We use the same concepts, we just apply
them to type
Weight
 Varying the weight of your fonts is an easy
way to create instant contrast
 For example, use a very thick typeface with a very
thin one
 In fact, if you want an almost guarantee that a
combination will work, use 2 fonts, with vastly
different weights, from the same type family
 Like matching Futura Light or Medium with
Futura Extra Bold
 It’s a can’t miss mixture!
 Example: www.kelbystudio.com/portfolio
 Website: what’s important is where you are
on the site—in this case, the Portfolio page,
so that’s the word you want in bold—it’s more
important
 Tip: when it comes to type, the heavier the
weight the more important the message
 This tip also carries over to laying out a page, like in a
brochure, newsletter, magazine, etc.
 The headline is the most important thing on the
page, so it would get the heaviest weight of the
typeface you’re using
 Ex: if you’re using Helvetica, then you might choose
Helvetica Black
 Then the subhead below that, would get a lesser weight,
like Helvetica Bold
 Then for your body, you’d use Helvetica Regular
 Another great example is from Hummer ads to see
how effectively they have used contrasting weights
Scale
FRONTGATE
OUTFITTING AMERICA’S FINEST HOMES
 Here’s another way to create contrast with
your type: big with little
 Ex: the logo for home accessory catalog company
Frontgate who has a simple but effective look
using 1 large word, with a line of very small text
below it
 This is a simple technique—mixing scale
where 1 word is huge & the other word is
much smaller—yet very effective (& very
popular)
Letter Spacing
 Another popular method for creating
contrast is to use letter spacing to visually
separate 2 blocks of text
 Ex: the Westin Hotel chain
 The word Westin appears in large type, & the
subhead appears in smaller type, which provides
the 1st level of contrast, but what really makes
their logo work is the wide letterspacing (tracking)
between the letters in their tagline (over 400
tracking, as shown here)
 That extra space between the letters is a trick
we use to add elegance—the more space
between letters, the more luxurious the logo
appears
 Combine the 2– a tightly tracked name, with
a loosely tracked subhead or tagline--& it
creates great contrast & gives us added
elegance
 To increase the letterspacing (adding more
space between letters), highlight the text,
then hold Alt & 
 To decrease the letterspacing (tighten the
space between letters), highlight the text,
then hold Alt & 
Contrasting Form
 Need another idea for creating contrast?
 How about form?
 Mixing 1 word with all uppercase letters, with
another word (or phrase) in all lowercase—or vice
versa
 Ex: how about trying 1 word being roman, the
next word being italic (or vice versa like the
example shown here), using Garamond
Condensed for the italic, & Helvetica Black for the
roman type?
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