What I learned in a day | GDT Week 3 - Post 1

Type is a fundamental and integral aspect of the graphic design field, that's why is one of the basic topics you have to learn about to grow as a designer.

Some terms might feel like they mean the same but they do not.

Types can be the individual letters or characters used for printing. Type is also a generic way to call text and its style of appearance.

Typography is the study of type. The art of arranging and designing type.

A typeface is a set of letters, numbers, and symbols with a particular and distinctive design. For example: Helvetica, Arial, Times New Roman, among others.

Fonts are the different variations of a typeface. For example: regular, light, bold, etc. When many variations of a single typeface are offered, they become a type family.

A LITTLE PIECE OF HISTORY

Typography is how written communication started. Johannes Gutenberg (a German inventor and craftsman), invented the printing press with movable type around the year 1450. With it, Gutenberg quickened the spread of knowledge in Renaissance Europe. He laid the foundation for commercial books mass production.

GENERAL CLASSIFICATION

Typefaces are divided into different categories such as Old World, Sans-Serif, Slab Serif, Serif, Decorative, Black Letter, Script, Modern, and many others. This category system is necessary to identify them historically, distinguish one typeface from another visually, and help us know how to combine them.

Serif and Sans-Serif typefaces are generally used for headlines or body copy, and Script and Decorative typefaces are usually for headlines (titles).

ANATOMY OF TYPE

HOW IS TYPE MEASURED?

We use inches when we want to adjust the height of type, and for the width of a letter or a line of type, we use picas.

WHY IS TYPOGRAPHY IMPORTANT?

Because is a versatile and powerful element. Typography is not only about selecting fonts, is about how you create a composition and hierarchy with the typeface, font, size, and spacing to ensure a positive impact on any design project. Typography is a crucial element in a composition, it can convey message, aesthetic, and emotion.

A typeface choice sets the tone for the text through the design you choose because every typeface has its own personality. It can convey importance thanks to the font weight (light, regular, etc.), show emphasis with a style (italics, underlining), and the kerning (letter spacing) can create a sense of urgency or the contrary. Also, the color can make the reader create associations, if the text is red, it can be for danger or if is black, it can be for elegance. There are so many aspects to take into consideration when choosing and using a typeface.

Typography is not for everybody; it requires creativity and precision. It is an evolving aspect of graphic design.

If you want to learn about one of the most famous typefaces in history, check this post I made: Typography - The Role of Helvetica.