comm 3326 graphics app typography

Who created the first typestyles?

Monks

Where was roman style (serif) created

southern europe

where was gothic style (sans serif) created

northern europe

What was the johann gutenberg system (1440)

• first typesetting used in printing

• characters (letters) were carved out of wood & later etched into metal

• individual characters were stored on top & bottom of case (upper case - capital letters, lower case - small letters)

• rows of characters are backwards so that the image was right reading

what is font

a complete alphabet including upper and lower case, numbers, and punctuation marks in one point size and typestyle

what is serif

(roman style) letterforms that have a brush stroke at ends or corners. easier to read in long lengths of type because the serifs visually connect letters creating a flow to the right

• common fonts: times roman, garamond, and courier

what is sans serif

(gothic style) letterforms that do not have extending features at the end of strokes

• common fonts: helvetica and arial

what is the base line

where all letters line up

what is x-height

the body of the letterform

what is the ascender

the stroke above the x-height (like on h, b, l)

what is the descender

the stroke below the x-height (like on p and q)

what are counters

areas entirely or partially enclosed by a letter form (the middle in p, o, d, e)

what is point size

measurement of type size derived from the top of ascender to the bottom of descender

what is leading

the amount of space between lines of text. derives from the usage of a strip of lead placed between lines of text in the gutenberg press. adding additional strips increased the space between lines of text.

leading in body copy

always equal or greater than the point size of the font

leading in display type (headlines)

can be less than the point size

what is letterspacing

the white space between the letters in a block of text

what is kerning/tracking

the adjustment of the horizontal white space between letters in a block of text

how do you kern/track two circular forms

bring closer together by decreasing white space between letters

how do you kern/track two straight forms

pull apart by increasing white space between letters

how do you kern/track two angled forms

bring closer together by decreasing white space between letters

how do you kern/track one angled form and one circular form

bring closer together by decreasing white space between letters

how do you kern/track one angled form and one straight form

leave spacing at default setting

what is the function of type

• to communicate - convey a message

• attract attention - create interest

• set a mood - emphasize emotion

what do lines convey

a mood

what are the two types of line

• curved, circular, round edges

• straight, angular, sharp edges

what are curved/circular/round lines

• properties: found in nature, organic, mother earth, feminine, soft

• emotions: happy, pleasant, free, calming, relaxing, comforting, safe, sensual, loving

what are straight/angular/sharp lines

• properties: man-made, tools, masculine, hard

• emotions: strength, durability, stability, orderly, structured, strict, stern, impressive, angry, stressed, frightening, anxious

what is a curved line?

less stable

what is a round line?

happy & free

what is a straight line

angry & tense

what is light/thin type

• airy, fresh, feminine, elegant, expensive

• product examples: air fresheners, female perfume, female toiletries, diet products

what is regular/medium type

• clean, straightforward

• product examples: corporate

what is bold type

• heavy, durable, strong, masculine

• product examples: tools, trucks, transportation, detergents, cleaning products, male toiletries, toys, toilet paper, diaper

what is extra bold type

• emphasized heavy, durable, strong, masculine

• product examples: bricks, cement, heavy machinery, construction

what is italic type

• motion, direction, speed, sporty

• product examples: metro, bus, cars, train, airplane, horse & dog racing

what are serif styles good for

• headlines and body copy

• traditional, general

what are sans serif styles good for

• headlines, not bodycopy

• contemporary, trendy, straightforward, neutral

what are script styles good for

• headlines, not bodycopy

• flowing, feminine, elegant

what are decorative styles good for

• headlines, not bodycopy

• specific emotions and moods

• can be used in the wrong way

what is flushed left/ragged right bodycopy alignment

the text aligns on the left, leaving it unaligned on the right

what is flushed right/ragged left bodycopy alignment

the text aligns on the right, leaving it unaligned on the left. does not work in long columns of text

what is centered bodycopy alignment

the text aligns to the middle, it is not aligned to the right or left. does not work in long columns. use only in designs that require a few lines of text (headlines, subheads, quotes)

what is justified bodycopy alignment

the text aligns with both the left and the right, leaving rivers of white in columns. can use or not use hyphens. can be used in any shape.

do’s & don’t’s of type in layout

• consistency of typestyle is key, avoid using many types

• headlines: 1-2 typestyles but can use variation of weight

• copy: 1 style

• body copy: user upper/lower case combo, never use all caps, never use decorative styles

• hyphens: never use hyphens in headlines, subheads, or quotes

what is a logo

a graphic representation of a product or company name uniquely designed

what is a logotype

written out name of organization, product, or business

• ex: google, nasa, coca cola, disney, skype

what are lettermarks

letterform combination, take a few letters from your business name and combine them for a logo, letter type is first thing you see

• ex: ibm, adobe

what is a logomark/symbol

the graphic logo

• ex: apple, shell, penguin, target

what is good logo design

• reflects company image (appropriate type character)

• avoid details (simple)

• scalable (reduce in size, still readable)

• works in black and white

• super unit (all elements connect and are balanced)

what makes a logo good?

direct and simple, flat graphics

• ex: nike and amazon

what is a bad logo

busy, lots of details, unhappy or wrong type character

• ex: sherwin williams, kumon