[Typography] Project 2
24.10.2018 - 31.10.2018 (Week 9 - Week 10)
Zoe Wong Zen Yee (0336770)
Typography
Project 2 - Font Design
Lecture Notes
24.10.2018 (Week 9)
There was no lecture today. We were briefed and started on our Project 2 which is Font Design.
31.10.2018 (Week 10)
There was no lecture today as well. We were briefed about creating our own typeface with FontLab. After that, we proceed with our projects and was briefed about our Final Project.
Instructions
Project 2: Font Design
Week 9 - Week 10
On the first week, we were asked to dissect and research a letter from our initials. For me, I chose the letter 'Z' of my initials. I chose the font ITC New Baskerville Std Roman and the letter in capitals.
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| Fig 1.0 My dissect of the letter 'Z'. |
After we were done dissecting the letter, we were told to choose three letters from our initials and design fonts from the typeface that we have chosen. I chose to design the letters 'W', 'Y' and 'Z' from my initials.
For me, as I am dealing with a serif typeface, I decided to change the serifs into a steep type, instead of just straight lines in which we normally see. In order to further understand the structure of the other two letters, I dissected the letter 'Y' and 'W' as well.
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| Fig 1.1 Dissection of letter 'W' |
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| Fig 1.2 Dissection of 'Y'. |
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| Fig 1.3, 1.4 Sketches done to design the letters. |
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| Fig 1.5 Final sketch of the design of letters after feedback from lecturers. |
Next, I digitized the font in Adobe Illustrator by using pen tool.
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| Fig 1.6 My final outcome for the letters. |
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| Fig 1.7 Compilations of the work done |
After we were done digitizing the letters, we have to generate our designs in FontLab. First in Adobe Illustrator, we use pathfinder to merge our letters into a whole. Then we put it into FontLab to generate it.
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| Fig 1.8 Outline of the letter put into FontLab. |
Next, I done kerning of the letters to correct the space between letters in FontLab.
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| Fig 1.9 Kerning of the letters in FontLab. |
After I'm done with it, I generate the font and install it into my computer. I try to type it out in Adobe Illustrator after I installed it.
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| Fig 1.10 Trying out to type the letters in Adobe Illustrator. There are some weird logo shape in the letter as I'm using a demo version of the FontLab. |
Feedback
Week 9
Mr Vinod commented that my design is okay and that I need to make more research on the respective letters. I also have to take notice of the curves of the serifs so that the letter will be more balanced. Other than that, some serifs of the letter, for example the letter 'Z', doesn't have to be exactly the same size as the other serifs so that the overall design for the letter will be more balanced.
Week 10
For the booklet, Mr Shamsul told me the title should be place more in the center of the page and that the white space above and below of the box is not balanced. Other than that, the gray box surrounding my contents should be larger as to make it less cramp and tight.
Reflection
Experiences
Week 9
It is interesting to design our own typeface (font). It is interesting to know that there are a lot of minor, or even micro details in a font that we are using.
Week 10
I feel more relaxed as I am able to finish everything in the day. On the other hand, I get to know that design has no end and there will never be a perfect design.
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Observation
Week 9
I noticed that every lines and curves in a design of a letter matters no matter how big or how small it is. A little change in the lines might let the outcome of the design feel unbalanced.
Week 10
I noticed that my classmates' designs are very different from each other and each has their own characteristic.
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Findings
Week 9
I found out that designing a font may not required to design a whole new thing, but slight changes in details of the font will give out a whole new feeling.
Week 10
I realized that we are able to generate our own font with FontLab and is able to use it in our work. I was also able to understand the process of generating a typeface digitally.
Further Reading
Week 9
Type Team: Perfect Typeface Combination by Tony Seddon
Chapter: Principle #8: Serif Shapes and Bracketing
This chapter talks about the different kinds of serifs found in serif letterforms. There are 3 types of serifs, namely hairline, slab (or square), and wedge. They are then further defined as either bracketed or unbracketed.
Hairline serifs are serifs that are thinner than the main strokes of the glyph. Slab serifs are squared with 90-degree corners and can be as heavy or even heavier than a glyph's other stroke. Wedge serifs are triangular and can arguably be described as a relatively modern innovation in terms of printed (but not inscribed) print type.
Serifs also can be either bracketed or unbracketed. A bracketed serif transitions into a smooth curve at a point where it joins a stroke, while an unbracketed serif joins the stroke abruptly, aften at an right angle.
Chapter: Trick #8: Size Matters
In this chapter, it talks about that x-height varies berween different typefaces. Point size is an expression of the body height of a font rather than the size of the glyphs. On the other hand, glyph heights are consistent between fonts within a type family but vary between fonts of the same point size from different families. In order to pair two or more typefaces that have different x-height in a layout where they have to be appear similarly sized, we must visually match the x-heights rather than just set them at the same point size.
Week 10
Type Team: Perfect Typeface Combination by Tony Seddon
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| Fig 2.0 Book cover for 'Type Team: Perfect Typeface Combination' |
This chapter talks about the different kinds of serifs found in serif letterforms. There are 3 types of serifs, namely hairline, slab (or square), and wedge. They are then further defined as either bracketed or unbracketed.
Hairline serifs are serifs that are thinner than the main strokes of the glyph. Slab serifs are squared with 90-degree corners and can be as heavy or even heavier than a glyph's other stroke. Wedge serifs are triangular and can arguably be described as a relatively modern innovation in terms of printed (but not inscribed) print type.
Serifs also can be either bracketed or unbracketed. A bracketed serif transitions into a smooth curve at a point where it joins a stroke, while an unbracketed serif joins the stroke abruptly, aften at an right angle.
Chapter: Trick #8: Size Matters
In this chapter, it talks about that x-height varies berween different typefaces. Point size is an expression of the body height of a font rather than the size of the glyphs. On the other hand, glyph heights are consistent between fonts within a type family but vary between fonts of the same point size from different families. In order to pair two or more typefaces that have different x-height in a layout where they have to be appear similarly sized, we must visually match the x-heights rather than just set them at the same point size.
Week 10
Type Matters! by Jim Williams
Chapter 2: Setting Headlines and Display Type
Selecting a typeface for basically anything is very important of how the message is conveyed to the reader. Typefaces are like clothes for the language. Therefore it is important to select the most appropriate typeface for the message.
The overall shape of the setting is also need to be considered. As per said by the book, it is important to challenge what the computer gives you, because it can't yet make informed typographic decisions. We shouldn't let the computer to control the designers when creating a design, but should be vice versa. There are also times when we need to center some of the lines visually, especially with display settings.
When setting a large display sizes typeface that are designed for text composition, the dots above the lowercase 'j' and 'i' can appear too high. Therefore, we have to lower them down to create a more visually attractive height.
There are also some typefaces that have ink traps. Ink traps were an early development in typeface design to compensate for printing on porous papers. We have to be careful when setting a typeface with ink traps at display sizes, as they can look unsightly.
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| Fig 2.1 Book cover of 'Type Matters!' |
Selecting a typeface for basically anything is very important of how the message is conveyed to the reader. Typefaces are like clothes for the language. Therefore it is important to select the most appropriate typeface for the message.
The overall shape of the setting is also need to be considered. As per said by the book, it is important to challenge what the computer gives you, because it can't yet make informed typographic decisions. We shouldn't let the computer to control the designers when creating a design, but should be vice versa. There are also times when we need to center some of the lines visually, especially with display settings.
When setting a large display sizes typeface that are designed for text composition, the dots above the lowercase 'j' and 'i' can appear too high. Therefore, we have to lower them down to create a more visually attractive height.
There are also some typefaces that have ink traps. Ink traps were an early development in typeface design to compensate for printing on porous papers. We have to be careful when setting a typeface with ink traps at display sizes, as they can look unsightly.
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