What Is Font And Letter Style

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

3.1 Balance

Balance refers to the arrangement of all the elements within the given design and the visual weight each has in relation to the total composition. A balanced layout creates a sense of is an equilibrium between the structure an d the content:

A composition is in symmetrical balance when the weight of all its elements is evenly placed around a central vertical or horizontal axis. Elements within symmetrical balanced compositions are generally of the same size, colour or texture. Asymmetrical balance involves the uneven arrangement of elements with different sizes around a central axis.

Balance can be used to

* Create structure and order within layout

* Group information or to create focal areas

3.2 Rhythm

Rhythm refers to the repetition or alteration of elements within a layout. Rhythm can create the illusion of movement and can establish pattern and texture. Rhythm can evoke different emotions when the intervals between the elements are regular or irregular, flowing or in progressive steps

3.3 Emphasis and dominance

Emphasis refers to the dominant area of a layout where the eye goes first. Emphasis can be created through line, shape, form, colour, size or placement. There are three stages of emphasis; dominant, sub-dominant and subordinate.

* Dominant: The element is given most visual weight and appears on the foreground of the composition.

* Sub-dominant: The element appears in the middle ground of the composition.

* Subordinate: The element appears in the background of the layout with very little visual weight.

3.4 Harmony

Harmony refers to the relationship between all the elements within a layout as a whole. Its function is to emphasize the similarity of separate but related parts. Harmony is the golden thread in a layout that ties the composition together. It could be the complimentary colour usage though out the layout or the consistent appearance of negative space.

Formative assessment task 6: Principles of design within a layout

For this task you need to collect and present different examples of good page layout designs which illustrate the effective use of the following principles of design best.

* Balance (Symmetrical and asymmetrical balance)

* Rhythm (regular and irregular rhythm, flowing and progressive steps)

* Emphasis

* Harmony

Task requirements:

PowerPoint presentation with a title page and a minimum of 8 content pages. Your presentation should include examples of print design and web design.

Assessment criteria

Rating Achievement

No

1

2

3

4

5

1

Is your work complete and done according to the task requirements?

2

Did you prepare yourself for your presentation?

3

Does your presentation include good layout design examples which illustrate the following principles of design:

* Balance (Symmetrical and asymmetrical balance)

* Rhythm (regular and irregular rhythm, flowing and progressive steps)

* Emphasis

* Harmony

4

Did you add new information to this topic?

4. How to design a layout

Before you can start plan or design a layout you need to:

* Make sure you understand the task that is required from you as well what resources you would need to complete the task. Also you need to know when it should be reviewed and submitted.

* Identify and understand the purpose of your publication, web site or presentation. (How do you want people to engage with your design message?)

* Identify to who you need to communicate to. Consider your target audience interests and style.

* Choose the most appropriate type of media to communicate with your audience (Web page, printed book, electronic newsletter or brochure etc.

* Identify all layout specifications: page format, size, margins grids or temples

* Identify the primary message you want to present and then select how you want to present it to your audience. Do you want to communicate through typography, photographs or illustration? Which element would be most effective or would a combination of all be more effective?

After you have identified all the above you first need to plan your layout on paper. You need to:

* Draw a thumbnail sketch illustrating the correct page format you need to create. Note down the correct page size of your final layout.

* Indicate all margins or template specifications

* Illustrate where you want to place all text. Draw headline, subheading and body copy with different size text boxes.

* Illustrate where you want to place photographs. How big they should be and if they should be in the fore, middle or background of the layout.

* Review your thumbnail sketch to see of all the elements within the layout are composed in balance and that your arrangement allows for negative space. Make sure there is a focus area within your layout and note down next to your thumbnail sketch what colours you are going to use to achieve this focus area or visual mood.

* Sketch out different layout solutions and choose then the best composition.

Now that you have a well planned layout thumbnail sketch you need to re-draw your layout on your computer.

Formative assessment task 7: Plan and create a layout

For this task you need to plan and create a digital movie poster layout. You need to use the following information as well as design specification to create the poster layout.

Title of movie: Death of the Ring Master Part II

Actors names: Tebogo Mashia and Belinda Le Roux

Director: Pete Meyer

Viewer discretion sign: Violent, strong language and not suitable for children under 16 years

Main visual: Could be an illustration or a photograph of a scene in the movie or of the two actors in action

Design specification:

Poster size: A3 portrait, 72 dpi

Saved in PDF format

Task requirements:

You need to submit all your planning (reference images and thumbnail sketches)

Digital poster must be A3 portrait, 72 dpi saved in PDF format

Assessment criteria

Rating Achievement

No

1

2

3

4

5

1

Is your work complete and done according to the task requirements?

2

Did you plan the poster layout according to the task requirements and design specifications?

3

Did you consider the elements of design within your layout?

4

Did you consider the principles of design within your layout?

5

Did you compose your poster effectively considering your target audience interests?

6

Is your digital poster saved correctly?

7

Is your poster design original and creative?

E. Explain and demonstrate typographic skills

Before you design any print or web layout you need to think about how text will appear in your design. You need to think about:

* Its physical appearance and its character variety. Does the typeface personality compliment your message and is it suitable for all the information you need to communicate?

* Where and how are you going position all the text within your layout? Are you going to create headlines and subheadings to guide the reader or are you going to group all the information in creative shapes?

* How you will control the spacing between letters, words and sentences to enhance readability?

* And in what colour are you going to write your text?

1. What is font and letter style?

A font is a group of characters, such as letters, numbers and punctuation marks which share a common design or style. Within a font group there are different type families. A type family refers to the different style varieties a font is available in. Type families include the following character varieties:

* Bold; indicating the character thickness

* Light; indicating the character compression and

* Italic; indicating the character stance

A font family refers to the generalised characteristics that are common in a specific group of fonts. The group of several fonts display a similar design style. For example the font Times is a font family which is made up of different individual fonts like Times Roman, Times Italic and Times Bold.

Letter style refers to the artistic appearance of a typeface. Typefaces are commonly classified by their appearance as Blackletter, Roman, Monospaced and Symbol typefaces.

Figure 1. 30 Examples of letter styles and their typefaces

Classification

Typeface

Blackletter or Gothic classification refers to typefaces that have a heavy calligraphic style. They were the first European fonts and were commonly used in the printing of bibles and official documents. Blackletter fonts are suitable for writing short words or very short sentences.

Wilhelm Klingspor Gotish Type family

Roman fonts are probably the most popular font family used when designing books, newspapers and magazines. Roman fonts are sub-classified as serif, sans serif, ornamental, and script types

* Serif classification refers to typefaces which have small letter serifs (tails) at the end of each letterform. These typefaces are ideal to use when designing official print documents with large amounts of text.

* Sans serif classification refers to typefaces that are without letter serifs (tails). These typefaces look more modern in shape and are commonly used in web design and screen presentations.

* Ornamental, novelty or display typefaces are not made up out of the usual letters of the alphabet but from decorative symbols, ornaments or pictures of different objects or animals. Display fonts are also theme driven and are only used for decorative purposes. Display fonts are not suitable for large blocks text. But they are ideal to use when designing typographic logos or themed invitation cards

* Script classification refers to typefaces that look like handwriting or calligraphy. Script typefaces are not suitable for body text, but are ideal for logo designs or invitation cards.

Alexandria serif font family

Basic Commercial Light is part of a

sans serif font family

The Not Paper-vanding is an

ornamental typeface

Burguese Script

Monospaced fonts are typefaces in which every character width size is the same size. Unlike variable-width fonts, where the w and m are wider than most letters, and the i is narrower Monospace font characters are the same size.

These typefaces were designed for typewriters which could only move the same distance forward with each letter typed. Monospaced fonts are ideal to use when designing logos and letterheads and are still important for computer programming.

Garland mono is a monospaced font

Symbol or Dingbat typefaces are not made up from normal text characters but consist out of symbols such as arrows, decorative bullets, cars, etc. Other examples include ZapfDingbats, Wingdings and Sonata.

ZapfDingbats

When one is working on a design that would have to be translated from English to an African Language like isiXhosa, one needs to pay attention to the selection of letter styles as the design might be affected by the translation. In the isiXhosa language we find words are longer than they are in English which can cause problems in designs where space is limited.

Figure 1. 31

Examples of differing lengths of text in translation

2. Character spacing size, character width and line spacing

There are standard text formatting option which can help you control the character size as well as controlling the spacing between letters and text lines. Below are the standard formatting options you can use.

Figure 1. 32 Standard formatting options

Changing character size:

Points or pixel sizes are the unit measurement to measure type. Points are used in print media and pixels in web design. When a character is measured as 12 pt. or 12px this refers to the actual text block size where the character appears.

Character sizes can be adjusted to create focus areas or to direct the order of reading.

Changing the space between characters:

* Tracking can be used to create bigger spaces between characters

* Kerning can be used to reduce the space between characters

* Letter spacing refers to smaller more precise spacing adjustments between characters to make words fit within a particular design area or to create an artistic effect.

Changing the space between lines:

* Leading refers to the distance that designers can use between lines of text. Appropriate leading distances can enhance the readability of a large body of text.

* Alignment refers to the placement or anchoring of text in a text box. Text can be aligned to the left, right or centre of the text box.

3. How to design a character

Before you can design your own typeface characters you first need to think about how you want your typeface to look and what personality it should have. You need to ask yourself the following questions:

* Where do you want to use this typeface and for what purpose?

* Is it going to have the characteristics of a Roman Serif, Sans Serif, Ornamental or Script typeface?

* Is the typeface going to be masculine or feminine?

* Is it going to be playful or corporate, long and thin or short and fat (line characteristics)?

After identifying all this information you can start to design your own font characters. You need to:

* Draw a baseline where your characters will sit.

* Indicate the maximum height of all the lower case letters with your X-height line

* Draw an ascent line which indicates the maximum distance above the baseline or the highest point for letters such as f, l and h

* Indicate also the descent line which would illustrate the maximum distance below the baseline or the lowest point of letters g, j and y

* Now you can determine your total character or font height by measuring the total vertical height of the distance between the ascent and descent lines.

* You can also indicate how wide you want your character to be

* Draw a character in the character box and then experiment with line thickness and line direction. You can extend serifs or make them curly.

* You can also replace your character line with illustrations of different objects like tree branches or leaves.

Figure 1. 34 Designing a font or character set

4. How to design a logo

Before you can design a logo you need to understand what a logo is. A logo is a unique symbol or design which represents a company.

There are two basic logo types:

* Typographic logos

* Symbolic or Iconic logos

Typographic logos consist only out of words (Company names, initials or abbreviations). These words are generally illustrated in typefaces with personalities which relate or complement the company�s business values. Each character within these logos is precisely spaced to create a visual message or mood. Sometimes the typography become illegible and appears to be an abstract illustration.

Figure 1. 33 Typographic logos

Logo one: 360 Design Typographic logo. Designed by Abby Cooper

Logo two: Killed Production Typographic logo Designed by Anonymous

Symbolic or iconic logos include the name of the company with a symbol or small illustration above, next to or underneath it. These logos can be very descriptive or very abstract. Descriptive logos illustrate clearly who and what the company is all about. There abstract symbolic logos could just consist of a colour block or tick mark which represents the company name and values.

Figure 1. 34 Typographic logos

Logo one: Balloon Chef Symbolic logo. Designed by Anonymous

Logo two: Cafe Unplugged Symbolic logo. Designed by Anonymous

Any type of logo design should be simple, memorable, timeless and versatile. Complex designs with too many elements clutter the design message (company values) and are not easy to identify or remember. Those types of designs are difficult to extend into different media, scales or formats.

When designing a logo your planning should always reflect the consideration as well as implementation of the elements and principles of design. (For more information review FET Multimedia design Level 2 Topic 3 Rendering and typographic skills, section 2: Recognise and develop basic design skills)

Formative assessment task 8: Basic logo design

For this task you need to plan and design a typographic logo as well as a symbolic logo for a local hair salon.

* You need to plan each logo with different thumbnail sketches illustrating your understanding of how to use the elements and principles of design.

* You need to choose the best designs and the recreate the logos on your computer

* Remember the five principles of logo design to guide you with your design

* Remember less is more

* Tweak all the elements in the logo so that it appears balanced and illustrates one message.

Task requirements:

All planning as well as thumbnail sketches must be submitted

The final logos should be placed on a A4 digital page and saved as a PDF on a A4 page

Assessment criteria

Rating Achievement

No

1

2

3

4

5

1

Did you follow all the task requirements?

2

Did you plan both logos with different thumbnail sketches illustrating different ideas and logo compositions

3

Does your typographic logo consist only of type and does it:

* Communicate a visual message

* Does the visual message illustrate the values and service of the company

4

Does your symbolic logo consist of type and a symbol or illustration?

Does the logo:

* Communicate a visual message

* And does the visual message illustrate the values and service of the company

5

Do your logos reflect one or all the five principles of logo design?

* Simple,

* memorable,

* timeless

* versatile

5. Design various items employing typographic skills

For the task below you need to design a business card, letterhead, events card, poster, calendar and catalogue. In order to do so you need to review how the elements and principles of design can help you to design effective as well as creative layouts. You also need to plan each design with various thumbnail sketches to find the best layout solution for each design problem. Below is a short descriptive list of all the design elements you need to create.

5.1 Business card

A business card is a small printed card with a company or person�s contact details.

Figure 1. 35 Business cards

Business card one: Sunshine Orchard designed by Mike Weinhandl

Business card two: Sergej Melissen Creative Director designed by Accentuante

5.2 Letterhead

A letterhead refers to the official company or organisation heading on a sheet of letter paper (stationery). The heading usually consists of the company logo or an element of the corporate design, name, address and contact details; telephone and fax numbers and website address.

Figure 1. 36 Letterheads

Image one: a letterhead which is the official stationery

Image two: Betrix corporate identity with the letterhead

5.3 Events cards

An events card is a written request sent to a person asking for his or her presence at an event. These cards are also called invitation cards. They usually include information about the event such as the date, time and location. Events cards are commonly sent out for birthday parties, weddings and other special events

Figure 1. 37 Event card

Events card: End of year variety show invitation card designed by Scionlight Design

5.4 Posters

A poster is a large printed notice or sign which advertises or publicises something. Posters usually include photographs or illustration, a headline and subheadings, dates, times and locations, as well as costs.

Figure 1. 38 Posters

Poster one: BPA 2010 National Leadership Conference.

Designed by BaLegend

Poster two: Split Kingdom Nightclub events poster.

Designed by Beaucoup Zero

5.5 Calendar

A basic calendar is an illustrated table or register illustrating the days of each month and weeks in a year.

Figure 1. 39 Calendar

Antalis � Singapore Calendar.

Art directed by Felix NgSlint

5.6 Catalogue

A catalogue is a creatively designed list or itemised display which could include titles and descriptions as well as photographs or illustrations of services or items on offer or sale.

Figure 1. 40 Catalogue

Supercars Asia 2012 is a promotional 8 page catalogue featuring the new Lamborghini

launched in Shanghai (China) and Florida (America). Designed by: RAY2 ONG

Formative assessment task 9: Business card and letterhead

For this task you need to plan and design a typographic logo, business card and letterhead for a company of your own choice.

You need to plan the logo with different thumbnail sketches illustrating your understanding of how to use the elements and principles of design when working with typography.

* You need to choose the best logo design and the recreate the logo on your computer.

* Tweak all the letter characters within the logo so that it appears balanced and illustrates one message.

Now use your final logo design to plan a business card and letterhead. Sketch your different ideas out and then recreate the best layout on your computer.

* Your business card size must be: 90 x 50mm, 300dpi

* The letterhead should be done on a A4 page 300dpi

Task requirements:

All planning as well as thumbnail sketches must be submitted

Final business card and letterhead should be printed, cut out and mounted for submission.

Assessment criteria

Rating Achievement

No

1

2

3

4

5

1

Did you follow all the task requirements?

2

Did you plan your logo with different thumbnail sketches illustrating different typographic compositions?

3

Does your typographic logo consist only of type and does it:

* Communicate a visual message?

* And does the visual message illustrate the values and service of the company?

4

Are the business card and letterhead designed in the correct size?

5

Do the business card and letterhead include all necessary information?

6

Did you choose the correct font(s) for the:

* Logo?

* Business card?

* Letterhead?

7

Did you apply letter and line spacing correctly as well as creatively?

8

Are your logo, business card and letterhead attractive and do they communicate the company�s values?

Formative assessment task 10: Events card and poster design

For this task you need to plan and design a Valentine�s Day Party events card, as well as street poster to advertise the event.

You need to plan the events card and poster with different thumbnail sketches illustrating your understanding of how to use the elements and principles of design when working with typography, photographs and illustrations.

* You need to choose the design and then recreate it on your computer.

* Tweak all the letter characters in each design so that it appears balanced and illustrates one message.

* The events card size must be: 120 x 210 mm, 300dpi

* Poster size: A3, 300dpi

Task requirements:

All planning as well as thumbnail sketches must be submitted

Final events card and poster design should be printed, cut out and mounted for submission.

Assessment criteria

Rating Achievement

No

1

2

3

4

5

1

Did you follow all the task requirements?

2

Did you plan your events card and poster with different thumbnail sketches illustrating different approaches to:

* Typography layout?

* Photographic treatment?

* Illustrations?

3

Did you design the events card and poster in the correct size?

4

Does your events card:

* Include all necessary information?

* Communicate a �Valentine�s Day Party� visual message?

* Did you choose the correct font(s) to illustrate this message?

* Did you apply letter and line spacing correctly?

* Did you choose or create the correct photography or illustrations to communicate this message?

* Is the card layout creative?

5

Does your Poster:

* Include all necessary information?

* Communicate a �Valentine�s Day Party� visual message?

* Did you choose the correct font(s) to illustrate this message?

* Did you apply letter and line spacing correctly?

* Did you choose or create the correct photography or illustrations to communicate this message?

* Is the poster layout creative?

Formative assessment task 11:

For this task you need to plan and design different digital calendar pages according to the following specifications:

Page no

Page size

Artwork

Information

1

A3 portrait

72dpi

Vector drawing illustrating Summer

February

2

A3 landscape

72dpi

Photograph illustrating Autumn

April and May

3

A3 portrait

72dpi

Typographic layout illustrating the word Winter

July

4

A3 landscape

72dpi

Hand drawing illustrating Spring

September and November

You need to plan each page with different thumbnail sketches illustrating your understanding of how to use the elements and principles of design when working with typography, photographs or illustrations.

* You need to choose the designs and then recreate it on your computer.

* Tweak all the letter characters within each the design so that they appear balanced and illustrate one message � the theme of the page

Task requirements:

All planning as well as thumbnail sketches must be submitted

All calendar pages must be saved as one PDF file.

Assessment criteria

Rating Achievement

No

1

2

3

4

5

1

Did you follow all the task requirements?

2

Did you plan each calendar page with different thumbnail sketches illustrating different approaches to:

* Typographic layout?

* Photographic treatment?

* Illustrations?

3

Did you design each calendar page in the correct size?

4

Does each page:

* Illustrate all necessary information?

* Communicate the correct visual theme?

* Did you choose the correct font(s) to illustrate each different theme?

* Did you apply letter and line spacing correctly?

* Did you choose or create the correct photograph, illustration or typographic layout to communicate each theme?

* Are your page layouts creative?

Formative assessment task 12:

For this task you need to plan and design a 4 page A5 digital catalogue for a car manufacturer illustrating one of their 4 x4 vehicles or sports motors. The catalogue should meet the following specifications:

Page no

Page size

Artwork

Information

1 Front cover

A5 landscape

72dpi

Full page photograph of the vehicle

Logo of manufacture

Vehicle make

2

A5 landscape

72dpi

2 different photographs illustrating interior detail of the vehicle

Description of interior detail

3

A5 landscape

72dpi

2 different photographs illustrating exterior detail of the vehicle

Description of exterior detail

4

A5 landscape

72dpi

Half page photograph of the vehicle

Table of vehicle specifications and dealer contact information

You need to plan each page layout with different thumbnail sketches illustrating your understanding of how to use the elements and principles of design when working with typography and photographs

* You need to choose the best page layouts and the recreate them on your computer.

* Tweak all typography within each layout so that it appears balanced and illustrates one message

Task requirements:

All planning as well as thumbnail sketches must be submitted

All catalogue pages must be saved as one PDF file.

Assessment criteria

Rating Achievement

No

1

2

3

4

5

1

Did you follow all the task requirements?

2

Did you plan each catalogue page with different thumbnail sketches illustrating different approaches to:

* Typographic layout?

* Photographic treatment?

3

Did you design each catalogue page in the correct size?

4

Does each page:

* Illustrate all necessary information?

* Communicates the correct visual theme?

- Outdoor 4x4 or

- Urban elegance

* Did you choose the correct font(s) to illustrate each different theme?

* Did you apply letter and line spacing correctly?

* Did you choose the correct photographs to compliment your design theme?

* Are your page layouts creative?

Multimedia Basics Level 3 � Topic 1: Design Theory

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