Typography - Task 3: Type Design & Communication
11/11/24 - 22/12/24 / Week 8 -Week 13
Brendan Fedya / 0376283
Typography / Bachelor of Design (Hons) in
Creative Media / Taylor's University
Task 3: Type Design &
Communication
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. Lectures
II. Instructions
III. Feedbacks
IV. Reflections
V. Further Readings
I. LECTURES
There are no more lectures for this task.
II. INSTRUCTIONS
During Week 7, we were told to dissect the
letters H,o,g,b from the 10 typefaces given since the first task, it's
recommended to use the regular font, not bold, condensed or whatsoever. This
exercise is essential to gain a deeper understanding of elements that shape
the aesthetic appeal and function of a particular letterform.
Moreover, in the next exercise, we are going to make our own fonts. So, some
knowledge about how a typeface is created is still needed. I dissected the
font Adobe Caslon Pro Regular in
Adobe Illustrator with the line segment tool and the ellipse tool.
Figure 2.1: Dissection of letterforms in Adobe Illustrator, Week 8
(14/11/24).
• H, the crossbar connecting 2 vertical lines is placed lower than the
geometrical center, hence it will emphasize the weight of the upper half.
The left vertical stroke serifs are slightly thicker compared to the
opposite, this will draw the eye more to that side.
• o, it has a slightly oval shape rather than a circle which may look a bit
condensed, because the width is narrower than the height. Top left and
bottom right have thicker strokes compared to their opposite, this o is very
asymmetrical at a close glance. I believe this is to give the letter to a
more natural curve, so that it will be easier on the eyes.
• g, this font uses a double-storey form, the upper bowl looks like Adobe
Caslon's 'o' just it's more rounded but still narrow-shaped. Also, it has a
thicker stroke on the left, this is to balance the larger loop at the bottom
(wide-shaped) that looks more projected to the right. The loop below is
curved and delicate, it gets narrower in the direction it closes. The ear
seems like it's extended from the upper bowl into a perfect circle at the
end. These curvy shapes enhance the organic feeling to the letter.
• b, has a serif at the bottom of the vertical stroke, also one at the top
that extends to the left which is heavier. The bowl is slightly offset from
the stem, which appears curved that is similar with other bowls in the font,
looking a bit shifted to the right.
In summary, most of Adobe Caslon Pro's letterforms looks organic and curved, lacking geometrical symmetry. This creates a
more natural and visually pleasing appearance.
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Figure 2.2: Finished dissections, Week 8(14/11/24).
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We were told to sketch our own font (h,o,g,b,H,O,G,B) using 3 different markers on graph paper, which we are going to digitalize one of it. I used MontMarte 4.5 markers where each of them have 2 tip: a flat nib and a brush nib, along with an Artline 3.0 flat nib pen. The result I chose is the MontMarte 4.5 brush nib pen, because I prefer a sans-serif font.
Figure 2.3: Graph paper sketches, Week 8 (13/11/24).
➼ Digitization
After I chose the font I liked the most, I proceed with doing the
digitization in Adobe Illustrator based on the tutorial videos Mr. Vinod
has given us. We were instructed to make these letters and punctuations in
our own style (o l e d s n c h t i g , . ! #).
Firstly I made the guides for the x-height, ascender, descender, and cap
height to maintain the proportions of the letterforms.
Figure 2.4: Setting guidelines, Week 8 (15/11/24).
Figure 2.5: Shaping letterforms, Week 8 (15/11/24).
I merged the letters using pathfinder unite, then removed the unnecessary
anchor points to maximize my control over the curvature tool. I made sure
that the balance of the letterforms I altered has to be maintained.
Figure 2.6: Stylizing process, Week 8 (15/11/24).
I tried using the pen tool to create shapes as elements for my
letterforms, as well as the brush + pathfinder minus method Mr. Vinod
mentioned in the second tutorial video. However, both didn't quite work
as I expected. I find these additional elements were rather distracting
and will reduce the legibility of my letters, so I cancelled it.
Figure 2.7: Improvisation attempt, Week 8 (15/11/24).
From the font that I had dissected in the initial exercise, I applied
some of the methods like utilizing organic curves and movement (some stroke is thicker/thinner than the opposite) to enhance the appearance and natural flow.
I made the all the letters extend over the x-height with curves, but
keep the lower part intact. Some letters (l,n,h) surpass beneath the x-height so that I could be consistent with the
unique characteristics of my letters, which has a triangle oriented
bottom.
Figure 2.8: Finished letterforms and punctuations, first
attempt, Week 8 (15/11/24).
I began to reconstruct the letters all over again because the letters
above are not consistent at all, this time I will refer more to the my
sketch. The 'n' and 'o' will be used as a base to construct other
letters.
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Figure 2.9: Reconstructing letters, Week 9
(18/11/24).
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Figure 2.10: Constructing 's', Week 9 (18/11/24).
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I proceed to digitize other letters as usual while maintaining the same
characteristics throughout the font. The dot of 'i' is used for the base
of the comma, period, and exclamation mark.
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| Figure 2.12: Reconstructing 'e', Week 9 (21/11/24). |
These rules below are some related to my font regarding the making of
punctuations:
1. The dot of 'i' are used for comma, period, and
exclamation mark, but the punctuation "dots" are few points
bigger than the dot of 'i'.
2. Comma is roughly the height of two stacked periods, but the head should be slightly smaller than the
period.
| Figure 2.13: Reconstructing punctuations, Week 10 (25/11/24). |
| Figure 2.14: Adjusting punctuations, Week 11 (2/12/24). |
Here's the comparison between before and after, along with the whole
version:
| Figure 2.15: Comparing punctuations, Week 11 (2/12/24). |
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➼ File Exporting (Adobe Illustrator → FontLab)
First, we have to measure the ascender/descender line, median line, cap
line, and baseline in order to input them in Fontlab accurately. I used
pathfinder unite to combine each of the letter strokes together.
| Figure 2.17: Initial exporting requirements, Week 11 (7/12/24). |
| Figure 2.18: vectorized exporting process , Week 11 (7/12/24). |
We were told to do the sidebearings according to the chart given by Mr.
Vinod, after that we could do kerning for individual letters if they
still seem weird. Firstly, I put the letter
g,s,t the chart stated that letters could only be spaced according to
our eye, which then I inputted 50 for both sides of the letters.
| Figure 2.19: Inputting sidebearing, Week 11 (7/12/24). |
On the next step, I could now adjust my kerning easily. I used
different combination of those 3 letters to make sure my kerning
fits the letter without looking unusual.
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| Figure 2.21: Sidebearing table, Week 11 (7/12/24). |
| Figure 2.22: Calibrating letters, Week 11 (7/12/24). |
Then, I used ChatGPT to help me generate words
with the available letters, because I wanted to
test out how the letters work together in a proper
word. If, it doesn't look right then I will just
adjust the kerning again. Additionally, I adjusted
the punctuations sidebearings and kerning
according to my eye, because we were not given an
adjustment chart about it.
| Figure 2.23: Final tweaking, Week 11 (8/12/24). |
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Mr. Vinod said my exclamation mark and hashtag is too thick,
I should compare it to my other letters and remake it. So, I
did it again in Illustrator, the exclamation mark now is
based of the letter 'i' to have a more cohesive appearance with the other
letters. As for the hashtag, I just thinned out the strokes.
| Figure 2.25: Punctuation revision, Week 12 (9/12/24). |
➼ Posterized
Font
Then we were tasked to input the font that we
have created into a poster in Illustrator. It's
to showcase our font in a more interesting way.
My font name is
Fractune
which is derived from the word
'fractured', this is because the font has
sharp edges with fractured textures on it.
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➼ Final
Submission (Font Construction & Poster)
The font is available for download here below:
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| Figure 2.32: Final font construction "Fractune" - PDF, Week 13 (16/12/24). |
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Figure 2.33: Final poster "Fractune" - PDF, Week 13 (16/12/24). |
III. FEEDBACKS
‣ Week 8 (Independent Learning Week)
‣ Week 9
General Feedback:
• Every letterforms have to be consistent,
that's why the process could only be proceed after every letters has the same
progression.
• Letter 't' never reaches the ascender height,
's' should be smaller at the top- bigger at the bottom.
• Punctuation cannot be too decorative.
Specific Feedback:
• Letters are all inconsistent, this is because
too much usage of the curvature tool. On top of that, I used different
curvature vectors on EACH OF THE LETTERFORMS, that makes it even worse.
‣ Week 10
General Feedback:
• Some letters have to be narrower in a
typeface to maintain the same visual appearance as the others.
Specific Feedback:
• Using the pathfinder minus for additional
effect is already fine, but the terminal of 't' has to be removed to
maintain the same width with other letters.
• Punctuation needs to be fully revised, look
at the newest instructions Mr. Vinod had given in Microsoft Teams, or
just click here.
‣ Week 11
General Feedback:
• Should watch the tutorial video slowly,
if you missed just a few of the instructions given, your transfer from
Adobe Illustrator to Fontlab might have problems.
Specific Feedback:
• The comma has to be bigger, because all the
punctuations seems a little smaller compared to the letters. This will
become more visible when arranging a sentence. Other letters are all good.
‣ Week 12
General Feedback:
• Kernings should only be set after all the
sidebearings have been done referred to the chart, it is to fix some awkward
counterspace between letters and that is very minimal if you follow the
chart correctly.
• Make the words big to make the font
impactful, if you want to make it small you can make many copies with it.
Specific Feedback:
• Fix the hashtag and exclamation mark,
they're too thick compared to the other letterforms.
• Don't play with blacks yet on the poster,
the impact of the text is the most important. Make it bigger, more
prominent, and just keep it simple.
‣ Week 13
General Feedback:
• All the letters should be used in the
poster, but not the punctuations.
Specific Feedback:
• Make a few more variations of the poster,
so that it could be given a clear evaluation and assessment.
IV. REFLECTIONS
‣ Experience
Its quite challenging when you're actually making a font, it's not like how you just basically draw a letter then digitize it, it's much more complex and you should follow the technical steps to create a professional font. The making of the poster is also tough, we are even more limited in decorating the poster compared to the previous tasks because we have to focus on emphasizing the appearance and the functionality of our own font.
‣ Observations
What I first learned during this task is the dissection of other fonts, where I was very surprised because it appears that there are so many considerations given when you are actually making a typeable font. It's not just about how the letters look in the eyes, there are also countless other factors (kerning, stroke weight, etc.) that needed to thought through properly.
‣ Findings
While creating the font, I found out that creating a professional typeable font requires not only our artistic skills, but also needs a systematic approach to it. Additionally, ensuring consistency within all of the letters and punctuations marks in the same font is crucial.
V. FURTHER READINGS
‣ Week 8 (Independent Learning Week)
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In a point of the book, it dives into the history of typography, similar to the one in Mr. Vinod's lecture but deeper. Many years ago, humans only communicated through sound. Then, the first ideas to preserve their stories and ideas came with cave drawings (25.000BC) which is quite easy to understand at that time. Some of those even survived till this day!
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| Figure 5.2: Type Rules! The Designer's Guide to Professional Typography by Ilene Strizver - Page 16, Week 8 (11/11/24). |
‣ Week 9
This week, I learned more about the typeface anatomy, as this is more clearer compared to the examples I got before, so I could memorize it more easily. Below is the description I got directly from the source:
Arm –A horizontal stroke that is attached on one end and
free on the other.
Arm or leg –The upper or lower (horizontal or diagonal) stroke that is attached on one end and free on the other.
Ascender –The part of a lowercase character (b, d, f, h, k, l, t) that extends above the height of the lowercase x.
Bar –The horizontal stroke in characters such as A, H, R, e,
or f.
Baseline –The invisible line on which most characters sit.
Bowl –A curved stroke that creates an enclosed space within a character (which is then called a counter).
Cap height –The height of capital letters from the baseline
to the top of caps,
most accurately measured on a character with a flat bottom
(E, H, I, etc.).
Counter –The partially or fully enclosed space within a
character.
Descender –The part of a character (g, j, p, q, y, and sometimes J) that descends below the baseline.
Ear –The small stroke that projects from the top of the
lowercase g.
Hairline –A very thin stroke most often common to serif
typefaces.
Link –The stroke that connects the top and bottom part (bowl and link) of a two-storey lowercase g.
Loop –The lower portion of the lowercase g.
Serif–The projections extending off the main strokes of the characters of serif typefaces.
Shoulder –The curved stroke of the h, m, or n.
Spine –The main curved stroke of the S.
Spur –A small projection off a main stroke, found on many
capital Gs.
Stem –A straight vertical stroke or main straight diagonal stroke in a letterthat has no verticals.
Stress –The direction of thickening in a curved stroke.
Stroke –A straight or curved line.
Swash –A fancy flourish replacing a terminal or serif.
Tail –The descender of a Q or short diagonal stroke of an R.
Terminal –The end of a stroke not terminated with a serif.
x-height –The height of lowercase letters is usually based on the lowercase x, not including ascenders and descenders.
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| Figure 5.3: Type Rules! The Designer's Guide to Professional Typography by Ilene Strizver - Page 41, Week 9 (19/11/24). |
‣ Week 10
This time, I read about category of typefaces, how they differ, and why. This is to improve my foundation in typography, especially in choosing a typeface to work on. Firstly, serif. Those are typefaces that have an extension, and they said this is to enhance readibility by guiding the eye from one letter to the next. Examples are:
1. Oldstyle,
2. Transitional,
3. Modern,
4. Clarendon,
5. Slab or Square Serif,
6. Glyphic.
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| Figure 5.4: Type Rules! The Designer's Guide to Professional Typography by Ilene Strizver - Page 42, Week 10 (27/11/24). |
‣ Week 11
Next, sans-serifs. These were some of the first styles, and it probably gained popularity again because of their simple yet industrial look. Examples are:
Humanistic
Humanistic
Humanistic
Humanistic
1. Humanistic,
2. Geometric,
3. 19th Century Grotesque,
4. 20th Century Grotesque.
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| Figure 5.5: Type Rules! The Designer's Guide to Professional Typography by Ilene Strizver - Page 44, Week 11 (2/12/24). |
Humanistic
‣ Week 12
Then I read about the history of TrueType and OpenType fonts to know about the differences, because we're creating a font right now with that format. It turns out that TrueType fonts comes from the collaboration between Apple and Microsoft as an improvement over Type 1 fonts. However, graphic designers still prefer Type 1 fonts because of their superior quality.
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| Figure 5.6: Type Rules! The Designer's Guide to Professional Typography by Ilene Strizver - Page 33 Week 12 (2/12/24). |
‣ Week 13
OpenType fonts on the other hand, is an evolution of those formats and it works seamlessly on Windows & Mac so there isn't a need to purchase separate versions anymore. It could also include far more than the standard 256 characters and has a intelligent glyph substitution.
Figure 5.7: Type Rules! The Designer's Guide to Professional Typography by Ilene Strizver - Page 34 & 35, Week 13 (20/12/24).
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