As a designer i have encountered many criticisms specially when it comes to typography. Since most
of graphic designers are focused on graphic aspectof the design, we often neglect this very important aspect - "typography". Most designers are not
aware that a graphic text is part of typography.
Graphic text:
- Stop using drop shadow and bevel emboss if your design doesn't require it. It's a dead weight give away for an amateur. And please avoid rainbow gradient background.
*When to use it:- If you're designing a 3D project
- If your design requires lighting effects.
- Grunge fonts are great if you're designing a poster for a rock concert or a poster for a horror film. A word of advice, not everyone is fond of reading it.
Spacing & Alignment:
- If you're not using an old typewriter for your document stop using extra space after every sentences. Gone is the old days. It should only have 1em not 2em. The fonts in the computer are all the same exact sizes and weight based on your settings.
- Avoid center text alignment on your document and web pages. We all read from left to right - unless its Hiragana or Arabic. Use centered text alignment when doing wedding invitations or a title on a book cover.
- Avoid to much vertical spacing or line spacing. Your document will look disconnected and not grouped. It will also confuse readers of the paragraph cue.
- Always use the appropriate fonts. If you're writing a formal document don't use papyrus or comic sans.
*Here are some tips on what font/s to use based on the subject matter or design.- Georgia, Times New Roman, Times Roman, Felix Titling - these fonts are perfect for a formal theme or document.
- Arial, Verdana, Tahoma, Trebuchet, Helvetica, Myriad - these are good for mainstream or contemporary themes.
There are lots of great font's out there. Adobe Garamond(Dreamworks used this on their typefaced logo), Formata, Impact, ImpactaBT, Futura, etc...
One last piece of advise in typography - don't mix sans with serif and don't use underline when it's in italic. It's redundant. Always check you're(intentional) grammar and speling(intentional). I'm trying hard myself on this part. Up until now i'm bad at it. Chow..chow....!!!
Watch out for my next article. Featuring "The Basic Characteristics of a good and working Logo.
