4 Quick Tips for Good Typography
Recently, on one of the forums I visit, someone posted a brochure for critique. The piece was a template from a popular software program that they had turned into a brochure for their company. A quick glance showed that although the template wasn�t too bad, the person that had designed it was clearly not aware of proper use of typography. The brochure was very difficult to read and would no doubt turn readers off before they got very far.
Typography is defined as “The design and use of typefaces as a means of visual communication.” Typography can make or break a design and is one of the most important tools in effective graphic design. Careless or improper typographic technique can ruin an otherwise great piece. On the other hand, well-crafted use of letterforms can guide the reader and create a hierarchy that is necessary in good communication.
Whether you are designing something in house or hiring a designer, it’s good to be aware of proper typographic techniques. Below are a few of my favorite tips gleaned from a post on “11 Essential Tips for Good Print Typography.”
Alignment — Many people like to get creative by adjusting the alignment of their type. While it’s possible to use other alignments effectively, it is almost always best to left align text. As readers of the English language, we are used to seeing text aligned along a common line on the left so it’s most comfortable for us to read it that way.
Contrast — The color of type on a background can greatly affect the readability of a design. The most legible text is black type on a white background. Any other arrangement will be, at least to some degree, harder to read. Obviously pure black and white can get bland but make sure there is good contrast between your letters and their background. A good rule of thumb is to keep large sections of copy dark on a light background for easy reading.
Fonts — Using a variety of fonts is a mistake that you see too often. A good rule of thumb is to use one serif font and one sans-serif font per piece. Any more than that and you’ll be trying to combine too many different looks.
White Space — I’ve discussed white space before but I’ll mention it again because it is so often overlooked. Too much information overwhelms. If your page is filled with text leaving no room for the eye to breath, then the reader is quickly going to move on. Make sure you leave ample margins around the text cut down copy to only what is necessary. This will give you a clear and concise message that can easily be digested.
As with any guidelines, there are exceptions to the above list, but rules must be broken intentionally and for a clear purpose otherwise you risk hurting readability.
February 18th, 2009 at 11:56 am
I’m a big fan of text that uses bolding, italics, all caps, and different ways of emphasing words, points, and important information SPARINGLY. =)
Too much typography and the meaning of the type dissolves.
In my work, Web pages “type-designed” poorly are fixed easily. Don’t be afraid to preview pages and adjust text as necessary, so the page is visually pleasing. Even as a writer attached to my language, I’d rather cut or add a few words to make the page concise or the alignment spot on. Most people are scanning anyway and feel better about your Web site with the aesthetic aspect met.
The blog’s looking great, Adam! Good content.
February 19th, 2009 at 4:01 pm
Aly, Thanks for mentioning the all caps issue. I just saw this again on a corporate website the other day and aside from it being difficult to read, I was wondering why they were yelling at me. All caps typing seems to be a real problem on the web.