Typography | Task 3A :Type Design and Communication
16.05.2022 - 30.05.2022 | Week 8 - Week 10
Yap Sze Ying | 0349172
Bachelor of Mass Communication (Hons) Digital Media Production
Typography | Task 3A Type Design and Communication
LECTURES
All lectures 1-6 completed in Task 1 Exercises
Week 7 | Task 3A Introduction & Briefing
Mr Vinod brief us an overview of task 3A Type Design and Communication, which required us to design a limited number of western alphabets, analyse its anatomical parts, and use Adobe Illustrator to create a typeface that has the hallmarks of a good typeface. Mr Vinod also guided us through the Type Design in detail utilising pre-recorded lecture on YouTube (Typo Task 3A Typeface Construction Shapes).
Week 8 | Independent Learning Week
There are no classes this week. Mr Vinod announced on Facebook page that if we completed our Task 3A Sketches during the ILW week and would like feedback from the lecturer on which sketch should be digitised, we could upload our sketches to the Facebook group's comments page.
Week 9 | Task 3A Evaluation Sketches
Mr Vinod examined our Task 3A sketches in this week's session. Mr Vinod instructed us to upload our task 3A Type Design in the Facebook group's comment page. Mr Vinod then provides several constructive suggestions for improving the letters in our Type Design. We were also asked to revise our type design before the digitisation parts based on lecturer feedback. Besides that, Mr Vinod instructed that we watch and take notes with the pre-recorded lecture on YouTube (Typo Task 3A Font Lab 5 & Font Lab 7 Demo) to obtain additional knowledge before we started deconstructing the letters.
Week 10 | Task 3B Evaluation Digitisation
In this week's session, Mr Vinod evaluated our Task 3A digitisation through an online class. Mr Vinod instructed us to upload our task 3A Type Design digitisation in the Facebook group's comment page. Mr Vinod then provides us constructive feedback for improving the letters in our Type Design, and the date for Task 3A submission was mentioned (Type Design and Communication). In addition to this, Mr Vinod also brief us on an overview of task 3B Type Design and Communication, which involved generating a Telegram sticker using Adobe Illustrator.
Pre-recorded Lecture | Typo_Task 3A Typeface Construction (Shapes)
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To complete:
1. Research on Typefaces
2. Sketch out own variant letterforms with 4-5 ideas
3. Identify the letterforms of the 10 typefaces provided which is closest to the sketches
3. Deconstruct letterforms
4. Placing and drawing the sketches in Adobe Illustrator
5. Ensure to 'unite' letterforms with pathfinder and place them in Font Lab
6. Adjust the size and kerning between letterforms
7. Export it out and place it in the Blogger
To take notes:
1. X-Height must be within 500pt
2. Ascender and Descender Line must within 1000pt x 1000pt artboard
3. If X-Height and Ascender Descender Line exceeds the 'pt' provided, the type design must be redesigned
4. Counter space is generally the same size as the stroke of the letterforms (or half of it)
5. 'Unite' base shapes with pathfinder
6. Overshoot: optical/technical reasons
INSTRUCTIONS
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Task 3A: Type Design and Communication
For this task, we were given a limited number of western alphabets to design based on one of the ten typefaces provided during the task. We should carefully study the font by analysing its anatomical parts. To begin, we created a rough sketch of our ideas, which we then digitised and used to create the font. Besides that, we were instructed to create a typeface with the hallmarks of a good typeface, including subtlety, character, presence, legibility, and readability. For this task, the letters to be used as characters are: a e t k g r i y m p n ! # , .
Visual Research
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| Figure 1.0 Source: Typejockeys (20th May 2022) |
To begin our task, we were instructed to select one of the 10 typefaces provided. We were then asked to dissect the letters we had been given for the task. I decided to go with Bodoni Std Roman as my typeface of choice. I deconstructed the letters r, k, p, and n. Throughout this process, I gained a greater understanding of letter construction including the differences in the thickness of the legs, arcs, etc.
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| Figure 1.1 Bodoni Std Roman Typefaces (20th May 2022) |
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| Figure 1.2 Deconstruction of Letters r, k, p & n (20th May 2022) |
After the deconstruction, we were instructed to sketch out at least four to five typeface ideations based on the typeface we had chosen. I did five sketches and showed them to Mr Vinod for approval. Mr Vinod stated that it would be a little tricky to handle and construct it well with Adobe Illustrator as I preferred to work with Sketch 2. Here are some of my sketches:
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Before I started the construction of the characters, I set the descender, median line, baseline, and the ascender. I began with the letter 'o' as Mr Vinod suggested to us in class. I used the pen tool and curvature tool to create the basic form of the letter. To preserve the consistency of letterforms, I used the same angle for the remaining letters as well.
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| Figure 1.5 Font design digitisation -02 (26th May 2022) |
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| Figure 1.6 Finalised Font Design (26th May 2022) |
Measurement (From Baseline)
Ascender Line: 733pt
Cap Line: 696pt
Median Line: 500pt
Descender Line: -228pt
After the digitisation of characters, We were instructed to 'unite' all paths into one path and import the letters into Font Lab. To begin, we went to 'Font Info' to create a new file; metrics, and dimensions, and entered the dimensions for the ascender, median, baseline, and the descender. We were instructed to calculate the measurements with the baseline.
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| Figure 1.7 Created New Font Lab File (30th May 2022) |
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| Figure 1.8 Font imported into Font Lab (30th May 2022) |
After importing all of the characters, I proceeded to adjust the kerning as instructed. I clicked the new metrics window after selecting all of the characters. I then adjusted the default spacing for all characters to 50. Then I made exact changes with each letter.
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| Figure 1.9 Adjusted Kerning between Characters (30th May 2022) |
Next, I proceeded to export and install the font I created in Font Lab. Besides that, I decided to name it 'Wavv' as the characters appear in a wave shape.
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| Figure 2.0 Export Font (30th May 2022) |
After generating the font, we were instructed to create a poster with the phrase 'make type great again' as the final part of this task. Below are some of the A4 Poster drafts and I decided to choose the first draft as my final A4 Poster Type Design.
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| Figure 2.1 A4 Poster Design Draft (1st Jun 2022) |
Final Submission
Link generated 'Wavv' Font: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-BlwIuKCxQhOlipCWIFYRUh_9JPHj149/view
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| Figure 2.2 Final 'Wavv' Font Design (5th Jun 2022) |
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| Figure 2.3 Final 'Wavv' Font A4 Poster (5th Jun 2022) |
-Final 'Wavv' Font A4 Poster (5th Jun 2022)-
FEEDBACK
Week 7
General Feedback:
We're instructed to watch YouTube tutorial videos (Typo Task 3A Typeface Construction) to gain additional understanding before beginning type design.
Specific Feedback: N/A
Week 9
General Feedback:
Mr Vinod provided us with some advice on creating our type design more legible and readable when completing this task. Mr Vinod then showed several techniques for making the lettering visually appealing using Adobe Illustrator. Furthermore, Mr Vinod also pointed out certain details including the preferences on the pre-recorded lecture video (Font Lab Demo) before beginning with the construct letters.
Specific Feedback:Mr Vinod commented the sketches on letters appeared nicely with the typefaces and that the digitisation process could begin with the letter 'o'. Mr Vinod further said that the use of typeface was nice, but that it would be a little tricky to handle and construct it well with Adobe Illustrator as I preferred to work with Sketch 2.
Week 10
General Feedback:
Mr Vinod remarked on our letter digitization and provided some suggestions for making the lettering more visually appealing when completing this task.
Specific Feedback:Mr Vinod commented the digitisation of letters was excellent.
REFLECTIONS
Experience
In week 7, we were instructed to get on to the type design in detail with a pre-recorded lecture and get started on our letter sketching. In week 8, I discovered that typeface creation is challenging and take some time. In week 9, we had to conduct a great deal of research before creating our fonts so that we could learn how each letter should be constructed. During the digitization of week 10, I struggled with Adobe Illustrator as it was tough to alter the stroke widths to approximate handwriting stress. Furthermore, Font Lab was a whole new experience for me, and I now have a basic understanding of how to create a typeface. Throughout these few weeks, I learned the fundamentals of typeface design, as well as what constitutes a good typeface, and I strengthened my observational skills.
In week 7, I noticed that using the pre-recorded lecture is a great way to obtain knowledge about constructing letters before starting. In week 8, it was tough for me because I had no prior knowledge of how typefaces are constructed. In week 9, there are a lot of details involved in creating a typeface, that is why obtaining references could help understand letterforms. In week 10, I struggled to create the typeface in Illustrator as the minor details are difficult to master. Besides that, it was quite frustrating when the paths didn't meet and I had to gradually modify them. Throughout these few weeks, I've discovered that every small detail in the design of letters matters. Each alteration will affect the letter, therefore it's important to know which design direction we're going with that will make it unique.
Findings
In week 7, I gain a wealth of knowledge on my type design by watching the pre-recorded lecture. In week 8, I learned that conducting visual research is essential when undertaking design work, and I also discovered that Pinterest has a wealth of references that inspired me. In week 9, I realized how important little details are when designing a typeface with various references. In week 10, I observed that designing a typeface should be built on geometric shapes to balance off the wider and geometric letters. Throughout these few weeks, I realized that creating a typeface takes a lot of effort, study, patience, and observational abilities. It's not an easy task, and there are several technicalities to consider with. Therefore, it is important to be creative in exploring and experimenting with various ways to achieve the desired results.
FURTHER READING
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| Figure 1.0 The Complete Manual of Typography (28th May 2022) |
This book from James Felici's explains how type should appear and how to get that aspect, as well as how to arrange type. It also explains how to utilize today's digital tools to attain the secret of good design which is well-set type in plain English.
Things that learned:
- Basic concepts and anatomy of good typography
- How to manage fonts and deal with corrupted or missing fonts on any operating system
- What makes a good typeface great and bad type bad?
- Technique of measurement, point size, leading, kerning, and other type fundamentals
- Composition issues such as loose lines, bad rags, windows, and orphans can be solved in a practical method.
- Expert-set characters, indents, text wraps, and hyphenation and justification rules that are difficult to find
- How to get good type out of uncooperative word processing and layout issues etc
References:
- Felici, J. (2002, September 1). The Complete Manual of Typography. Ptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com. Retrieved May 29, 2022, from https://ptgmedia.pearsoncmg.com/images/9780321773265/samplepages/0321773268.pdf
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