Typography is the skill, the art of making text not only beautiful, but also easy to read. It is important that the lettering reflects the nature of the publication or a specific message. Typography is the ability to bring visual harmony to the printed text or page of a site. It is not limited to the choice of font content, paragraph indentation and alignment. Typography is the art of expressing the meaning of what is written, not only through words, but also through their reflection. This is a very interesting, deep and complex discipline. In this article we will talk about it.
What is typography?
Many graphic designers believe that typography is the science of typing text information. However, the use of the word “science” is not entirely logical to use next to “typography”. The problem is that all the rules and laws of typography are not mandatory for strict execution. This is nothing more than recommendations for the correct and visually pleasing arrangement of the text, its words and individual characters.
Let's talk about the importance of typography in the modern world
If the text located on the page of the site or book is difficult to read for any reason (the font is too small, the indent between words or lines), then the reader will leave your site or close the book, going to look for information elsewhere, or to suffer, perceiving information, but most likely will remember not at all what I wanted to know or not the idea that you wanted to convey to him, since all attention was focused on reading difficulties.
Typography is what plays a decisive role in understanding the content - if it is properly organized, the page will keep the reader's attention on the information that he must perceive from the text, while not requiring any volitional efforts from him.
What you need to know for the proper organization of the text?
To create the correct visual hierarchy, you need to understand how people perceive visual information, which explains the principles of gestalt quite well. They claim that people tend to organize the page’s visual elements into groups based on the following options.
Proximity If characters or text elements are nearby, people tend to perceive them as a whole.
Similarity. If the characters are similar in size, color, shape or shape, they are also perceived holistically.
Integrity. Human perception seeks to perceive information holistically and simplistically.
Closure. A person is inclined to visualize a figure so that it takes a complete shape.
Background and figure. Correctly correlating the background and the figures, this will positively affect the accuracy of perception.
Now, if you decide to put into practice the principles of the theory of gestalt, you should use these provisions. Particular attention should be paid to the principle of similarity: if you need to highlight and draw the reader's attention to something specific, this something must be made unlike the rest of the text .
Typography: book about book design
Quite a lot of works have already been written on the topic of interest to us. Here is some of them:
- “Typography. Font, layout, design ”by James Felici.
- “New typography. A Guide for the Contemporary Designer »Jan Chichold.
- "Font Samples" by Jan Chichold.
- “Typography. Order and chaos ”by Vladimir Laptev.
- "Live typography" by Alexandra Korolkova.
- “Typography of color. Workshop How to choose a font »Timothy Samara.
Graphic Design Profession
The work of "graphic designer" is a specialty for creative people. It is important to remember that neither architectural nor textile design is part of their responsibilities. Their field of activity is various printed matter, whether it be books, magazines, newspapers, websites and computer programs, as well as advertising.
What kind of work is this? The graphic designer develops fonts, draws pictures, creates collages and decorates windows.
To design a book or website, the designer uses text, photos and graphics that are made by others. This division of labor allows you to achieve the best possible result due to the fact that the work is carried out with high quality materials. A designer is not a photographer or a text writer. In addition, he does not even have to understand computer or HTML layout.
Universal Professionals - Do They Exist?
It’s a completely different conversation that during complete computerization it’s simply unthinkable to even engage in design directly without knowing such a tool as a computer, especially considering that both the site and the printed matter are initially created using software.
If you want to create something using a computer, you need to know how this “something” can be created. In addition, modern computer software is being improved every day and provides an increasingly wide range of capabilities. And if you are not familiar with this spectrum, then you are unlikely to succeed in designing at a high level, since there will be no way to create a product that can compete with the best samples.
Of course, the graphic designer’s level of computer software will significantly exceed the level of an ordinary user. The graphic designer is primarily an artist. However, the connection between the artist and the “computer technician” is more than palpable: for example, the basics of style in typography and design decisions that are created using certain software.
Who do graphic designers work with?
To create a full-fledged website, a graphic designer needs to collaborate with at least a programmer. Especially if a multi-level resource is created that will contain many interactive functions. However, a small average site is able to hand over and one designer, not needing the help of a web-master or programmer.
In life, an ideal chain consisting of a creator, designer, and layout designer is almost never found. Often all these three functions are performed by a single person who has a higher art education, knows most of the necessary graphic programs, a dock on the Internet and a computer, and also gives out original ideas without spending a lot of effort. In addition, such a universal person will imagine the design of the future magazine, all the controls of the new, not yet created page of the site, and what kind of advertising will be located there.
Where are graphic designers trained?
In the profession of graphic and web-designer, as in no other, it is extremely important not even desire, but a constant desire to translate their ideas into reality - and this can be said with confidence.
In this profession, many knowledge is gained through constant practice in the workplace. It is necessary to draw just such a button on the site page - I’ll get sick, but I will. Perhaps this is why graphic designers often quickly stop learning in the classical sense of the word, that is, attend college or college daily. Their training takes place the rest of their lives in the workplace, while solving everyday tasks.
It is believed that you can become a graphic designer and not at all studying in a higher or secondary specialized educational institution. For many years, constantly engaged in craft and art (such examples are known). At the same time, a person works hard and analyzes his and other people's work.
True, graphic designers with vast experience in the complete absence of specialized education exist only in Russia. In other conditions, people who want to work in this specialty need a higher art education, as well as knowledge of software and hardware.
Of course, elementary skills of working with graphic programs can be obtained both independently and in short-term courses, but this will only help to patch a hole, but it will not give thorough knowledge that can be obtained at a university.