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TypographyMatters Poster Series Help
Hey everyone, I'm new to this awesome forum. I was wondering if I could get some of you experts in typography to help give some input on my poster series. I'm creating posters that deal with typography and some basic tips for beginners. Right now I have 8 posters and will maybe make a ninth if I need it. I was hoping that everyone could give me some input on the topics I chose to write about.
1. Choose the right typeface for the job.
2. Serif or Sans Serif?
3. Kern correctly.
4. Use two fonts on average in a design.
5. The grid.
6. Weights.
7. Hierarchy.
8. Use fonts that have complete sets of glyphs.
So those were the topics I chose to put. I'm going for a real minimalist poster and I already have some examples if you would want to see them.
Thanks everyone.
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30 May 2012 — 3:59pm
What about styles, alongside weights?
And yes, seeing examples is always appreciated.
30 May 2012 — 4:01pm
Offhand, I would suggest using humor to get the message across; e.g., choose the right typeface...
Per·fec·tion·ist, n.
A person who takes great pains, and then gives them to others.
And this still remains my favorite example of bad kerning...
30 May 2012 — 4:39pm
Here's one example for the first one about choosing the right typeface.
Sorry about the width if anyone could help me fix that it would be great.
Oh yeah and Oldnick that's a pretty funny case of bad kerning.
30 May 2012 — 4:52pm
A question: What is the intended purpose of this poster series? You say that it's a series of tips, but your example isn't a tip - it's a 'what you should be thinking about'/
If it were the opening slide of an extended power-point presentation, fine. But if it's a stand-alone reminder, I don't think that your example really says very much.
It's as if your topic were 'getting ready to face the day' and a poster said:
Choose your clothing appropriate to your day
The content is dull, and neither gives any hint of why or how, and has little educational or entertainment value. For this topic in particular, why is the typeface you chose appropriate for the poster? Maybe the same phrase in two different typefaces, one next to or over the other, might bring the point across. Possibly an almost illegible display font as a contrast.
30 May 2012 — 5:41pm
Thanks for the reply, it all helps! I understand completely what you're saying. The only thing is that I would say that since my poster is telling you to think about your choice of typeface, it would be a tip.
Anyway, your suggestion about using illegible typefaces to show contrast is really good, the only thing I would have to say is that in the format it's at right now, adding things like that seems to me as if they would add unwanted noise to the design. So, would you suggest, to scrap the layout of these posters and redesign it? Or should I try to incorporate it into the design?
Lastly, I'll try to get a kerning example that's another one of my posters.
Edit
So I finished the next example. Anyway I think this one has a more interesting concept since it shows a bad example of kerning and then some text that is kerned much better.
Sorry again for the image width....
30 May 2012 — 5:55pm
How about something that's both punchier and less direct? Like oldnick's example?
MEGAFLICKS: Watch your kerning.
[A large amount of illegible type]: Choose your font wisely.
Activity 2-mile run: Know your dashes.
30 May 2012 — 7:06pm
Thanks for the comment Joshua. So basically I should use the things I have except use a more punchier line, as you say? I like your examples. It looks like I'm going to have to go back and think some more lines up!
Thanks for the advice everyone. I'll come up with some different lines and post back here.
30 May 2012 — 7:31pm
For #1 the classic example would be a stop sign using a wedding script.
You can make the "r" and "n" touch for #3.
#4: http://themicrofoundry.com/other/typorgy.jpg
Once featured on BBC Radio!
For #8 maybe put it in quotes but make both sets opening quotes.
hhp
31 May 2012 — 4:34am
Thanks for the ideas! I was wondering though if you think the layout of the poster works though?
31 May 2012 — 5:42am
Since you're talking about grids too, there should be some spatial relationship between the type and the arrow/half hexagon.
31 May 2012 — 9:16am
"Use two fonts on average in a design."
A design for what?
31 May 2012 — 1:16pm
Sorry for not being clearer. Usually, you want to limit yourself to 2 (maybe 3) typefaces. After that, the design will start to get distracting.
31 May 2012 — 8:34pm
I understood what you meant, and it's something that's been said many times. It may be decent advice for a non-designer trying to lay out a simple document, but I know you could easily come up with dozens, if not hundreds, of contexts in which that advice would be counterproductive.
4 Jun 2012 — 4:49am
Thanks for the reply, and I'm sorry I haven't checked back here in a while. Anyway, I do get what you mean so I guess I won't use that piece of advice since it doesn't span over typography in general enough.
4 Jun 2012 — 5:35am
You could conflate it with the first one: “Choose the right typeface (or typefaces) for the job”.
4 Jun 2012 — 6:57pm
Or, it may be to your benefit to narrow the scope of your advice a bit: typography for text/advertising/etc. Because, arguably, using only two fonts is sound advice if you're designing a novel...
(Now I wait for someone to post an image of a brilliantly designed novel using 300 fonts.)
4 Jun 2012 — 11:37pm
...k?
n.
5 Jun 2012 — 12:10am
n.
29 Nov 2012 — 3:38am
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