TYPOGRAPHY: TASK 1 - PRACTICAL TASK EXERCISES
Lee Rui Yen (0391797)
Typography (GCD62704)
Task 1: Exercise [20%]
Week 1- Week 6
1) TASK DESCRIPTION: Throughout the beginning and the middle of the semester, exercises will be prescribed one after the other. These exercises will aid and benefit you in your quest to gain theoretical and practical knowledge in Typography that will inform you and provide you with the necessary experience to take on the module’s tasks.
All exercises prescribed are to be completed and documented (labelled, dated, clean, clear & concise) in your e-portfolio.
The exercises are as follows:
1) Type Expression
2) Text Formatting
Table of Contents
Module Information PDF
Lecture Notes
ALL INFORMATION IN THIS SECTION ARE COPIES AND MAY BE TAKEN
DIRECTLY FROM THE LECTURES
Lecture 0- Introduction
In the introduction lecture Mr Vinod talks about the importance of
typography in design, its uses, how it was developed through
historyand important terminology.
What is typography? Typography can be considered the act of creating
letters and typefaces/type families to make language readable.
Typographies can also come in animated form. It is prevalent in
website design, as good typography created good website design as well
as app designs. It is also prevalent in signage design, to help people
navigate different spaces effectively. Bottle labels, books and
posters, It is not just the text you see, but designing typography
uses attributes and characteristics that can be applied to other types
of design processes and modules. It is also in logo types, a trademark
that consists of letters.
Typography evolved from calligraphy to lettering to typography.
Calligraphy refers to writing styles, lettering refers to when you
draw the letters out (its circumference and such).
Typography encompases:
- Typefaces
- Point size
- Line length
- Line spacing (also called leading)
- Letter spacing (tracking)
- Kernings (the space within letter pairs)
Typeface refers to a family of fonts or weights that have similar
characteristics or styles. Such as
Georgia or Times New Roman
Font refers to a specific style within a typeface (size, weight,
variation). Such as
Georgia Italic or
Georgia Bold
Who Practices Typography?
- Typesetters
- Compositors
- typographers
- graphic designers
- art directors
- manga artists
- comic book artists
- graffiti artists
Basically anyone who arranges words, letters numbers and symbols for
publication display or distribution.
Lecture 1- Development
All information presented in the video is written from the
perspective of the western world, which tends to ignorantly or
conveniently overlook inventions and innovations in Asia (China,
Japan, Korea, India, etc) that in many cases preceded certain
claims.
Early Development/Timeline
Initially was scratched into wet clay with sharpened stick or carved
into stone with a chisel. Tool use heavily influenced the types of
letters that can be made
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| Figure 1.1 (Week 1, 20/4/2026) |
Early Letterform Development: Phoenician to Roman
Phoenicians wrote from right to left, following other Semitic peoples.
Greeks developed a style of writing called 'boustrophedon' (how the ox
ploughs), which meant that the lines of text read alternately from
right to left and left to right. As the direction of reading was
changed, they also changed the orientation of the letterforms.
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| Figure 1.2 (Week 1, 20/4/2026) |
They did not use letter space or punctuations. Later on the Greeks
would change to strictly left to right writing.
Etruscan (and then Roman) carvers working in marble painted
letterforms before inscribing them. Certain qualities of their strokes
such as a change in weight from vertical to horizontal and a
broadening of the stroke at start and finish carried over into the
carved letterforms.
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| Figure 1.3 (Week 1, 20/4/2026) |
Early Letterform Development: Phoenician to Roman
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| Figure 1.4 (Week 1, 20/4/2026) |
Hand Script from 3rd - 10th century C.E.
- Square capitals were the written version that can be found in Roman monuments. These letterforms have serifs added to the finish of the main strokes. The variety of stroke width was achieved by the reed pen held at an angle of approximately 60 degrees off the perpendicular.
- A compressed version of square capitals, rustic capitals allowed for twice as many words on a sheet of parchment and took far less time to write. Then pen or brush was held at an angle of approximately 30 degrees off the perpendicular. Although rustic capitals were faster and easier to write, they were slightly harder to read due to their compressed nature.
- Both square and rustic capitals were typically reserved for documents of some intended performance. Everyday transactions, however were typically written in cursive hand in which forms were simplified for speed. We can see here in the beginning of what we refer to as lowercase letterforms.
- A further formalisation of the cursive hand, half-uncials mark the formal beginning of lowercase letterforms, replete with ascenders and descenders, 2000 years after the origin of the Phoenician alphabet.
- Charlemagne, the first unifier of Europe since the Romans, issued an edict in 789 to standardise all ecclesiastical texts. He entrusted this task to Alcuin of York, Abbot of St Martin of Tours. The monks rewrote the texts using both majuscules (uppercase), miniscule, capitalisation and punctuation which set the standard for calligraphy for a century.
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Figure 1.5 (Week 1, 20/4/2026)
- Blackletter to Gutenberg's type
- With the dissolution of Charlemagne's empire came regional variations upon Alcuin's script. In northern Europe, a condense strongly vertical letterform known as Blackletter or textura gained popularity. In the south, a rounder more open hand gained popularity, called 'rotunda', The humanistic script in Italy is based on Alcuin's miniscule.
- Gutenberg's skills included engineering, metalsmithing, and chemistry. He marshalled them all to build pages that accurately mimicked the work of the scribe's hand - Blackletter of northern Europe. His type mold required a different brass matrix, or negative impression, for each letterform.
Text Type Development Timeline
Typeforms have been developed in response to prevailing
technology, commercial needs, and aesthetic trends. Certain
models have endured well past the cultures that spawned them.
The following typeform classification here, based on one devised
by Alexander Lawson only covers the main form of text type
- 1450 Blackletter - Earliest printing type, based upon the hand copying styles that were then used for books in northern Europe. (Cloister Black, Goudy Text)
- 1475 Oldstyle - Based on the lowercase forms used by Italian humanist scholars for book copying. (Bembo, Caslon, Dante, Garamond, Janson, Jenson, Palatino)
- 1500 Italics - Echoes contemporary Italian handwriting, the first italics were condensed and close-set, allowing more words per page.
- 1550 Script - Originally an attempt to replicate engraved calligraphic forms, it is not entirely appropriate in lengthy text settings. (Kuenstler Script, Mistral, Snell Roundhand)
- 1750 Transitional - A refinement of oldstyle forms, it was achieved in part because of advances in casting and printing. Thick ot thin relationships were exaggerated, and brackets were lightened. (Baskerville, Bulmer, Century, Time Roman)
- 1775 Modern - Represents a further rationalisation of oldstyle letterforms. Serifs were unbracketed, and contrast between thick and thin strokes extreme. (Bell, Bodoni, Caledonia, Didot, Walbaum)
- 1825 Square Serif / Slab Serif - Originally heavily bracketed serif, with little variation between thick and thin strokes, these faces responded to the newly developed needs of advertising for heavy type in commercial printing. The brackets were dropped as they evolved. (Clarendon, Memphis, Rockwell, Serifa)
- 1900 Sans Serif - Eliminated serifs altogether. Became widespread in the beginning of the twentieth century. Variations tended toward either humanist forms (Gill Sans) or rigidly geometric (Futura). Occasionally, strokes were flared to suggest the calligraphic origins of the form (Optima). Sans Serif is also referred to as grotesque and Gothic. (Akzidenz Grotesk, Grotesk, Gill Sans, Franklin Gothic, Frutiger, Futura, Helvetica, Meta, News Gothic, Optima, Syntax, Trade Gothic, Univers)
- 1990 Serif / Sans Serif - A recent development, this style enlarges the notion of a family of typefaces to include both serif and sand serif alphabets (and often stages between the two) (Rotis, Scala, Stone)
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| Figure 1.6 (Week 1, 20/4/2026) |
All Images from these lecture notes are taken directly from the
lecture presentation unless provided or stated otherwise
Lecture 2- Text Part 1
Tracking: Kerning and Letterspacing
- Kerning - Refers to the automatic adjustment of space between letters. It is often mistakenly referred to as 'letterspacing'.
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| Figure 1.7 (Week 2, 27/4/2026) |
- Letterspacing - Refers to add space between the letters.
- Tracking - Refers to the addition and removal of space in a word or sentence. There is normal tracking, loose tracking and tight tracking.
- Normal Tracking - Easy to read and suitable to use in a large number of texts.
- Loose Tracking - Reduces readability and recognizability, thus not suitable for use in a large number of texts. But can be used in headlines in uppercase letterforms.
- Tight Tracking - Also reduces readability and recognizability, thus not suitable for use in a large number of texts.
Uppercase letterforms are drawn to be able to stand on their
own, whereas lowercase letterforms require the counterform
created between letters to maintain the line of reading.
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Figure 1.8 (Week 2, 27/4/2026)
Formatting Text
- Grey Value - The value of the entire text on a white page.
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Flush Left - Most closely
mirrors the asymmetrical experience of handwriting. Each line
starts at the same point but ends wherever the last word on
the line ends. Spaces between words are consistent throughout
the text, allowing the type to create an even gray
value.
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Centered Format - Imposes
symmetry upon the text, assigning equal value and weight to
both ends of any line. It transforms fields of text into
shapes, thereby adding a pictorial quality to material that is
non-pictorial by nature. Because centered type creates such a
strong shape on the page, its important to amend line breaks
so that the text does not appear too jagged.
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Flush Right - Places emphasis
on the end of a line as opposed to its start. It can be useful
in situations (like captions) where the relationship between
text and image might be ambiguous without a strong orientation
to the right.
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Justified - Like centering,
this format imposes a symmetrical shape on the text. It is
achieved by expanding or reducing spaces between words and
sometimes between letters. The resulting openness of lines can
occasionally produce 'rivers' of white space running
vertically through the text. Careful attention to line breaks
and hyphenation is required to amend this problem wherever
possible.
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| Figure 1.9 (Week 2, 27/4/2026) |
Designers tend to set type one way or another depending upon
several factors, personal preference, prevailing culture and the
need to express play important roles. When setting the field of
type, keep in mind the typographer's first job - clear,
appropriate presentation of the author's message.
Type that calls attention to itself before the reader can get to
the actual words is simply interference, and should be avoided.
Quite simply if you see the type before you see the words, change
the type.
Texture
It is important to understand how different typefaces feel as
text. Different typefaces suit different messages. A good
typographer has to know which typeface best suits the message at
hand.
Consider the different textures of these typefaces too. Type with
a relatively generous x-height or relatively heavy stroke width
produces a darker mass on the page than type with a relatively
smaller x-height or lighter stroke. Sensitivity to these
differences in colour is fundamental for creating successful
layouts.
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| Figure 1.10 (Week 2, 27/4/2026) |
Leading and Line Length
The goal in setting text type is to allow for easy, prolonged
reading. At the same time a field of type should occupy the page as
much as photograph does.
- Type Size - Text type should be large enough to be read easily at arms length
- Leading - Text that is set too tightly encourages vertical eye movement; a reader can easily lose his or her place. Type that is set too loosely creates striped patterns that distract the reader from the material at hand.
- Line Length - Appropriate leading for text is as much a function of the line length as it is a question of type size and leading. Shorter lines require less leading; longer lines more. A good rule of thumb is to keep line length between 55-65 characters. Extremely long or short line lengths impairs reading.
Type Specimen Book
A type specimen book shows samples of typefaces in various different sizes. Without printed pages showing samples of typefaces at different sizes, no one can make a reasonable choice of type. You only determine choice on screen when its final version is to read on screen.
A type specimen book (or ebook for screen) is to provide an accurate
reference for type, type size, type leading, type line length
etc.
Compositional requirement: Text should create a field that can
occupy a page or a screen. Think of your ideal text as having a
middle gray value.
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Figure 1.11 (Week 2, 27/4/2026) |
It is often useful to enlarge type to 400% on the screen to get a
clear sense of the relationship between descenders on one line and
ascenders on the line below. If the outcome is on a printed page,
it is best to print out an actual page to look closely at the
details. If you are designing for screen, the judging type on
screen is accurate.
Lecture 2- Typo 4 Text Part 2
Text / Indicating Paragraphs
There are several options for indicating paragraphs.
In the first example, we see the 'pilcrow'(¶) , a holdover from
medieval manuscripts seldom used today.
Line space ('leading') is used between paragraphs as a paragraph
break. If line space is 12pt, then the paragraph space is 12pt,
ensuring cross-alignment across columns of text
Difference between line space and leading:
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Figure 1.12 (Week 3, 04/5/2026) |
Extended paragraphs creates unusually wide columns of text.
Despite these problems, there can be strong compositional or
functional reasons for choosing it.
Indentation and Extended paragraph examples:
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| Figure 1.13 (Week 3, 04/5/2026) |
Widows and Orphans
In traditional typesetting ( the kind that still endures among
conscientious commercial publishers), there are two unpardonable
gaffs - widows and orphans. Designers (specifically those that
deal with large amounts of text in websites or books on online
magazines or printed magazines, news papers or online journals)
must take great care to avoid the occurrence of the above
mentioned.
- A widow is a short line of type left alone at the end of a column of text.
- An orphan is a short line of type left along at the start of a new column.
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| Figure 1.14 (Week 3, 04/5/2026) |
In justified text, both widows and orphans are considered serious gaffes. Flush right and ragged left text is somewhat more forgiving towards widows, but only a bit. Orphans remain unpardonable.
The only solution to widows is to rebreak your line endings
throughout your paragraph so that the last line of any paragraph
is not noticeably short.
Orphans require more care. Careful typographers make sure that no
column of text starts with the last line of the preceding
paragraph.
Highlighting Text
You can highlight text within a column of text using italics,
bold, changing the typeface and bold, and changing the colour of
the text (limited to black, cyan, magenta and yellow only).
Different kinds of emphasis require different kinds of contrast.
When changing typefaces, you might want to align the sizing of the
typeface to better match the original typeface and to ensure
visual cohesion of the text. This applies to any figures (numbers)
or all Capital Acronyms. Also take note when highlighting text by
placing a field of colour at the back of the text, that
maintaining the left reading axis (right example) of the text
ensures readability is at its best.
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| Figure 1.15 (Week 3, 04/5/2026) |
Sometimes it is necessary to place certain typographic elements
outside the left margin of a column of type (extending as
opposed to indenting) to maintain a strong reading axis.
Quotation marks, like bullets, can create a clear indent,
breaking the left reading axis. Prime is not a quote and is
used in inches and feet.
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| Figure 1.16 (Week 3, 04/5/2026) |
Headline within Text
There are many kinds of subdivision within text of a chapters. In
the following visuals these have been labeled (A, B and C)
according to the level of importance. A typographer's task is to
make sure these heads clearly signify to the reader the relative
importance within the text and to their relationship to each
other.
- A head indicates a clear break between the topics within a section. In the following examples 'A' heads are set larger than the text, in small caps and in bold. The fourth example shows an A head 'extended; to the left of the text.
- The B head here is subordinate to A heads. B heads indicate a new supporting argument or example for the topic at hand. As such they should not interrupt the text as strongly as A heads do. Here the B heads are shown in small caps, italic, bold serif, and bold san serif.
- The C heads, although not common, highlights specific facets of material within B head text. They do not materially interrupt the flow of reading. As with B heads, these C heads are shown in small caps, italics, serif bold and san serif bold. C heads in this configuration are followed by at least an em space for visual separation.
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| Figure 1.17 (Week 3, 04/5/2026) |
Putting together a sequence of subheads = hierarchy.
Cross Alignment
Cross aligning headlines and captions within text type reinforces
the architectural sense of the page - the structure - while
articulating the complimentary vertical rhythms. In the example
given in the video, four lines of caption type (leaded 9 pts.)
cross-align with three lines of text type (leaded to 13.5pts). We
can maintain cross alignment by doubling the leading.
Lecture 3- Typo 2 Basic
As with any craft that has evolved over 500 years, typography
employs a number of technical terms. These mostly describe
specific parts of the letterforms. It is a good idea to
familiarize yourself with the lexicon. Knowing a letterform's
component parts make it much easier to identify specific
typefaces.
- Baseline - The imaginary line in the visual base of the letterforms.
- Median - The imaginary line defining the x-height of letterforms.
- X-height - The height in any typeface of the lowercase 'x'.
- Stroke - Any line that defines the basic letterform.
- Apex / Vertex - The point created by joining two diagonal stems (apex above and vertex below)
- Arm - Short strokes off the stem of the letterform, either horizontal (E, F, L) or inclined upward (K, Y)
- Ascender - The portion of the stem of a lowercase letterform that projects above the median.
- Barb - The half-serif finish on some curved stroke.
- Beak - The half-serif finish on some horizontal arms.
- Bowl - The rounded form that describes a counter. The bowl may be either open or closed.
- Bracket - The transition between the serif and the stem.
- Cross Stroke - The horizontal stroke in a letterform that joins two stems together.
- Crotch - The interior space where two strokes meet.
- Descender - The portion of the stem of a lowercase letterform that projects below the baseline.
- Ear - The stroke extending out from the main stem or body of the letterform.
- Em/En - Originally refers to the width of an uppercasee M, and em is now the distance equal to the size of the typeface (an em in 48 points, for example). An en is half the size of an em. Most often used to describe em/en spaces and em/en dashes.
- Finial - is the rounded non-serif terminal to a stroke.
- Leg - The short stroke off the stem of the letterform, either at the bottom of the stroke (L) or inclined downward (K,R)
- Ligature - The character formed by the combination of two or more letterforms.
- Loop - In some typefaces, the bowl created in the descender of the lowercase G.
- Serif - The right angled or oblique foot at the end of the stroke.
- Spine - The curved stem of the S
- Spur - The extension the articulates the junction of the curved and rectilinear stroke
- Stress - The orientation of the letterform, indicated by the thin stroke in round forms.
- Swash - The flourish that extends the stroke of the letterform.
- Tail - The curved diagonal stroke at the finish of certain letterforms.
- Terminal - The self-contained finish of a stroke without a serif. This is something of a catch-all term. Terminals may be flat ('T' above), flared, acute, ('t' above), grave, concave, convex, or rounded as a ball or a teardrop (see finial).
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| Figure 1.18 |
Basic / The Font The full font of a typeface contains much more than 26 letters, to numerals, and a few punctuation marks. To work successfully with type, you should make sure that you are working with a full font and you should know how to use it.
- Uppercase - Capital Letters, including certain accented vowels, the c cedilla and n tilde, and the a/e and o/e ligatures.
- Lowercase - Lowercase letters include the same characters as uppercase.
- Small Capitals - Uppercase letterforms draw to the x-height of the typeface. Small Caps are primarily found in serif fonts as part of what is often called expert set. Most type software includes a style command that generates a small cap based on uppercase forms. Do not confuse real small caps with those artificially generated
- Uppercase Numerals - Also called lining figures, these numerals are the same height as uppercase letters and are all set to the same kerning width. They are most successfully used with tabular material or in any situation that calls for uppercase letters.
- Lowercase Numerals - Also known as old style figures or text figures, these numerals are set to x-height with ascenders and descenders. They are best used when ever you would use upper and lowercase letterforms. Lowercase numerals are far less common in sans serif type-faces than in serif.
- Italic - Most fonts today are produced with a matching italic. Small caps, however, are almost always only roman. The forms in an italic refer back to fifteenth century Italian cursive handwriting. Oblique are typically based on the roman form of the typeface.
- Punctuation, miscellaneous characters - Although all fonts contain standard punctuation marks, miscellaneous characters can change from typeface to typeface. It's important to be acquainted with all the characters available in a typeface before you choose the appropriate type for a particular job.
- Ornaments - Used as flourishes in invitations or certificates. They usually are provided as a font in a larger typeface family. Only a few traditional or classical typefaces contain ornamental fonts as part of the entire typeface family (Adobe Caslon Pro).
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| Figure 1.19 |
Describing Typefaces
Once you can recognise the parts of a letterform, you can apply
what you know to identify different typefaces. Keep in mind that
some, all, or combinations of these styles may be found within one
type family.
- Roman - The letterform is so called because the uppercase forms are derived from inscriptions of Roman monuments. A slightly lighter stroke in roman is known as 'Book'.
- Italic - Named for fifteenth century Italian handwriting on which the forms are based. Oblique conversely are based on roman form of typeface.
- Boldface - Characterized by a thicker stroke than a roman form. Depending upon the relative stroke widths within the typeface, it can also be called 'semibold', 'medium', 'black', 'extra bold', or super. In some typefaces (notably Bodoni), the boldest rendition of the typeface is referred to as 'Poster'.
- Light - A lighter stroke than the roman form. Even lighter strokes are called 'Thin'.
- Condense - A version of the roman form, and extremely condense styles are often called 'compressed'.
- Extended - An extended variant of a roman font.
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| Figure 1.20 |
What is worth noting isn't the similarities but rather the differences - the accumulation of choices that renders each unique. Beyond the gross differences in x-height, the forms display a wealth of variety, in line weight, relative stroke widths and in feeling. For any typographer these feelings connote specific use and expression.
The Rs display a range of attitudes, some whimsical, some stately,
some mechanical, others calligraphic some harmonious and some
awkward.
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Figure 1.21 |
As you study other designers' work, you'll notice that many people
who work seriously with type employ a limited palette of
typefaces. Some, in fact, go through their entire careers using
only one or two.
Lecture 5- Understanding
The uppercase letter forms below suggest symmetry, but in fact
it is not symmetrical. It is easy to see the two different
stroke weights of the Baskerville stroke form (below). More
noteworthy is the fact that each bracket connecting the serif
to the stem has a unique arc.
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| Figure 1.22 |
The uppercase letterforms may appear symmetrical, but a close
examination shows that the width of the left slope is thinner
than the right stroke. Both Baskerville and Univers (below)
demonstrate the meticulous care a type designer takes to
create letterforms that are both internally harmonious and
individually expressive.
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Figure 1.23 |
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| Figure 1.24 |
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| Figure 1.25 |
X-height generally describe the size of the lowercase letterforms. However, you should keep in mind that curved strokes, such as in 's', must rise above the median (or sink below the baseline) in order to appear to be the same size as the vertical and horizontal strokes they adjoin.
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| Figure 1.26 |
Its important to develop a sensitivity to the counterform (or counter) - the space describes, and often contained, by the strokes of the form. When letters are joined to form words, the counterform includes the spaces between them. The latter is particularly an important concept when working with letterforms like lowercase 'r' that have no counters per se. How well you handle the counters when you set type determines how well words hang together -in other words, how easily we can read what's been set. You should examine them in close detail. It provides a good feel for how the balance between form an counter is achieves and a palpable sense of the letterform's unique characteristics. It also gives you a glimpse in to the process of letter-making.
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| Figure 1.27 |
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| Figure 1.28 |
Contrast
The basic principles of Graphic design apply directly to
typography. The following are some examples of contrast- the
most powerful dynamic in design- as applied to type, based
on a format devised by Rudi Ruegg. The simple contrast
produces numerous variations: small+organic/large+machined;
small+darl/large light.
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| Figure 1.29 |
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| Figure 1.30 |
Task 1: Exercise 1 Type Expression
1) TASK DESCRIPTION: You will be given 4 words
to compose and express. Begin by sketching out ideas. Once
the ideas are selected, you will be given a set of 10 typefaces to
work with the digitisation phase. Through iteration, use the
appropriate typeface and compose the letters in a manner that
allows the meaning of the word to become visible — still and in
motion. (2 weeks). Software: Adobe Illustrator and Adobe
Photoshop.
1. Sketch
The words that the class have selected are:
- Balance
- Smile
- Calm
- Clarity
- Hope
- Relax
We have to select 4 words among these 6 and compose and express
them. I will select Balance, Smile, Clarity and Relax. I start by
finding related images and creating sketch maps of what each word
means.
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| Figure 2.1, Week 2 (27/04/2026) |
From there, I designed 4 sketches for each word, using inspiration
from the words in the sketch note, with a few words of reasoning under
each design. .
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Figure 2.2
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Figure 2.3
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On week 3, we had to use the appropriate typefaces to compose our
selected letters in a manner that allows the meaning of the word to be
evident and visible using Adobe Illustrator.
2. Digitization
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Figure 2.4, Week 3 (4/05/2026)
Balance (Figure 2.4, Top Left): This balance design is based on a weighing scale, with
the A moved below the line to act as the middle part of a
scale. I tried to use a font with equal widths to show
balance.
Clarity (Figure 2.4, Top Right): This clarity design uses the Gaussian Blur filter to
convey it's meaning, with the word gradually getting
clearer and thus having more clarity. I chose to use a
thick, large font to ensure that the word is more visible
after the Gaussian Blur, and set the initial blur settings
at around 8, with it gradually reducing after every letter
or so.
Smile (Figure 2.4, Bottom Right): This smile design is designed off of a real 'smile',
with the letters in different sizes to create a silhouette
of a smile. I chose to use that specific font as it seems
similar to teeth. I also had to adjust every individual
letter size to ensure that the silhouette looks
even.
Relax (Figure 2.4, Bottom Right): This relax design is based off of the idea of waves,
which are calming. The lines above and below the words are
meant to be the waves, and I adjusted the angle of every
letter except 'L' in the word 'Relax' to make it look like
the word is casually floating on some water.
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Figure 2.5, Week 3 (4/05/2026)
Clarity (Figure 2.5, Top Left): This clarity design is based off of the suggestion from
Mr Vinod last week that clarity could be linked to
magnifying glasses, so I tried to create a magnifying
glass out of the font letters with minimal graphical
elements. I chose a font that made the 'C' in clarity more
rounded for the circular part of the magnifying glass, and
replaced the 'L' with an 'I' just to make the stem of the
magnifying class more clean. Finally, I added a curved
line inside the 'C' to replicate the glare of the glass. I
made the magnifying glass slanted to help with the
readability, although I'm not so sure if it translates
well because feedback from my friends say that it looks
more like a 'Q' than a 'CL'.
Clarity (Figure 2.5, Top Middle): Due to the fact that the previous design may be
misinterpreted as a 'Q' than a 'CL', I redesigned the same
clarity design as in Figure 2.5, but made the rest of the
word the 'stem' or the 'handle' of the magnifying glass.
That way, it is easier to identify the magnifying glass as
the 'C' in clarity.
Relax (Figure 2.5, Top Right): This relax design plays on my previously illustrated
design of something being so relaxed it almost topples
over. I stretched the top half of the word 'relax' and
added a shadow underneath the word to make it look like it
was leaning over.
Balance (Figure 2.5, Bottom Left): This balance design is based off of the idea of each
letter of the word balancing. I used a font that was thin
and minimal and tilted each word the same degree,
alternating tilting left and right equally. I quite liked
this design as it feels easy to read despite the
tiltedness of the letters.
Balance (Figure 2.5 Bottom Middle): This balance design is also based off of the idea of
the letters balancing, but I only made one letter balance
on it's edge. I chose the 'A' because it was in the middle
of the word, and chose a font that had a serif as a sort
of 'foot' for the letter to balance off of.
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In Figure 2.5, I made some extra ideas based on the critique from
Mr Vinod in class as well as inspired by other classmates work,
such as a magnifier linked to the word Clarity. I did not submit
this extra set for critique.
3. Feedback Adjustment
Figure 2.6 was the final result after I added in the corrections
from the feedback given by my teacher. The top two designs were fine. Mr Vinod mentioned that I should change the background of the 'Smile' design to bring a better balance to the page, as it had too much white colour.
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| Figure 2.6, Week 3 (4/05/2026) |
'Smile' was much more difficult to adjust, as the inside of the typeface
is unfillable, only the outside shadowed part. I used the brush tool to
manually colour the inside of the typeface before arranging it so that
the type would be on top of the coloured part to make it look like the
inside is white, thus making it look like teeth. I also changed the
shadow colour to grey instead of black.
Animation
In week 3, for the last part of the project, I had to make an animation
of one of my selected works above. I chose to do balance because I had a
pretty clear idea in my head for its animation, and also I thought it
would be the easiest to execute as a beginner in Illustrator and
Photoshop. After watching Mr Vinod's tutorial video, I began making the
animation.
This was my first attempt at the animation. The idea was to animate it
like a weighing scale or a seesaw. I replaced the letter 'A' to 'V' to
better suit the animation, and then I coloured the line grey to make it
stand out from the rest of the black letters. The first falling of the
words 'Bal' and the bounce afterwards was pretty nice already, but the
animation after was too jerky and not well connected.
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Figure 2.7, Week 4 (11/05/2026) |
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Figure 2.8, Week 4 (11/05/2026)
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Here is a photo of all the frames of the final product.
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Exercise 1 Final Submission
- Final submission must include: one JPEG Grayscale (1024px width) @300ppi, one PDF and one Gif.
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Figure 2.9, JPEG,
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Figure 2.10, PDF, Week 4 (11/05/2026) |
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Figure 2.11, Gif, Week 4 (11/05/2026) |
Task 1: Exercise 2 Text Formatting
For exercise 2, we had to type our names in all 10 different fonts
that we were given. We then had to adjust the kerning of the
letters to make our names look better than what it was before. We
were allowed to pick different types within each of the typefaces,
but I just stuck with the standard type in each font.
The main problem I notice is that most fonts place the R and U too
close together, almost making it look like one word. I increased
the kerning between the R and U and also with the U an I to
increase the vertical length of 'Rui' so that it would be equal to
'Lee' and 'Yen'. I've also found that 'Lee' is a bit
disproportionately longer than the other words, so I've adjusted
the kerning closer between the L and the E.
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Figure 3.1A, With Kerning, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
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Figure 3.1B, Without Kerning, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
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Figure 3.1C, Overlayed, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
Practical Task: Exercise 2-Text Formatting
While reading the article, I was inspired when, during my research
on product design, I came across Otl Aicher's sign designs on the
designwanted site (Figure 3.2).
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Figure 3.2, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
And I was reminded of a typography and sign designer in Britain
called Margaret Calvert who had designed a lot of Britain's iconic
signs. Figure 3.3 is the image I used for the Article. I felt that a
hidden (or 'unsung') every day product that had to be meticulously
designed are signs, especially road signs. Sign designers need to
consider and come up with typography and icons that can be easily
interpreted by at least 90% of the people that can see them.
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| Figure 3.3, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
Layout 1
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| Figure 3.3, PNG, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
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| Figure 3.4, PNG, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
Layout 1 Properties
HEAD
- Font/s: Serifa Std 75 Black
- Type Size/s: 32
- Leading: 33
- Paragraph spacing: -
BODY
- Font/s: Serifa Std 55 Roman
- Type Size/s: 10pt
- Leading: 11pt
- Paragraph spacing: 11
- Characters per-line: 60
- Alignment: Align Left
Page Margins
- Margins: 12.7mm (top + left + right), 100mm (bottom)
- Columns: 4
- Gutter: 5mm
Layout 2
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| Figure 3.5, PNG, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
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| Figure 3.6, PNG, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
Layout 2 Properties
HEAD
- Font/s: Serifa Std 75 Black
- Type Size/s: 32
- Leading: 33
- Paragraph spacing: -
BODY
- Font/s: Serifa Std 55 Roman
- Type Size/s: 10pt
- Leading: 11pt
- Paragraph spacing: 11
- Characters per-line: 60
- Alignment: Align Left
- Font/s: Serifa Std 55 Roman
- Type Size/s: 10pt
- Leading: 11pt
- Paragraph spacing: 11
- Characters per-line: 60
- Alignment: Align Left
Page Margins
- Margins: 12.7mm (top + left + right), 100mm (bottom)
- Columns: 4
- Gutter: 5mm
- Margins: 12.7mm (top + left + right), 100mm (bottom)
- Columns: 4
- Gutter: 5mm
Feedback Adjustment
Based on my feedback on both layouts, I decided to continue on with
editing Layout 2 instead of Layout 1 because Layout 2 had more
potential. Following the feedback, I changed the body text to a
lighter looking font, Gill Sans Std Light. I then readjusted the
leading in each line to make sure there wasn't any lines that were
sticking out, keeping in mind to not make the paragraphs too
straight and to not leave any widows and/or orphans.
New Layout 2
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| Figure 3.7, JPEG, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
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| Figure 3.8, JPEG, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
New Layout 2 Properties
HEAD
- Font/s: Serifa Std 75 Black
- Type Size/s: 32
- Leading: 33
- Paragraph spacing: -
BODY
- Font/s: Gill Sans Std Light
- Type Size/s: 10pt
- Leading: 11pt
- Paragraph spacing: 11
- Characters per-line: 63
- Alignment: Align Left
- Font/s: Gill Sans Std Light
- Type Size/s: 10pt
- Leading: 11pt
- Paragraph spacing: 11
- Characters per-line: 63
- Alignment: Align Left
Page Margins
- Margins: 12.7mm (top + left + right), 100mm (bottom)
- Columns: 4
- Gutter: 5mm
- Margins: 12.7mm (top + left + right), 100mm (bottom)
- Columns: 4
- Gutter: 5mm
Exercise 2 Final Submission
- Final submission must include 4 files: two PDFs (one with grid visible), two JPEGs (one with grid visible)
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Figure 3.7, JPEG, Week 5 (18/05/2026) |
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Figure 3.8, JPEG, Week 5 (18/05/2026)
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Figure 3.9, Final Text Formatting (without Grids), PDF, Week 5
(18/05/2026)
Figure 3.10, Final Text Formatting (with Grids), PDF, Week 5 (18/05/2026)
Feedback from Lecturer
TASK DESCRIPTION: Include the feedback that you received from
your lecturer in the Task 1 blogpost.
Week 2 - Has to express the meaning of the word. Still room for
improvement, could be that the font you choose that is not
expressing the word intended. Some ideas work and other ideas are
too abstract. Extend the word relax wave to continue in a
line.
Week 3 - Moving lines from relax away from the letters because our
eyes perceive shapes before letters. Use same line width of L to
adjust the lines. Try making background black for smile. Use more grey
or black because too much white space. When using two different
typeface, never use the same typeface because using two typefaces mean
you want to create contrast. It creates more confusion and doubt when
you use two similar ones.
Week 4 - Only comment from Lecturer was 'Good job', but
I feel that I could have improved the animation more, such as making
the end transition from bouncing more smoother and the beginning of
the transition to be more bouncier.
Week 5 - Layout needs room to breathe, more people read
content when there is more space. Good margin is when you dont have
equal spaces on the side. the more extreme the difference the more
interesting it becomes, have to have an area that is anchored. Feels
like headlines are two different sections, careful with how to format
the head. When choosing body text, bold body text creates readability
issues, creates unwanted shapes and forms making it hard to read.
depends on style of design, take into consideration the bold body
text. fix format in first paragraph, second body text too straight.
Adjust tracking to 5, tracking is always plus 3 or minus 3
Calculate paragraph spacing by leading. 9pt, leading 12pt, paragraph
spacing should be 12.
Reflection
Experience
Mr Vinod's classes are moderately intense, mainly because of the workload and the amount of revisions required after each critique. At the start of every lesson, we post our homework on Mr Vinod's Typography Facebook group for critique, and in almost every lesson, the feedback I receive leads me to adjust a large portion of my work afterward, which makes me feel overwhelming and time-consuming sometimes. But I understand that these critiques are an important part of the learning process.
Observation
Looking back at my earlier work, I'd like to believe that I see improvement in both my technical skills and design thinking. I realise that I often design based on gut instincts and must correct that by focusing on the basics of typographic design first in every project. Although it has been challenging, I am happy that I am learning a lot from my mistakes.
Findings
The lessons teach me to understand typography principles such as hierarchy, spacing, alignment, and composition. Overall, despite the difficulties, the class has been valuable because it continues to push me to grow and improve as a designer.
Further Reading
The Art and Science of Typography in Design by The Journalism University
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| Image Source: The Art and Science of Typography in Design • Journalism University |
This article mainly dictates the spread of the Gutenberg's press throughout Europe as well as key elements of typography such as Typeface vs. Font, Serifs and Sans Serif typefaces and Typeface Anatomy, all of which has been covered already in the lecture videos. But it is good to learn about it from a different source as I may learn things I've never learned before.
They also expand into typography in print media and digital. I learned that fonts were stored as pixel-by-pixel maps called bitmaps in early computing, which were not ideal as they looked jagged when scaled up. Due to this, they created vector fonts where the font characters are stored as mathematical curves instead of bitmaps, which made scaling the font sizes look a lot smoother.
TASK 2 ->
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