As one of my favorite elements
in graphic design, fonts can really give your designs meaning. In fact, they can
even make or break the professionalism of just about any written work. Choosing
the right font is crucial if you want
your audience to grasp the concept and tone of your message. Just look at the
font you’re reading right now. Is it easy for you to read and understand this
paragraph? Does it flow? Is it too bland for your tastes? These are the types
of questions you may want to think about when you decide to use fonts for just
about anything.
In total, there are two typefaces
to choose from. Each has thousands of
styles to utilize. These typefaces are called serifs and sans serifs, which you
may actually have seen before.
Serifs
Adapted from “schreef”, the
Dutch word for “line”, serif fonts can often be identified in many books,
newspapers, and documents. The reason behind the meaning of the word is due to
the distinct set of lines placed upon each letter.
For example:
This is Times New Roman. A serif font many of us are
familiar with. Notice the small lines on the edges of each letter. Compare this
with Arial, the font I’ve originally been using. It is said that these particular
lines allow greater readability as opposed to sans serif fonts. However, that
is still to be disputed, depending on each person’s preferences.
Sans Serifs
As you can see, these have become
my personal preference due to their cleaner and more spacious look. They are derived
from the French word “sans”, meaning “without”, which is why they lack the
lines we’ve seen from serif fonts.
Sans serif fonts are often
found within many advertisements, posters, and comics. When creating graphic
designs, this is the recommended typeface to catch the eye of your audience
due to the enormous amount of serif fonts we see in most published works.
Now that you’ve learned about
these two typefaces, I hope for many of you to grow more aware of them. What
you choose to do with the style of each font is up to you.
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