Overview for typography

Well what can I say about the world of Typography?

I can honestly say I love it, no love is maybe to strong a word... Its been a massive pain in my behind and has given me many a headache. For most parts I've enjoyed looking at the history of typography (egyptians, romans etc) but when it comes to terminology of it all I get confused and a little overwhelmed.

I think if I was only practicing this type of work/design as a subject (all the time) it would soon click into place. But I've no real knowledge of computer terminology or graphic design at all..

I feel I struggle to describe my own opinion and thoughts on type faces. The ideas or reason they are used and intended for. Fit for purpose.. Like the heading and subheading of a magazine being aim at a certain class of people. I know what and why and how the designer has aimed the subject matter at an audience. But to express the reasoning and terminlogy behind it for me I struggle. I get the basic's like a script font being soft, feminine and elegant... but not being a good choice for a long body of text, but maybe for a shop's name or logo.  I've found some fonts can make your eye move easier across the page more than others.
Blocks of text are considered easier to read when set in Roman, Old Style or Antiqua which is a combination of majuscule (uppercase) and minuscule (lowercase) characters. This is because the eye scans the text using the ascenders and descenders to recognise words rather than constructively reading each and every word. Uppercase characters have fewer visual shortcuts

AS YOU CAN SEE FROM THE EXAMPLE THE MAJUSCULE CHARACTERS REQUIRE THE READER TO CONSTRUCT THE WORDS BY READING EACH INDIVIDUAL CHARACTER. THIS CAN MAKE READING SLOW AND TIRING.

Some typefaces use a small caps to highlight sections of text without it standing out to much or making it to over-powering. So as you can see from this little section I've wrote the level and complexity that can be considered. That is only if the text requires lower - upper case, small caps, but then you have spacing, italics, kerning, over-printing, tracking, leading, international markets, punctuation and type families each one complex and in play. All to consider and that's before you think of design itself, colour and print finishes, point size and the clients brief.

I do think that living in this world has to be a passion and I can see just how people do fall for the typefaces and designs. Type is everywhere and its magical when done well, we don't even see it. Other times it keep us safe or informs us of danger. Engaging and memorable through child-hood stories then as adults lets us escape into a world or fact or fiction. Entertaining, teaching, identifying and individual. sometimes calming and homely and down right clever. Its pretty amazing stuff.

Then the history of type designers - well it again is a massive story with-in its self. I did enjoy reading about the designers and the passion each one had. Pure determination or accidental passion coming together to bring another part of the bigger picture. Debates and chat-room/forums on typefaces are frequently discussing, talking or answering questions on typefaces. The public are more aware of type/fonts with the world wide web being accessible in nearly every home. People are more aware than ever and want to question the branding or logo's lettering.  Type designers themselves are up against people teaching themselves design. Designers are having to continually think of new and individual designs. Fact is there is a type for everything nowadays.

It made me wish I knew more, hell I would love to design multilingual type. Its amazing and to be able to understand this little brief for me as been enough to contemplate, if I was more I think to be a designer and speak several languages would be a dream in itself. I should maybe start to perfect my own English and spelling first!

For now I can only hope I've done enough to actually pass this brief. I feel it has been a massive benefit as much as its been a headache at times. I know that when I don't realise it,  some of the things I've learnt will come back to help me later down the line. Consciously or not.