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Forums > Fonts and Typesetting
Written by Neil Caldwell on March 6, 2008
I heart Type.
If I need expert advice on type, fonts, or anything to do with typography, I head over to typophile dot com - truth be told, I've been a member there for years and I know first hand that the place just rawks!
Type Nerds Rule!
I'm with you, Neil. typophile.com is great. I also check in on the Hoefler & Frere-Jones blog frequently: http://www.typography.com/ask/index.php
Terri Stone
Editor in Chief, CreativePro.com
good type sites
Typophile is a great site, I agree. I've lost numerous hours there.
Some others:
You shouldn't miss out on Spiekermann's blog. I love his designs, his insights, and his standup routine, er, I mean, his lectures. I've heard him speak a couple of times and he's dryyyyyly funny along with being very articulate and, like I said, insightful. His blog is at http://www.spiekermann.com/mten/.
The H&FJ site is wonderful (typography.com) if for no other reason than to check out those revolving images on the home page - wonderful lighting effect on those flat images.
A new site I discovered just a few months ago is http://ilovetypography.com. A really wonderful site. I think it's only been around a couple of years. Interviews with Jean Francois Porchez, Ellen Lupton, and - wait for it - a link to a lecture by Mr. Spiekermann (look down the list of Recent Articles for Sunday Type: Spiekermann).
All for now. Check them out. Good stuff.
Everything should be Univers
Everything should be Univers 55 IMHO.
G-Type site coming soon
Launching soon, another fabulous type site at http://www.g-type.com
G-Type is the digital foundry run by Nick Cooke who is responsible for fabulous fonts such as Houschka Pro, Chevin Pro, Olicana, Precious, Organon, Gizmo, Accent Graphic etc. Stay tuned!
Hi my name is Andrew I am a
Hi my name is Andrew
I am a graphic design student at Birmingham City University, and I am currently struggling with my dissertation titled;
Is technology making craft based designers less skilled?
I am focusing my essay on the craft of typographers.
I would really appreciate your background and knowledge on the subject,
When did you use typography/text/fonts?
What did you produce/create?
Did you use letraset? What where the pros , cons, restrictions, benefits?
How was it done before letraset?
Do you use programs now?, what are the befits?
Do you think today’s generation of designers are less skilled than your generation?
My Tutor told me about this designer that made wedding invitations that where produced with hand rendered typefaces.
As technology advanced he used it to his advantage, he still created a unique typeface for his clients invitations
but scanned the type into a software programme to mass produce, then hand rendering the names to give it the personal touch.
This was a good example of how he used technology to be more beneficial and save time, do you have any similar experiences?
Truly interested and grateful for any form of response, hope to here from you soon Andy
type as craft
Andrew,
I'm a retired graphic designer. When I started, we "set" type with transfer lettering. Then computerized typography, which was a photo-sensitive process, then computers and everything changed. The desktop computer allowed the user to condense, extend and generally manipulate the letter in ways the designer never imagined. Classic fonts were bastardized by users that didn't appreciate the letter forms. In colleges today, it is rare to see typography even taught. Young graphic designers are very web-oriented. Students rarely read magazines or the newspaper, if it isn't online, it is irrelevant. Sadly, today's faculty (for the most part) are of the younger generation and don't teach the very basics of design. If it can't be done with a computer... I taught basic graphic design for several years and the first class I gave each student a freshly sharpened #2 pencil. The computer is merely a tool. No application is going to create good design.
I've been rambling so you can make of this what you will, but graphic design today, in my opinion, is all about the gee whiz technology rather than solid design principles.
Just my 2 cents...