basics of typography kerning

Basics of Typography

Anatomy of Type

Historic Families of Type and Classification

Type / Typeface / Font / Families of Type

Studying a Typeface

Kerning, Leading, Tracking, Measuring Type

A designer measures type as well as the spatial intervals between typographic elements. These intervals occur between letters, between words, and between two lines of type

The spatial interval between letters is called letterspacing

Adjusting the letterspacing is called kerning

The spatial interval between words is word spacing

The spatial interval between two lines of type is line spacing, traditionally called leading in metal type, where strips of lead of varying thickness (measured in points) were used to increase the space between lines of type

Kerning

Kerning adjusts the distance between two letters.

Set too closely together, words are indecipherable; set too far apart, and they're awkward to read.

How to Adjust Kerning in Adobe Illustrator / Photoshop

Open the character palettelocated under Window and then Character

Change the number in the Kerning field. The Kerning field is below the type size.

Don’t forget to highlight the text you want to change before adjusting it

Leading

Leading is an essential design aspect that determines how text is spaced vertically in lines.

Leading refers to the distance between the baselines of successive lines of type

You'll want to make sure the distance from the bottom of the words above to the top of the words below has appropriate spacing to make them legible.

How to Adjust Leading in Adobe Illustrator / Photoshop

Open the character palettelocated under Window and then Character

Change the number in the leading field. The leading field is next to the type size.

Don’t forget to highlight the text you want to change before adjusting it

TrackingTracking is often confused for kerning,

but the concept is a little different.

Tracking involves adjusting the spacing throughout the entire word.

TrackingOnce you've determined the right spacing between

each letter, tracking can be used, with great restraint, to change the spacing equally between every letter at once.

You should be very careful when changing the tracking, as it can quickly lead to difficulty in reading.

How to Adjust Tracking in Adobe Illustrator / Photoshop

Open the character palettelocated under Window and then Character Change the number in the Tracking field.

The Tracking field is below the kerning field. Don’t forget to highlight the text you want to change before adjusting it

Measuring TypeThe traditional system of typographic measurement

utilizes two basic units: the point and the pica.

The height of type is measured in points The width of a letter or a line of type is measured in picas

Measuring Type

Most type is available in sizes ranging from 5 points to 72 points

Type that is 14 points and less is used for setting text and is called text type or body copy.

Sizes above 14 points are used for display type.

Measuring Type

Measuring Type

In metal type, letterspacing and word spacing are produced by the insertion of

quads-a metal block shorter than

the type height—between pieces of metal type.

Both traditionally and today, an “em” is used as a unit of measure.

Measuring TypeOriginally the em was a unit of measurement roughly

equivalent to the width of the capital M in a given typeface at a specific point size. Now the em is usually sized to be

equivalent to the point size of a given font. For 12 point type, a 2-em indent would be 24 points — 2 x 12.

One half of an em is called an “en.”

Measuring Type