Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
The typeface you choose depends on your content and even your own personality.
Although people in the audience are not consciously aware of it, the typeface says
something about your content, and even about you. Use type intelligently for
communicating your ideas, then look beyond the literal meaning of the words. Additional
information is expressed through associations attached to the style of type. Type can set
a mood. But there are thousands of typefaces to choose from, including many that are
already installed in your computer, so how do you choose?
Some reliable typefaces
In
Typography Essentials
(Rockport Publishers, 2009), designer Ina Saltz identifies six
necessary typefaces to have in your repertoire: Caslon, Garamond, Baskerville,
Helvetica, Futura, and Gill Sans. So many typefaces are available that it can be very
difficult to practice restraint, says Saltz. Not only that but the abundance of choices can
be crippling for many people—they simply do not know where to begin. Too many
choices often leads to hurried and arbitrary decisions about what typeface to use. So
having six to ten typefaces that you understand well and use often is a good base from
which to start. The six identified by Ina Saltz are excellent. I like those six plus my classic
favorites: Bodoni, Univers, Rockwell, Frutiger, and Franklin Gothic.
Reliable typefaces
