(SB1) TYPESETTING

TYPESETTING
= composition of text by means of arranging physical types

READING PROCESS
- our eyes spring jerkily along the lines = saccades 
- alternate with fixed periods lasting 0.2-0.4 seconds 
- info is only absorbed during the fixed period 
- 3-4 letters of each word are focused on sharply 
- if the sense of the text is not clear, the eye jumps back to recheck 

TYPOGRAPHY ELEMENTS 

1. the letter - design of the individual characters 
2. the word - how the glyphs fit together 
3. the line - combination and arrangement of words in a body

TYPOGRAPHY PRINCIPLES

Hiarachy 

- some messages will be more vital than others in every communication 

- A hierarchy of different type sizes, styles and weights can be used to denote the de- gree of importance of each individual line.

Alignment 

- left aligned 

 = ragged right edges 

 = easy reading and typesetting 

- justified text 

 = look clean and classic 

 = if carelessly set, might look distorted and hard to read 

- centres & right aligned 

 = not commonly used, difficult to read 

The rag/ ragged edge

= irregular or uneven vertical margin of a block of type 

--> in, out, end 

Paragraphs 

- affects overall look of your text 

- for greater control 

1. indented - first paragraph does not have an indentation while the first line of the following paragraphs are indented 
2. full line break - a full line break to separate paragraphs 

Letter Spacing: Leading 

= distance between the baselines 

- hand typesetting, letterpress - strips of lead were used to increase vertical distance between lines 

- bad leading - ascenders and descenders almost touching, lack of white space 

- for body copy, should be slightly bigger than the font pt size, increased/ decreased proportionally 

Letter Spacing: Tracking (-40, +40)

= amount of space between a group of letters 

- readability decreases when negative tracking is applied 

- wide tracking opens up the type, airy feel with white space, can become less legible if used in extremes 

Kerning & pairs 

= process of adjusting the spacing between individual characters to achieve visually pleasing result

- overhangs 

Hidden characters 

= returns, spaces, tabs 

= only shows when you have "show hidden characters" turned on 

- useful for finding double spaces and unintentional line breaks 

Line length 

- comfortable line length = 40-75 characters, 7-12 words 

Windows and Orphans 

= lines or words left hanging or separated from a complete block of text 

- use tracking and line spacing to remove 

Grids 

- Raster Systeme: Josef Mülle-Brockmann

--> 8-32 grid fields which can be adaptable to the design 

- most important yet most invisible part of design and typography 

- keep organised and control appearance 

Rivers 

= gaps in typesetting which run through a paragraph of text, sue to coincidental alignment of spaces 

- turn a proof sheet upside down to test for rivers 

- disadvantage to justified text 

Baseline grid 

= aligns all text to a vertical grid, like writing on a lined paper, regardless of type size, weight, style, spacing

Hyphanate/ not

= process of breaking words between lines to create more consistency across text 

- mandatory in justified text 

https://estudio.leeds-art.ac.uk/pluginfile.php/43441/mod_resource/content/1/Typesetting%20Guide%20504%20Design%20Production.pdf