‘Don’t letterspace the lower case without a reason.’ Robert Bringhurst
Normal tracking
Letterspacing
Ideas “The space between letters is integral to all typography. A particular letterspace may enhance or destroy the aesthetic quality of a typeface or the legibility of text.‘A man who would letterspace lower case would steal sheep,’ Fredirec Goudy liked to say. If this wisdom needs updating, it is chiefly to add that a woman who would letterspace lower case would steal sheep as well. Normal letterspace is related to the counterforms of lower case letters.Typefaces with large counterforms require more letterspace than typefaces with small counterforms. Letterspace must be decisive, either in harmony with or in strong contrast to the counterforms of lower case letters. For text, most typefaces set with the default set width appear too tight. Additional letterspace improves legibility and aesthetic quality. Unprofessional typesetting is generally cause not by the choice of typeface, but by too much, too little, or irregular letterspacing.Nevertheless, like every rule, this one extends only as far as its rationale.The reason for not letterspacing lower case is that it hampers legibility. But, there are some lowercase alphabets to which this principle doesn’t apply.
Everything is connected to everything else and searching for solutions often requires being alert to spot the unlikely connections... In Critique magazine Marty Neumeier writes:“If idea-making can’t be reduced to a system, perhaps it can be expressed in a formula. Like the workings of the internal combustion engine, the conceptual process can be seen as a series of controlled explosions that drive ideas forward. In a car engine, when fuel is mixed with fresh air and ignited by a spark, the wheels turn and the car accelerates. In the human mind, when a problem is mixed with a new perspective and exposed to intuition, the wheels turn and we arrive at a new concept. Problem + fresh perspective x intuition = concept.
Tight tracking Ideas Everything is connected to everything else and searching for solutions often requires being alert to spot the unlikely connections... In Critique magazine Marty Neumeier writes:“If idea-making can’t be reduced to a system, perhaps it can be expressed in a formula.Like the workings of the internal combustion engine,the conceptual process can be seen as a series of controlled explosions that drive ideas forward. In a car engine,when fuel is mixed with fresh air and ignited by a spark,the wheels turn and the car accelerates.In the human mind,when a problem is mixed with a new perspective and exposed to intuition,the wheels turn and we arrive at a new concept.Problem + fresh perspective x intuition = concept.
(Robert Bringhurst)
When letterspacing is too tight, the type appears patchy, disrupted by clusters; when too open, it looks scattered and framented. In both instances,the type is irritating and tiresome to read. The correct letterspacing in continuous text is a subtle question of balance: what is the optimum space that sufficiently separates the letters without creating a string of disconnected elements that are difficult to grasp? The answer depends on the typeface and size, and the visual result intended by the typographic designer. For both serif and sans serif type the optimum letterspace for text is determined by the counterforms of the lower case letters. Typefaces with small counterforms require less space between letters that those with large counterforms. If the letterspace is visually larger than the median counterforms of the lower case letter, the type appears too open. On the computer, most design applications adopt an average set width intended to work with all type sizes. For most typefaces, however, text composed with this setting appears too tight, requiring the letterspace to be increase for optimum legibility and aesthetic quality. In sizes larger than 24 point, most typefaces composed with an average set width appear too open. Display sizes generally require a decrease in letterspacing. In large type sizes, individual letterforms are visually more distinct, making it important to pay special attention to the letterforms in relation to each other.” Willi Kunz, Macro-and Microaesthetic
Loose tracking Ideas E ve r y t h i n g i s c o n n e c t e d t o eve r y t h i n g e l s e a n d s e a rc h i n g f o r solutions often requires being aler t to spot the unlikely connections... In Cr itique magazine Mar ty Neumeier wr ites:“ If idea-making c a n ’t b e re d u c e d t o a system, perhaps it can be expressed in a for mula. Like the workings of the internal c o m bu s t i o n e n g i n e, t h e c o n c e p tual process can be seen as a ser ies of controlled explosions that dr ive ideas forward. In a car eng ine, when fuel is mixed with fresh air and ignited by a spark, the wheels t u r n a n d t h e c a r a c c e l e r a t e s . In the human mind, when a problem is mixed with a new per spective and exposed to intuition, the wheels turn and we arrive at a new concept. Problem + fresh perspective x intuition = concept.
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