The parts of a letter CAP HEIGHT
weighed diagonal (stem)
X-HEIGHT terminal crossbar lobe
diagonal hairline BASELINE
Counter
vertical serif
branch
shoulder
arm, crossbar
descender
descender line CAP HEIGHT
bracket
Counter
X-HEIGHT waist beak spine BASELINE
Definitions of Anatomy
Cap Height is the distance from the
baseline to the top of a capital letter. The cap height of a typeface determines its point size.
X-Height is the height of the main
body of the lowercase letter (or the height of a lowercase x) excluding its ascenders and descenders.
The baseline is where all the letters
sit. this is the most stable axis along a line of text, and it is a crucial edge for alighning text with images.
baseline
Serif vs. Sans Serif Sans Serif type which does not have serifs the little extra
strokes found at the end of main vertical and horizontal strokes. Within sans serif there are five main classifications: Grotesque, Neo-Grotesque, Geometric, Humanist, and Informal. Typefaces within each classification usually share similarities in stroke thickness, weight, and the shapes of certain letterforms.
example: a classic typeface Universe is a sans serif type.
Hop
similar stroke weight
no serif feet
Serif is the little extra stroke found at the end of main vertical and horizontal strokes of some letterforms. Some are subtle and others may be quite pronounced and obvious. In some cases serifs may aid in the readability of a typeface. Serif refers, in general, to any style of type that has serifs.
example: a classic typeface Garamond is a serif type.
Hop different stroke weight
serif feet
Timeless Typefaces what to look for
Readability (easy to read) Legibility-well designed, the proportionof letters ex: the baseline to the wasteline Repeated elements Contrast of stroke ex: hairline serifs such as bodoni A set or a family
Classic Typefaces Serif catergory Adobe Caslon Pro Garamond Bodoni Minion Pro Palatino Sans serif
Frutiger Futura Gill Sans Helvetica Universe
Note: Small point size (below 10 pt) SET IN SANS SERIF