Following our last post, we’ve compiled more typography elements you need to know to improve the quality of design.
Some typography elements below may seem trivial, and many beginners often overlook their importance, but taking them into account enables your project to look more polished. Talking about going extra miles.
04. Kerning and tracking
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Beginners often confuse between tracking and kerning. While tracking—also called letter-spacing—adjusts the distance between characters evenly (which affects the density of the text), kerning adjusts the amount of space between two letters.
Kerning is fundamental in designing typographic logos; set too far apart and they’re awkward to read, set too close and it’s illegible. Some letters have wider spacing and others narrower, so adjusting the space is crucial to avoid misinterpretation.
P.s. Test your kerning skills in this browser game. Super fun.
05. Font size
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Font size matters, particularly when you’re designing for different media. If you’re designing a book layout, for example, a 10pt-12pt is legible enough for the body copy. Too small and your viewers have to squint your eyes to read.
However, it’s slightly different when you’re designing for a web. Fixed font sizes that are defined by pixel may look great on a large screen, but not so for mobile. The best is to use percentages instead of fixed heights for they adapt to different screen resolutions.
Also, keep in mind that readability and legibility should be the main concern. People of different ages also prefer different sizes, so it’s best to think about your audience and be meticulous in choosing the font size to stick with.
06. Alignment
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Alignment means the line to which the text aligns to meaning that it should be consistent throughout the design. A design with poorly aligned text, images, shapes, lines, look cluttered—like that of messy room—so consistency is what we pursue in setting the alignment.
Many beginners’ mistake is to overuse center alignment, but it can make the text (and design as a whole) unbalanced. Left alignment is commonly used in design, for it evenly balances out design elements. Right alignment can also be an alternative, but avoid using it for body text. The key is to think which part to emphasize and be consistent. No one wants to see a messy design.