Typography | Webdesigner Depot

1 Feb

Last week we run a great contest here on WDD to give away 5 free copies of the book “Fluid Web Typography” …and today we have the results!

Congratulations to all 5 winners: Christopher Barnes (#392), Claudiu (#145), Tutorial City (#403), Austin (#113) and Patricia (#346).

Each of you have won a free copy of this excellent web typography book written by Jason Cranford Teague.

All winners will be contacted via email for details on how to receive their books.

Thanks to the over 400 of you who participated and for leaving links to all those awesome typographic resources.

We’ll be running more contests in the near future, stay tuned! Read more

25 Jan

Win 5 Copies of “Fluid Web Typography”

Contests, Freebies, Typography

411

Typography on the Web has remained unchanged for over a decade, but we’re now in the midst of a type revolution.

In a great effort to bring light to typography on the web and how to use it properly, one of our respected authors, Jason Cranford Teague, in association with Peachpit has released the book “Fluid Web Typography”.

Today, we’re bringing this must-have book to the WDD audience.

We’re running a one week contest where we will be awarding 5 free copies of this unmissable book. Read on for all the details and how to participate. Read more

22 Jan

Beautiful Curvy Brush Fonts for Design

Compilation, Fonts, Typography

52

Brush fonts are hotter than ever and we are seeing them more often on professionally designed websites.

Thick, bold and beautiful… their relaxed, casual feeling and sexy curves make them a perfect fit for designers who want to break the mold and steer away from the typical serif and sans serif font choices.

Some of them crossover into the script font world, while retaining their thick lines and curves.

These types of fonts are also now widely used for logo designs and packaging as they easily bring added interest and creativity.

Here are 20 beautiful brush fonts that you may wish to use in your designs. Most of these fonts are not free, but may be worth the price for your project. Enjoy… Read more

20 Jan

The Simplicity of Helvetica

Fonts, History, Typography

40

Helvetica is one of the most popular typefaces in the world.

Technically speaking, it’s a sans serif Grotesque typeface, inspired by and based on the Akzidenz-Grotesk typeface created by Berthold around 1898.

In practical terms, though, it’s used by designers at independent firms, big corporations, and everything in between, from all over the world.

Helvetica has been featured by MOMA in New York and has received a number of awards and worldwide recognition. There’s even a documentary and a few books about it.

But why is Helvetica so popular? What is it about this font that seemingly tries to be inconspicuous that has made it such a part of our culture and daily lives?

We see it dozens of times every day, from product logos, to websites, to packaging, and numerous other items. Read on for more information about Helvetica and why you might want to consider it in your next design project. Read more

13 Jan

The History of the Ampersand and Showcase

Design, History, Typography

61

The ampersand is one of the most unique typographical characters out there.

Typography designers can exercise a lot more artistic freedom in the design of the ampersand, ranging from very traditional representations to those that bear little resemblance to the original form.

But many designers have little knowledge about the origin and meaning of the ampersand. The ampersand has a long and rather interesting history, though.

And with all the variations available out there, there are a whole host of design possibilities presented by this particular character.

Read on for more information, a history of the ampersand, and a gallery of ampersand designs from a variety of different typefaces. Read more

11 Sep

30 Typography Posters That You’ve Probably Never Seen Before

Compilation, Inspiration, Typography

68

Typography is the art of arranging, designing and modifying type.

Creating a well designed typography poster is no easy task, and takes time and patience.

When a poster focuses only on typography as its main element, the designer has to carefully craft his design to make sure that the type is both legible and artistic at the same time.

In this amazing compilation, you will see typography posters created by designers from all over the world.

Here are 30 Amazing Typography Posters that you have probably never seen before. Read more

23 Jul

18 Creative Examples of Typography in Motion

Inspiration, Typography, Video

59

The use of typography in video allows us to reclaim the lost art of arranging typefaces in a way that would make an 18th century typesetter’s head spin.

This type of art is also known as Kinetic typography.

The text is presented in a manner intended to convey or evoke a particular idea or emotion.

In this compilation we showcase 18 creative uses of kinetic typography which include short movies made with After Effects, stop motion animation and other techniques.

If you have an example of kinetic typography that you would like to share with us, please feel free to post a link to it in the comments section.

50 Examples of Vintage Typography

Design, Inspiration, Typography

50

Vintage art reminds us of a time when we were dependent less on technology and more on skill and technique.

But we cannot compare the typography of 100 years ago to that of today, with the arrival of so many new typefaces, new ways to create fonts as well as new ways to get our artwork out into the world.

Even though the application of typography has evolved so much from a century ago until now, the most common use of typography continues to be for ads, store signs, and logos.

Below, you will find 50 typographic examples that exhibit a range of artistic styles from the last 100 years or so.

101 Examples of Text Treatments on the Web

Design, Text Effects, Typography

64

Typography is often a deciding factor in the success of a design. Its importance cannot be overstated. Effective typography can be achieved in so many different ways, as demonstrated in the 17 different categories below.

Some of the most common ways to treat type is with size, color variation, creative illustrations, and use of textures. The examples below are just the tip of the iceberg as far as the possibilities for type.

Don’t be afraid to flip it, color it, resize it, draw it, or even design your own.

Check out these fantastic 101 examples of beautiful text treatments and please let us know of any other great examples we may have missed. Read more

8 Apr

Meet Jos Buivenga: The Designer of the Museo Font

Fonts, Interviews, Typography

105

If you frequent design and CSS galleries, you may have stumbled time and time again upon an excellent typeface released last year that took the design world by storm. I’m talking about Jos Buivenga’s font ‘Museo’.

I’ve never seen a font being adopted so quickly and fondly by web designers across the world. It’s been listed as one of the top 10 fonts of 2008 by MyFonts.com

Museo is being used everywhere, web and print, including our own logo here at Webdesigner Depot. Museo Sans, its sans serif companion, was recently introduced and another style is in the works.

In this article, I’m interviewing Jos Buivenga, the author of the popular Museo font and find out more about his influential typeface, his design process and what the future holds. Read more

20 Mar

40 Excellent Logos Created with Helvetica

Design, Fonts, Logos, Typography

193

It’s over fifty years old, it’s the most widely used font ever, and it has recently become the subject of its own movie.

We’re talking about the world’s most recognizable font: Helvetica. Its relevance in design through the years and even today seems unbeatable.

The appeal for a distinctive, professional and timeless typeface has never dwindled and it keeps gaining more followers day by day. Love it or hate it, with its multitude of styles and versions, Helvetica is here to stay.

From airlines, to car companies to the largest software company, Helvetica’s use in logos throughout the world remains as strong as ever. In this article we’ll take a look at 40 excellent logos created using Helvetica. Read more

9 Mar

5 Simple Ways to Improve Web Typography

Design, Fonts, Typography

86

Type is one of the most-used elements of the web. Think about it. Unless you are YouTube or Flickr, chances are your site visitors are coming for your text content – not the fancy packaging that surrounds it. So why are web designers still treating text like a secondary element?

Good typography brings order to the page and increases legibility. It allows people to process information faster.

A more scannable, readable site means happy visitors. Happy visitors return often, buy products, leave comments, and share the site with friends. See why it might be worth thinking about?

I could blather on forever about how far typography has come on the web, and how far yet it has to go. I have frequently bounced between web and print design. When you’re going from InDesign to TextMate, the limitations of web type are crystal clear.

But plenty has been said about what web type can’t do. This isn’t going to be another rant. Instead, let’s focus on a 5 easy fixes for the typographic eyesores that abound across the Web. Read more

16 Feb

How to Create a Professional Logo

Color, Design, Logos, Typography

79

A professional logo can enhance a company, an organization, or a product. On the other hand, an unprofessional logo can ruin a brand and mar an otherwise good designer’s portfolio.

Many logos in use are unprofessional and carry all the tell-tale marks of an amateur or a beginner. Everyone thinks they can design a great logo, but simply knowing your way around Photoshop is not enough.

Here are some insights into the process and workflow of effective and modern logo design. With these tips and your creativity, you can make your logo designs shine with the very best.
Read more

9 Feb

10 Web Typography Rules Every Designer Should Know

Design, Typography

182

When someone visits a website you’ve designed, the odds are that they don’t care much about the colors, images or sounds, they’re immediately looking at the text.

No matter how many bells and whistles you’ve built into a website, everyone relies on text to accomplish whatever they’re visiting the site to do.

That alone should make typography, the art of arranging type, a priority for any web designer.

In this article we take a look at 10 easy rules to keep in mind when designing your next web project. Read more

4 Dec

7 Free Tools to Identify A Font

Fonts, Typography

43

So you’re browsing through your favorite website and found a site that uses a font you love. You want that font too, (and must be as quickly as possible!)… so how do we go about finding out what that font is called? Sounds familiar? Yes… we’ve all been there before!

One easy option is to simply email the webmaster and ask for the name of the font and where to get it.

This can take some time and not all webmasters will reply. So, I’ve decided to compile a list of free online tools to speed up the identification process. Read more

13 Nov

Mixing Fonts in a Logo

Logos, Typography

19

Mixing fonts inside any design can be a ‘dangerous’ idea. If the fonts are too similar then the viewer will feel confused, but if the fonts are too different then it will make viewer feel multiple emotions that fight against one another.

A safer idea is to stick to one font/theme and add a graphic or a few different colors that reinforces the brand’s singular idea.

For brands that have more than one focus, and for designers who are up to the challenge, mixing fonts can be worth the risk. Read more