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Workflow question
Posted by Jean Paul Beumer in
6 May 2010 — 7:51am
6 May 2010 — 7:51am
Before I start working my designs in FL, I would like to know if the following workflow makes any sense:
- draw all glyphs
- determine left offset
- determine right offset
- make kering pairs
- rinse and repeat
Does this make any sens or am I forgetting something or...?
Your thoughts/experiences please!
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6 May 2010 — 7:59am
Step 2 & 3 simultaniously obviously!
6 May 2010 — 8:59am
I usually determine the side bearings when I draw each glyph, not after all the glyphs are drawn. Some refinement is usually necessary as more glyphs are drawn. Or I may change my mind about the spacing after the glyphs are all drawn and make global changes. The key thing is that I work on the spacing at the same time I'm drawing the glyphs, not as a completely separate step. The design of the glyphs are affected by the spacing and vice versa.
6 May 2010 — 9:15am
Okay, you're right of course. Designing glyphs isn't just about the color, but more so about white. However, how does one determine offset? Is it about looking at the text aligned left, and then right? And then accordingly determine kerning? That would seem logical, doesn't it?
BTW, the design was already made in AI, I'm transferring it to FL.
6 May 2010 — 11:24am
Determining spacing is a big subject. You might want to look here:
http://typophile.com/node/27804
Drawing in Illustrator may seem like an easy way to design a font, especially if you know Illustrator well, but it significantly increases the number of steps towards a finished font. And it's hard to work on spacing in Illustrator. Better and faster in the long run to draw right in the font editor.
6 May 2010 — 11:33am
Thanks Mark, this node is just what I was looking for!
I USED to design glyphs in AI, but now I'm all for FL!
Thanks again!