Critique required for beginner's sans

Posted by 3phaser in

26 Apr 2011 — 7:59am

This is my first attempt at designing a (very rudimentary) typeface.

I've used a simple system where each letter is based on the letter "o" – although I'm aware that such a rigid approach is problematic to say the least. (I've tweaked only a few letters so far.)

All feedback on further alterations I need to consider, etc, would be much appreciated, thanks.

Attachment	Size
type-A-Z-new-black.jpg	657 KB

riccard0
26 Apr 2011 — 1:55pm

This is a classic approach. See, as reference:
http://new.myfonts.com/fonts/cheapprofonts/geometry-soft-pro/
http://www.bowfinprintworks.com/BauhausFaces1.html

What could be interesting in your take is the varying width of the stroke.

3phaser
26 Apr 2011 — 2:31pm

riccard0, thanks for your reply.

As you say I think that the varying width is the potentially interesting aspect here.

Any comments on specific alterations to individual glyphs / the overall typeface would be appreciated.

riccard0
26 Apr 2011 — 3:18pm

It all depends on how much you want to stick to the purely geometric construction. Otherwise, optically, s is too narrow/unbalanced, u and k are too wide, etc.

3phaser
27 Apr 2011 — 3:06am

Thanks again for the feedback: this is exactly the sort of help I was hoping for. I don't really understand how one makes decisions about glyph width, etc, etc. Are there specific rules? Is it done purely by eye?

I'd be happy to sacrifice the rigidity of the geometric system in an attempt to create a much more subtle typeface, although I don't want to lose the overall geometric feel. I will try making some alterations and upload the results soon.

riccard0
27 Apr 2011 — 3:47am

You could start here:
http://typographica.org/2010/on-typography/making-geometric-type-work/

Gary Lonergan
3 May 2011 — 6:45am