Comments on: The font count

By: Brad Blackman

Brad Blackman — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 15:30:36 +0000

Oops, I just realized I’m late to the game!

By: Brad Blackman

Brad Blackman — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 15:15:31 +0000

That looks like Bell or one of the Caslons or Scotch or possibly Baskerville. Same era.

By: Diana Moses Botkin

Diana Moses Botkin — Mon, 08 Oct 2007 18:38:38 +0000

Looks like Baskerville to me…. or what used to be known as that. It can’t be Palatino, as Palatino (my personal favorite serif typeface.. so graceful!) has that lovely little airy space in the P, and a nicer balance (to my eye, anyway). It’s like much of art… what we like in a font (we used to call it typeface) is quite subjective and personal. I’m a sucker for a pretty face… other personal favorites are Friz Quadrata (which was truly an original typeface that came out in the 70s), Weiss (an old hand-set serif typeface with nice balance), Copperplate Gothic, and Michelangelo Titling (another hand-set face with beautiful form and balance, all caps). I worked in commercial art (now known as graphic art) back in the “old days” before computers. It’s truly amazing to me what can be done on the computer in seconds, that we used to do by hand… rule lines, hand-set headlines, cut photo drop-out windows, etc. Back in the old days, if we needed type at the ad agency for camera ready art for ads, annual reports, etc., the copy writer typed it up (and hopefully it had been proofed for typos!), and gave it to the delivery boy to take downtown to the typesetter’s. The art director (or the assistant) usually had specified typeface, point size, letter spacing and line spacing based on how many letters were in the typewritten copy and the space available in the ad. After a couple of days the delivery boy went back to pick up the galley sheets of set type and the paste-up artist placed it in the mechanicals for the printer. If someone missed a typo, then corrections had to be pasted in by hand. Or… going back farther to hand-set metal linotype… or wood back before that… the typesetter set the copy (backwards) so it could go to press. Think of those poor souls working away at daily newspapers setting letter by letter in the trays. And then they had to put it all away in the proper cabinet after the printing was finished. Dyslexics would probably do well in that job. Gee… I’ve rambled on. It’s good to realize how easy it is now! Blessings, Diana http://www.DianaMosesBotkin.com

By: Deb Watson

Deb Watson — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 10:39:30 +0000

No, I didn’t even think it might be printed somewhere! I use CorelDraw alot and remember certain fonts I like for their characteristics – this just happened to be one of them. The numerals really are what gave it away.

By: Alyson B. Stanfield

Alyson B. Stanfield — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 15:59:22 +0000

Wow! There are more font geeks out there. Welcome! Walter & Sue: Thanks for the links to the other font sites. That’s what I need . . . more fonts to look at. Sue: I’m picking my own font because I am self-publishing. Kind of a control freak. Deb K. and Sari: I wish I had pages to skim down, but I can only see some of them online. You have to input the one you like and then you just get a whole page of that one font. So, I can’t really see it printed out in text. Will have to wait for my designer to do that for me. Tina: I’ve heard sans serif for online and serif for reading. I much prefer to read serif fonts in books. Deb: You guessed it! I suppose you didn’t see the answer printed there at the bottom. ???

By: Christine DeCamp

Christine DeCamp — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 04:13:05 +0000

Good luck, Alyson! I know nothing in this arena—& have never had many options to choose from! Christine

By: Sue O'Kieffe

Sue O'Kieffe — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 17:51:08 +0000

I am a huge fontophile, but know very little about fonts for reading, except to use serif for print and sans-serif for websites. A friend of mine in the graphic design biz turned me on to this website http://www.thinkingwithtype.com/ So are you saying you actually have the opportunity to choose the font for your book? That’s pretty amazing. ~Sue O’Kieffe

By: Deb Kirkeeide

Deb Kirkeeide — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 17:19:35 +0000

Aaah yes. I am in awe of those true font afficianados, who can name that font. I work in design and have to admit my process is more in tune with Sari’s. Skim until one jumps out – the intuitive approach. There are many that are similar but it’s the nuances that get my attention. Good luck!

By: Deb Watson

Deb Watson — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 16:59:20 +0000

I’m guessing Frys Baskerville or some derivation of Baskerville… Having studied lettering and having been a calligrapher makes one aware of the nuances of fonts. Garamond and Palatino versions are both easy to read. The more ornate the font and its serifs, the harder they are to read. good luck, Alyson!

By: Debra Cortese

Debra Cortese — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 15:41:57 +0000

I also hail from a graphic design background and the days of copyfitting when it required a calculator and the measurement of characters-per pica of a particular face to determine the exact point size and leading to fit a paragraph into a type area that measured 13.5 picas wide by 24 picas deep. Today’s prolification of typefaces can be attributed to the ease of recreating, editing, updating and creating new faces with digital tools. The entire universe has accelerated and typography is definitely an vital element in this ‘information age’. I believe the old standard of using a serif face for books and newspapers is based on sound statistics which indicate that it is easier and more conducive to reading large areas of text if the variation in the letters is more distinctive, as it is in serif type. Because of the flicker and backlighting of computers, it is, again statistically easier to read large areas of text in san serif faces. My personal preference for a book type would be the Palatino family. It is a bit more elegant than the traditional Times and not as bulky as a Century Schoolbook. But I’m sure there are hundreds of choices depending on the preferences of your typographer, publisher, etc. Have fun and make sure you are pleased with the look!