AOITGraphic Design

Unit 4, Lesson 11

Typography and Spacing

Leading is the vertical space between lines of type

• Too much or too little space makes for difficult reading.

• Leading is another word for line spacing. Leading is measured in points, just like type.

Which of these examples has leading that is 20% of the point size?

Headlines need less leading than body text

For headlines that run on two or more lines, decrease the leading.

Leading for text in all caps is different

• For all-cap body text, use more leading to avoid crowding.

• For headlines in all caps, decrease leading to make the lines look like one unit.

Use extra leading with sans serif typefaces

Sans serif text tends to have larger x-heights, so extra leading is almost always necessary.

Letter spacing is the amount of space between all the letters in a range of text

• You can adjust letter spacing to make text appear more open or tighter, depending on the natural characteristics of the typeface and its purpose on the page.

• A graphic design standard for determining if there is the correct amount of space between letters is to envision pouring the same amount of sand between letters.

Letter spacing and leading affect readability

Which of these is easier to read and why?

Kerning means adjusting the space between individual letters

• Selectively adjusting the space between letterforms gives a more polished, professional look.

• Decrease the space between loose letters.

• Increase the space between tight letters.

• Visually consistent letter spacing strengthens the readability of the text. Which letter combinations in

the lower box have been adjusted using kerning?

Effective word spacing makes text easier to read

• You can fit a lowercase n between words that are moderately spaced.

• You can fit a lowercase i between words that are tightly spaced.

• When words are too widely spaced, we read them as individual words rather than as a phrase.

How you space text matters

• Too much or too little leading makes for difficult reading.

• Adjust letter spacing to make text appear more open or tighter.

• Eliminating excessive gaps between letters by kerning makes text look more balanced.

• If there is too much space between words, we have trouble reading them as a phrase.