Latest modern science | The problem with point size - Si Bejo Science

Latest modern science | The problem with point size - Si Bejo Science

typefaces

Unknown 05.00 Add Comment

�What�s the smallest point size you can put on a poster?�

This is a common question, but it�s not one that has a simple answer.

I know many scientists read this blog, and scientists work in a world where measurements are universal. 37�C is 37�C no matter wherever you are, whatever you�re measuring, and are exactly comparable. Someone from a scientific background probably thinks that two identical pieces of text � in different fonts but the same point size � should take up the same space.

I have bad news. Point size does not work like that.

These two paragraphs are both set in serif typefaces, both nominally 16 points in size, but one takes 19% more column length than the other. This difference can arise because individual letters in the two fonts might have the same height, but different widths. The letter O may be a wider circle, or a narrower oval, for example.

That 19% will make a big difference in your layout, even if the two blocks of text are similarly readable.

I have selected two fonts with a fairly large difference here. Many other standard fonts will probably be more similar in their use of space. But it points out that you can�t rely on font size alone to guide your poster design.

Instead of blindly following a minimum font size, work from a couple of guiding principles.

1. The bigger the text, the better.
2. Test, test, and test some more. Print full sized sample paragraphs at the point size you want to use (12 point 18 point, 24 point, 30 point), tack them to a wall, and stand back a couple of meters and see how they look.

But if all thoughtful design and testing stuff bores you, the answer is:

Nothing smaller than 24 point on your poster.

There. Happy?

Latest modern science | Is your font in the right decade? - Si Bejo Science

Latest modern science | Is your font in the right decade? - Si Bejo Science

typefaces

Unknown 12.20 Add Comment

I recently watched a double feature of Village of the Damned (1960) and Children of the Damned (1964). I was completely fascinated by the contrast between the two films. Even though the latter is ostensibly a sequel, instead of continuity, the two movies feel like mirror images on every level, thematically and stylistically.

Although released in 1960, Village of the Damned is at heart a 1950s film. It�s just at the tail end of that era of science fiction filmmaking. This carried over into the movie�s title in the credits: a serif typeface, in quote marks. Playing against an ivy covered wall just accentuates the pastoral feel.

Now look at the contrast in the title of Children of the Damned. I don�t think it�s Helvetica, but it�s something in that family: a �scrape away the crap� grotesque sans serif. The title appears over an urban setting. You just couldn�t imagine that title card on a film from the 1950s. Children of the Damned is absolutely a film of the 1960s.

In just a few short years, everything had changed graphically.

I could go on about the differences between the films, but this is a design blog, not the movie review blog. But it got me wondering: does your poster look like it�s in the right decade?

As it happens, this is the twentieth anniversary of Windows 95. Windows 95 wasn�t the first PC operating system to have TrueType fonts, but it broke a lot of ground for digital typography for the average user. The font list for Windows 95 included Arial, Times New Roman, Courier, and (shudder) Comic Sans.

Many posters have not moved past those font choices from twenty years ago. Lots of posters are set in Arial, Times New Roman, and sometimes even (shudder) Comic Sans.

Admittedly, some typefaces have staying power. Decades-old Futura appeared on a list of most popular web fonts last year. Nevertheless, typography has moved on. Styles have changed.

If I were to try to pinpoint some of the trends I see in type:

Thin is in. Designers are using a lot of lighter lines for fonts. I think this is related to the development of very high resolution screens (300 dots per inch, in some cases). Fine lines can hold up very well on high resolution screens. I don�t think it�s an accident that Calibri Light got added to the roster of default Windows fonts a while back.

Flat design. Again related to the propensity to design things that look good on small but very high resolution screens, simple, geometric typefaces are seeing a lot of use now. Nine of the ten fonts on this list of popular web fonts fit that description. Here�s a list of examples. It�s instructive to look at what Google images throws up, too. It�s a very distinct aesthetic.

Angular momentum. This one is hard for me to describe, because I�m not a trained type expert. But I�ve noted that when you look down at the detailing, many modern serifs have some angled lines, rather than smooth curves. Here�s a new font, PF Occula, that shows some of this:

Does your poster look like a product of the twentieth-first century... or the twentieth?

Latest modern science | Posters in the humanties - Plus! Critique: Safety - Si Bejo Science

Latest modern science | Posters in the humanties - Plus! Critique: Safety - Si Bejo Science

critiques design typefaces

Unknown 15.31 Add Comment

Today�s poster comes from Joschka Haltaufderheid. Before I get to a critique of the posters, I want to start addressing something Joaschka wrote in the email accompanying the poster:

(F)or researchers in the humanities, making a good poster seems to be quite challenging. Normally we do not present empirical results but rather lines of arguments, considerations of pros and cons, ideas, etc. That makes it very hard to balance text and graphical elements in a proper way since we first need lots of words and second do not have any figures, tables or diagrams at hand.

This is something I�ve thought about more than I�ve written about. Different disciplines in the humanities will likely have different tools at their disposal. Historians might have images of artifacts. Those studying literature will have texts. Both might have representations of the people they are discussing.

But, if you are in a situation where your main tools are words, there are two skills you need to master: editing and typography.

I�ve talked before about how uninviting long blocks of text are. You must find ways to convey your key point in as few words as possible. You must be ruthless about editing your text. Try to find a few, choice, tweetable phrases, and highlight those. People love aphorisms.

You can turn words into graphic elements with good typography. Compare this bit of text:

Give thy thoughts no tongue. - Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 3

Sure, you could put that bit of text on a poster like that. Or you could put it like this:

Magazines and newspapers turn words into graphic elements all the time. Pull quotes. Drop caps.The choice of typeface and colour. These are not simple techniques to master, but they can give a text-based poster a graphic appeal that a document does not.

On with Joschka�s poster, which is used with his permission. Click to enlarge!

The accompanying picture of the sign is a good attention getter, and a signal that viewers will understand. There may not be enough contrast between the sign and the text where the two overlap, however. Look at the words on top of the �TY� in �SAFETY�, for example. Some slight repositioning might allow you to keep the interesting overlap with less conflict between the image and text.

I love how the title is handled. It�s given plenty of white space around it so that nothing competes with it for attention.

The rest of the poster reminds me very much of international typographic style that was popular in the 1960s. It�s a very modernist look using a sans serif typeface and a strong grid.

A few changes in typesetting could make the text less intimidating. The �Background� section appears as one text block, the right indentation indicates its meant to be read as two paragraphs. These paragraphs might be separated by a bit more space, indents, or both.

Similarly, a little more space between the headings and the text below might be useful in emphasizing the headings.

The figures are helpful graphic elements and well placed, although the top of Figure 1 comes too close to touching the text above it.

Overall, this is a strong design. I�m intrigued that the design strikes me as very �European.� I wonder if I could have guessed where Joschka is writing from.

Latest modern science | Using what everyone else is using - Si Bejo Science

Latest modern science | Using what everyone else is using - Si Bejo Science

typefaces

Unknown 11.54 Add Comment

Using what everyone else is using can be both a problem and a solution. It just depends on who �everyone� is.

When �everyone� is academics, the type faces that appear never seem to reach beyond what�s installed on their computer. And people use those default fonts to death. Arial, Times New Roman, Calibri... all get overused.

Here�s a shortcut to making your poster look more modern:

Use what everyone else is using � except that by �everyone,� I mean designers, not academics.

If you take a second to life your head up and look around at what people outside academia are using, you�re liable to find something that looks contemporary rather than tired. Heck, for a lot of academics, you that might even look edgy and daring.

MyFonts just released put out a big blog post of their most popular typefaces of last year, and you won�t find any of the familiar default computer fonts there. It notes:

Popular typefaces in 2014 seemed to come from two opposite directions. They were either clean and simple, or informal and festive, with a hand-made touch.

And this is good news for poster designers, who are normally looking for something in the �clean and simple� department. I see no less than four good candidates for posters. We�ve got Brix Sans up top. Here�s Texta:

And while many of the other typefaces might not be great for the main text body, they might do wonders for titles or headings.

Go to the post to see more! And don�t forget to keep looking at the kinds of typefaces you see on the opening and closing credits of film and television shows, on magazines, on billboards, and other places.

External links

Most popular fonts of 2014

Latest modern science | New Year�s Resolution: No more Comic Sans! - Si Bejo Science

Latest modern science | New Year�s Resolution: No more Comic Sans! - Si Bejo Science

typefaces

Unknown 05.00 Add Comment

Regular readers know that I love comics, but hate Comic Sans. A lot of academics use it because they want something that looks handwritten, and they don�t have anything else on their computer that fills the bill.

No more excuses. Make a New Year�s resolution to never put Comic Sans on a poster (or a slide) again. You can start that resolution by getting some new fonts specifically made by and for professional comic book letterers. Richard Starkings of ComicCraft is having a sale!

The New Year�s Sale is at ComicBookFonts.com. Fonts are a mere twenty bucks and 14 cents. ($20.14... get it?) There are lots of other resources there that may interest poster makers, too, like this one on reading flow.

And nobody paid me to say that, either!

External links

ComicBookFonts.com