OUGD404 18th October

Freds Session

In this weeks session with Fred we looked at the different typography in Newspapers. As a group we chose a spread from each of the 5 papers. We then counted the different types of fonts that we found based on the font used and the scale. We found some of the papers had a lot more different types than the others depending on how serious or light hearted the paper was. Generally the tabloids had a larger range. Finally I cut out all the different fonts in different sizes that I could find on the spread. Here are my results ordered in size order:

Design Principles Anatomy of Type

Stage 1

I had collected letters previously for my summer brief. I chose 5 upper case letters in different fonts and 5 lower case. I then scanned them in and re-sized them into 5 different sizes: XS = 1cm² S = 3cm² M = 5cm² L = 7cm² XL = 10cm².

Stage 2 

The next step was to dissect my letters and use the parts to create new versions of the letters. I used a scalpel and glue to make new letters.

 

Stage 3

Once I had made my new letters I traced over them creating a blocked colour version and an outlined one.

Stage 4

Once I had them traced out I scanned them into the computer and re-sized them back into the 5 sizes using Photoshop.

After learning a bit about typeface names I named my new fonts. The S font is called Dissected Block Bold.  The Q font is called Gothic Cutout Bold. The B font is called Mega Tail Serif Bold. The T font is called Roman Slab Bold. Finally the R font is called  Curly Script Regular.

Stage 5

This is the latest thing I have done with my letter forms. I chose my favourite letter and created its font family. Below you can see the image laid out in this formation:

light / light italic

regular / italic

Bold / Bold Italic

Ultra bold Condensed  

I found it was quite difficult to italicize the letter Q as it already has a diagonal, Its only a subtle change, I should of angled it further.

ALPHABET SOUP Final Idea

Final Design

Here is my final Design for Sam, I chose to go with the more illustrative typeface. I am quite happy with the outcome, The lettering is very detailed and interesting to look at. I don't think the font says allot about Sam, as the answers I got from the questionnaire didn't really leave me much to play with so my solution to the brief was quite literal to the words I chose.

Here is the name badge I made for Sam. I think the letters work well together. They don't look out of place and all fit in series. The font looks good on a larger scale but I feel when shrunk down all the detail will be lost. This probably wouldn't work as a small font only on a larger scale.

 Here is the full alphabet including 6 glyphs. I based the typeface on Rockwell Bold. I printed out my layout then traced over the top making changes. I incorporated bones into the typeface also which changed the overall shape of the lettering. I am quite happy with the outcome The letters are interesting to look at and have plenty of detail.

There were a few letters that I wasn't too keen on. For instance the Q looks too bold round the edge, It kind of looks out of place , I think this is because the lines a drew were too close together. I'm not too keen on the W either.

 CRIT FEEDBACK

In my crit we stuck our work on the wall next to out partners and assessed each others work in terms of the brief. The feedback from the crit was mainly positive, everybody liked the typeface as a whole and understood the factors I was trying to include. However I found the font did not really represent Sam that well, although he would bring dinosaurs back and likes the idea of time travel it doesn't really say anything about him. I think if i were to do it again I would of looked into Sam's personal life a bit more to work out what he stands for. This has been a good learning experience though and I have learned to look deeper into things and to not always go with the obvious.

Alphabet Soup

Development Work

Here I have created some fonts that relate to Sam, based on existing typefaces. I am quite happy with the outcome. I have tried to Incorporate loyalty, dinosaurs and time travel.

This typeface was based on the font Alba, I'm not that keen on this to be honest, Its a bit too dinosaury for my liking, I was hoping to include other aspects into the design. It still works well but I would prefer to include aspects of loyalty and time travel.

I have based this type on Rockwell, but I think I will use Rockwell bold next time as it will allow more to play with. I really like how this has turned out. It reads well but has detail and aspects of everything i was trying to include. The crowns represent loyalty, the machine like parts represent time travel and finally the bones show the dinosaur concept. I cant decided whether I like this one more than the one below. I will have to experiment to make a decision.

The above type face is based on Stencil, I really like how this has turned out, Its simple but quite stylish. Its quite a subtle change but works well I feel. I like the solid blackness of the lettering. The detailed parts of the letters break the type up a bit which I think gives it a nice contrast.

ALPHABET SOUP//TYPEFACE//OUGD403

Alphabet Soup Initial Ideas

Using the words I have chosen for Sam I have experimented creating typefaces around existing fonts. I printed out some existing fonts such as Rockwell and Stencil, I changed the opacity so I could work on top of them.

Above are the fonts I created. I'm not a big fan of the first font I tried to include too many aspects into the font which has made the typeface a bit too messy. The 2nd font is based on stencil, I  really like how this font has turned out. Its simple and still has the aspects of dinosaurs and loyalty. The 3rd font is supposed to be in the style of a time machine. I quite like this typeface, the letters are legible and also detailed. I really like the last font. I have tried to incorporate both aspects here. I think it has worked really well, Its quite simple but also interesting to look at. It is legible and meets the brief well I feel.

Alphabet Soup//OUGD403//Series Ideas

Series Ideas

From my initial ideas I chose to go with the letter X, I think the type face I have based my work letters on works very well (Blackoak Std). The letter is quite big and bold which gave me allot to play with. I decided to go with a series of designs based on the word POP.

 When it came to testing I couldnt find away of piercing holes in the paper to add pop art style dots. I tried a hand drill but that destroyed my paper, the hole punch couldn't reach all the page and a scalpel would not give a neat enough circle so I changed my series slightly.

FINAL DESIGNS

For my final set I started off with adding some pop art style dots then added and shadow on the letter based on a piece of work in my research, from  there I transformed the letter using the 60's pop font style. Finally I changed the letter into popcorn. I am happy with the outcome of the series. I think the letters stand out well on a black card background. It gives a nice contrast between the black and white.

Alphabet Soup//Initial Ideas

Initial Ideas

The image below shows a selection of my initial ideas...

To start off with I printed out some different letters in various fonts. I changed the transparency off the letters to make it easier to draw other. I experimented with different styles. Looking at pop art typography, 60's pop font and literal visual interpretations of the word 'pop' such as a pop corn style letter. I tried to combine a few of the styles to see what worked well. I am quite happy with the outcome. I will look into creating a series of letters that maybe transform from each style...