How The A-List Graphic Designers Rock Typography

Fonts.

They’re the unspoken hero of design that subtly creates an enormous impact for brands and companies alike. Don’t think so? Consider Coca-Cola’s branding if it didn’t have that iconic cursive font or Apple’s cool yet sophisticated font that spells its name.

Regardless of how integral or complimentary a typeface can be, it’s an essential part of your entire brand’s identity.

That’s why there are professionals who dedicate their work to create the perfect fonts, sizes, and design that fit a brand. But only the truly superior designer knows how to craft the perfect typeface. Here’s what these A-list graphic designers think of when they’re coming up with the typography of a design.

They Stick To A Few Typefaces

Before writing became digital, factories created metal keys and letters for typewriters and other machines to press efficiently. Since then, thousands and thousands of fonts are created every day, and that can lead to choice overload.

The best graphic designers know this, so they try to stick to roughly 5-6 fonts that fit their style as well as deliver what is asked of them.

Having these “go-to” fonts not only makes for a quicker design, it also establishes brand authority for the designer and will make most companies repeat customers.

They Understand A Font’s Weight

A font’s weight is a reference to how thick or slim it looks. For instance, bolding letters would be considered a large weight while italics would be a smaller one.

Understanding these principles can lead to very effective brand messaging. Knowing when and how to use large and small weights together make for an impactful design statement.

It also allows for the reader to distinguish information. Visit any website and look at their about page. If a top notch graphic designer created it, then you’ll notice the difference between fonts and how your eyes will naturally gravitate to certain words, letters and ultimately reading the entire paragraph.

Knowing How To Pair Their Fonts

Similar to the idea font weight, selecting a combination of fonts not only leads to a beautiful design, it also ensures brand authenticity and image.

Choosing different types of fonts comes in handy when creating mission statements, portfolios and content needed to identify a brand. A superstar graphic designer knows which kinds of fonts work well together and even adds their own style to the font.

An easy way to identify this is to look at a company’s promotional ads. Are they using just one font? What about using too many fonts? Does the ad look cohesive or is it just a bunch of images scattered around? These are some things to look out for when deciding what a great typeface can mean for your brand.

Their Kerning Is Immaculate

Kerning in the graphic design world is the spaces between each letter in a world. Sounds meticulous, doesn’t it? That’s because the spacing is everything in design. Knowing how to use space (or lack of space) can create both a visually stunning font and make it easier on the eyes to read.

Think of Yahoo!’s radical logo design. They used mathematical arithmetics to create the logo and the spacing between their letters. Though people are skeptical of the design the thought process was there and is evidenced by the look and feel of the Yahoo! logo.

There are a lot of great designers, but only the exceptional ones will give you world-class designs with incredible attention to detail. It’s the A-list graphic designers that you need to pay attention to when designing your project or hiring to create one for you.