Which Font

[Nicola McIntosh]

hi

when i choose a font, it has to relate with the job i am doing, this might sound a bit daft, but i get into the persons head, for example; what they like, what the font is being applied to, i feel every font has it’s own personality, and you can find the right one at the right time, it just clicks,
that is my view.

hope it makes sense! (and i have only had one glass of wine)
Nicola

[Robert Lambie]

Good question, but not sure if I am going to help with my answer..
If I want to design something unique I tend to go down the same street as Nicola.
What best suits the type of person, thing they are after, image they want to put across etc…
I do also have a short list of favourite fonts.. Not favs as such just some I use more than others… the best way is to go through each font family.. Sanserifs etc. & add maybe 5-10 in each font family that you like, appeals best.
Simple one.. Helvetica medium, helv bold, helv light. & So on..
If your doing safety signs / notice signs of any type you should keep to the helvetica family or similar.
I think there is a font for health and safety signs actually.. Cant remember what..

Having said this. Never give your customer the list of fonts or you will there all day.. Trust me! 😮

[Phill Fenton]

That’s a very good and intelligent question Paul.

I tend to use certain fonts again and again for a lot of my work. Your question has reminded me to be more adventurous and look for more interesting fonts to use instead of sticking to the tried and tested ones I use again and again.

I use Times Roman for formal work – e.g. a church sign.

Ariel Bold – easy to read good for safety signs and for conveying general information.

For script I like to use commercial script or Snell. I would use this for something like a jewellers shop or something “Old Fashioned” Park lane is another scripted font that I like to use.

For a good heavy impact I use Ultra bold Humanist (This is what it’s called in Casmate – I’m sure it has another name in other software) which is an extremely heavy Bold font (Almost an extremely bold version of Ariel) this I use when I am trying to create a sign with a heavy contrast between fonts.

I also like to use futura which is similar to Ariel but with a more modern look to it.

If I’m looking to wind up Steve (Broughton) – I always make liberal use of Brush (as he hates this font) my wife Alison also dislikes this font (so I now have two reasons to use it 😆 )

Many fonts instantly lend themselve to certain types of business and if you browse though a font catalogue you will often come across fonts that are ideally suited to the job you are working on. I once had a client who requested an “Art Deco” look to her sign. On browsing through a font catalogue I came across a font called Deco which was ideal for this.

Comic is another font that I have found is popular with a lot of people though I don’t particulalry like it myself.

I detest Old English – It’s so difficult to read and should only be used on the film set of a shop scene from last century

I have a board displaying the more common fonts I use in our reception area. This is limited to only about 20 fonts and is useful for “Quick jobs” where the customer is looking for a fairly basic sign without any great design to it. I can usually get him to choose a font for his sign straight off this board.

Once again that’s a good question Paul – I’m also interested to read other peoples opinions on this 😀

[John Singh]

I think we all have our own favourites which as Rob says we keep on the short list.

If you are designing a sign and you have been given a certain amount of artistic license, then this is where your favourite or even other fonts come into play.

But even where you have artistic license you may have been given some input from the client.

for e.g.
A law firm who wish to maintain a traditional look will want to have a traditional looking sign. However some law firms desire to abandon the ‘old’ look and opt for the more modern appearance.

This is where talking to the client about what ‘he or she’ wants is extremely important. Remember to ‘listen’ carefully

One post on here the other day mentioned that the client didn’t want any of that clipart **** on his vehicle. An expression like this should tell us a lot about what this guy wants.

So you need to build up a picture of what your client is after. Then you can go to the drawing board and do a couple of layouts for him to gander
(presuming you know you have the job of course)

He may have some observations. Again listen to the customer. With experience you’ll begin to know what adjustments to make.

John

[Paul Goodwin]

Thanks for your replies

They have given me lots to ponder over 😀 and i have quite a few to go through.

As to being

quote :

very good and intelligent question

There is always a first time for everything 😮

thanks again and keep them coming in 😉