Think Outside the Font Box

Article courtesy Fonts.com and its series, “For Your Typographic Information.”

Compared to the “old days,” today’s digital type technology gives users access to thousands of type designs with an ease that is nothing short of miraculous. Unfortunately, most digital typefaces only allow for one outline, or design, per character, not one design per point size as in metal type. This limitation means that today’s type designers often create typefaces with a particular size range in mind.
Is there any way to get more out of a design than its designer intended? Often, yes. Even though most typefaces are categorized (officially or unofficially) as either text or display designs, you can still expand the potential range of many typefaces by choosing wisely and making some minor adjustments as you set the type.
This article will look at how to use text designs at display sizes and vice versa. These pointers will help you get the most — and best — use out of your fonts.
Think Big: Using Text Fonts at Display Sizes
To successfully set a text design at large sizes, follow these guidelines:

  • Check the overall appearance of the typeface at the size you need. Some text designs just won’t look good big. A text design might maintain its personality and integrity at larger sizes, or it might turn clunky, heavy, and unattractive (Figure 1). Avoid surprises by viewing the typeface at the size at which you plan to use it before making your final font selections.

    Figure 1. The same details that make ITC Oldbook look charmingly distressed at smaller sizes can appear forced and unnatural at large sizes.
  • Examine the details. Hairlines, thin strokes, serifs, and sharp corners get heavier and rounder when enlarged (Figure 2). As a result, some typefaces that look crisp and sharp at text sizes sometimes feel bland or clumsy at a larger scale. Again, give the design a test-run at the size you need and take a close look before committing.

    Figure 2. Top: ITC Caslon No. 224 is an elegant, refined typeface at smaller sizes. Middle: When the same typeface is enlarged, the serifs and thin strokes appear thick and a bit clunky. Bottom: For large sizes, Big Caslon might be a better choice.
  • Consider a sans serif. Sans serif designs tend to translate better from text to display sizes than serif faces for the very reasons outlined above: Serifs are often the first design element to suffer with enlargement. Sans serifs avoid this problem.
  • Choose heavy weights. The heavy, black, or ultra weights of a text family often translate very well to larger sizes, since they’re usually designed for display usage to begin with (Figure 3).

    Figure 3. Gill Sans Heavy translates very well from text sizes to large-scale display use.
  • Tighten the spacing. Letter spacing and word spacing optically change with scale, making text faces look too open at large sizes. To compensate, set the text face at the size you need and then tighten (track) the spacing accordingly.
  • Adjust the kerning. Spatial relationships between letters change with scale too. After adjusting the tracking, kerning will often need to be tweaked as well.
    Think Small: Using Display Fonts at Text Sizes
    Display faces, which are designed to work best in larger settings, can sometimes (but not always) be used successfully in smaller sizes. Here are some guidelines that will help you achieve the best results:
  • Do a legibility check. Display designs often have strong personalities, meant to shout rather than whisper. In smaller sizes, these look-at-me design features can sometimes wreak havoc with legibility. Test-drive the typeface at the size at which you plan to use it, and do a legibility check before committing.
  • Examine the design details. Not all display designs shout. In fact, some have thin, delicate strokes and serifs, or small, tight counters that look tasteful and refined at large sizes. But beware: the same features that exude elegance at display sizes can break up, disappear, or fill in when reduced and printed. Once again, examine the design closely at the size you need before taking the plunge, and pay special attention to serifs, thin strokes, and counters.
  • Open the spacing. As discussed above, letter spacing and word spacing optically change with scale. In practice, this means display designs generally look too tight at small sizes. To compensate, first set your type at the size you need, and then open the tracking as necessary. (Note: don’t open up the spacing of connecting scripts! They’re supposed to do just that — connect.)
  • Size, track, and kern, in that order. After you’ve selected the size and adjusted the tracking, there’s one more step: Revisit and tweak the kerning as needed.
    Bear in mind that not every display font will be a good choice for text-sized treatment (Figure 4). Be especially cautious with formal scripts and calligraphic fonts, which vary in their ability to survive “downsizing.” Many lose readability at small sizes, with design features that grow busier and fussier the smaller they get.

    Figure 4. In this assortment of display fonts, three don’t translate well to small sizes, and three do.
    Similarly, connecting scripts can be problematic at small sizes: The “shrinking” process can make them look tight and lose readability, and their spacing can’t be opened up to compensate. Proceed with extreme caution.
    The key to making the transition from large to small is to engage both your brain and your eye in making an intelligent decision. Be sure to create and print out samples in the specific sizes and typefaces you’re considering before making your final font selections. In short: always look before you take a typographic leap!


    For Your Typographic Information and fy(t)i are trademarks of International Typeface Corporation. Copyright © 2003 International Typeface Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
    Ilene Strizver, founder of The Type Studio, is a typographic consultant, designer and writer specializing in all aspects of typographic communication. Read more about typography in her latest literary effort, Type Rules!, published by North Light Books.

  • Ilene Strizver is a noted typographic educator, author, designer and founder of The Type Studio in Westport, Connecticut. Her book, Type Rules! The designer’s guide to professional typography, is now in its 4th edition.
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