No, thank you, we don’t need a tissue. x-height is a typography term referring to the height of the body of lowercase letters, not counting ascenders or descenders. Typically, this is the height of the letter x in the font (hence the name–now do you get it?), as well as the u, v, w, and z. Why is it important? When two typefaces are set in the same point size, one often looks bigger than the other. Why? Because bigger x-heights make a typeface appear larger. Differences in line weight and character width also affect the letters’ apparent scale. When choosing fonts for captions, by-lines and other smaller bodies of text, checking x-height can help with readablilty.
*This entry is part of “The Yearbook Ladies’ A to Zs of Yearbook”
project. If you’d like to download the “X” card, go to the “Adviser
Resources” section of www.theyearbookladies.com
We’d love to hear from you! Share your questions, comments, and ideas below…
It refers to how easily text can be read. Line spacing (or leading), line length (the number of words per line), and font choice can affect the readability of text. Here are some tips to ensure the readability of your text:
While the default leading is fine in most cases, you might want to play around with leading to see the different results. For regular copy, try the 2x’s rule: increase the leading to at least 2 points larger than the point size of your type.
For line length, take the type size of your body text and multiply it by two. For example, 12 point type would have an ideal line length of 24 picas.
Avoid low contrast or uncomplementary colors when placing text on a color background.
Never use a “headline” font for copy blocks. Can you imagine if we wrote this sentence with the same font as the word “readability”?
*This entry is part of “The Yearbook Ladies’ A to Zs of Yearbook”
project. If you’d like to download the “R” card, go to the “Adviser
Resources” section of www.theyearbookladies.com
We’d love to hear from you! Share your questions, comments, and ideas below…
Leading (rhymes with heading) is the vertical space between each line of text. Typically we leave that set to “auto,” but there are times when playing with leading can have interesting results.
Increase the leading to open up the space for an airy feel. No cheating, though: don’t do it just to make your copy look longer
Decrease the leading for a bunched approach. This is particularly popular with grunge fonts and in headlines
Be consistent within sections. Use the same leading for all headlines and copy
For extra “yerd” points, impress your friends by telling them that it came from the days of old when typesetting was done by hand. A strip of lead was used between each line of letter
*This entry is part of “The Yearbook Ladies’ A to Zs of Yearbook”
project. If you’d like to download the “L” card, go to the “Adviser
Resources” section of www.theyearbookladies.com
We’d love to hear from you! Share your questions, comments, and ideas below…
Kerning is another technical word that dates back to days of manual type setting (yes, even before typewriters). Each letter had its own metal frame and so letters couldn’t overlap at all. Today–what, with all those new-fangled computers and stuff–we can adjust our kerning so that the spacing between individual letters can be decreased. Think of it as one letter entering another letter’s personal space.
Use it to help slanted letters mirror one another (see photo)
Helps give your headline a crowded appearance–if that’s what you’re looking for
Do not adjust the kerning within captions and copy. Auto is just fine for those blocks of text
*This entry is part of “The Yearbook Ladies’ A to Zs of Yearbook”
project. If you’d like to download the “K” card, go to the “Adviser
Resources” section of www.theyearbookladies.com
We’d love to hear from you! Share your questions, comments, and ideas below…
Now, we’ve been in the yearbook business for a long time. As far as we can tell, you cannot win an award for having the most fonts used in your yearbook. Nothing disruptes the execution of a theme as much as trying to include every font known to man, including the kitchen sink. (Click the link to download “kitchen” font!)
Serif fonts (those with “feet” on the ends) will give a more traditional look since they are the oldest
Sans serif fonts (without “feet”) give a more contemporary feel
Serif fonts are easier to read for large blocks of copy and in captions
Settle on a “font family” or just 3-5 fonts for the entire book. If you must change fonts, at least be consistent within the sections
*This entry is part of “The Yearbook Ladies’ A to Zs of Yearbook”
project. If you’d like to download the “F” card, go to the “Adviser
Resources” section of www.theyearbookladies.com
We’d love to hear from you! Share your questions, comments, and ideas below…
If you haven’t seen “Font Conference”, first you need to click here and watch that first. Then come back here and watch the sequal… (Thanks, Carla, for sharing this!)
If every caption in your book is in a different font or point size, or if you found yourself constantly reminding students of which font and point size to use, then you need to set up Character and Paragraph Styles in InDesign. Make this one of the first things you do for your yearbook next year. After you’ve decided on your theme (verbal and visual), choose your fonts and set up your styles.
What’s the difference between character styles and paragraph styles?
Use paragraph styles when you want to apply one style to an entire paragraph or text box. Create a style for Headlines, Subheads, Body Copy, and Captions. You can even go further and create styles for Academics Headlines and then one for Student Life Headlines.
Use character styles when you want to format text within a paragraph or text box, but you do not want to change the entire paragraph. You can create a style for quotes, names in captions, or those “row” descriptions in groups photos
How do you create a paragraph style?
1. Select "Paragraph Styles" from your dock (or go to "Type -> Paragraph Styles")
2. Click on "New Style"
3. Set your preferences for everything from font, to indent, to drop caps... Name your style, and click "ok"
4. Your style now shows up under the Paragraph Styles menu. Simply type your text, select your paragraph (or text box) and click the paragraph style you want to apply
ALTERNATIVE METHOD: If you’re more of a visual person, you can start by typing a paragraph with the format you like, then while you have that text box selected, click “create new style.” A new style will be created based on the paragraph that you currently have selected. All you have to do is name it!
How do you create a character style?
1. Select "Character Styles" from your dock (or go to "Type -> Character Styles")
2. Click "Create New Style"
3. Choose fonts, bold/italic, color, size, leading, etc... Name your style and click "ok"
4. Your new style now appears in your Character Styles menu. Select the text you want to format and then click on the style you want to apply!
ALTERNATIVE METHOD: If you just want to copy the format of another text on the same page, you don’t need to create a new style. You can use your eye dropper tool to copy text formatting as well. Highlight the text you want to copy, then use the eyedropper tool on it. While the eyedropper is “full,” continue to highlight every line of text that you want to format.
ADVISER TIP: Create all your styles on your master template BEFORE distributing them to each computer (or putting them up on the server). If students have already started working on their pages, it’s not too late. Create a blank template with the styles on it, and distribute this document to students (or place on the server). Students can then choose “Load All Text Styles” from the Character/Paragraph Styles pull down menu. They then locate the blank template (with the styles), click on it, and InDesign will import all of the styles from that template onto the page the students are currently working on. (*Herff Jones customers, HJ Planner will create a template for every page in your book with the styles already set. Ask your rep to show you!)
COMING SOON:
InDesign Feature Focus: Nested Styles (Styles - Part 2 of 2)
No, thank you, we don’t need a tissue. x-height is a typography term referring to the height of the body of lowercase letters, not counting ascenders or descenders. Typically, this is the height of the letter x in the font (hence the name–now do you get it?), as well as the u, v, w, and z. Why is it important? When two typefaces are set in the same point size, one often looks bigger than the other. Why? Because bigger x-heights make a typeface appear larger. Differences in line weight and character width also affect the letters’ apparent scale. When choosing fonts for captions, by-lines and other smaller bodies of text, checking x-height can help with readablilty.
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