I have never tried to convince someone that they need a new font. at typotheque we design fonts for retail, and general use. occasionally we are asked to make a custom typeface for a client, and in those situations I actually try to make client look for a suitable existing typeface. only when we consider all options, and find that none are fitting, we decide to design a new one.
type design is very time consuming, which makes the process costly. yet, there are situations, where even though there are hundreds or thousands of fonts available, none of them are the right fit. imagine you are developing an identity for a TV station in the middle east. firstly, you need to find a typeface that supports both latin and arabic. there are a few dozen already out there. then you narrow it down to those that work on the low resolution screens and you find that there are only one or two – and if your competitor is already using those, or they don’t have suitable characteristics, there is nothing left to do but design one from scratch, specifically for the purpose.
Peter Bilak.
The fewer number of typefaces you use, the better, and the fewer number of type sizes is even better. It all stems, naturally, from that good Swiss approach. The Swiss, maybe because they make watches, they are so precise. Massimo Vignelli.
Remember, good things come to those that help others in need. Follow this mind set, and you will be rewarded in your freelancer career. Dann Petty.
Be prepared for luck, if it ever happens, make sure you can take your chances. Sebastian Gabriel.
A good typographer always has sensitivity about the distance between letters. It makes a tremendous amount of difference. We think typography is black and white. Typography is really white, you know. It’s not even black, in a sense. It is the space between the blacks that really makes it. In a sense, it’s like music—it’s not the notes; it’s the space you put between the notes that makes the music. It’s very much the same situation.
The spacing between letters is important, and the spacing between the lines is important, too. And what typographers do, what we do all the time, is continuously work with those two elements, kerning and leading.
Massimo Vignelli.
In addition to school courses and learning with pros, learning by yourself will be a great asset in your career. Some may say that it is all you need, especially in our line of work.
If you have the passion about something, self teaching should come naturally. If you have fun learning stuff, you are where you’re supposed to be.
Sebastian Gabriel.
Being passionate doesn’t mean you are a good designer. But it reflects the eager to learn every day. Dennis Covert.
I do everything better when I don’t try to do everything. Dustin Senos.
Keep your eyes open to the world. Don’t become locked in your default settings. And consider the possibility that searching for artistic fulfillment may be as close as you get to finding it. Stefan G. Bucher.
If you enjoy sharing things, even to an extremely small audience, keep it up as long as you like doing it. Sebastian Gabriel.