After studying, reading and learning about the 5 classic types faces (Garamond, Baskerville, Helvetica, Century and Bodoni), I came to the conclusion that I appreciate Garamond most. With Garamond, the thick strokes and downward slope on the serifs appeal to me. The fact that the font is not as stiff and monotone compared to some of the other fonts (like Helvetica) is kind to my eyes. There is also something about the old style of the font that i appreciate; it reminds me of the old printing used in the past and gives me a sense of history.

If I were to choose a font that I liked “a little less” out of the 5, Century is what I would have to pick from the group of fantastic fonts. The curved brackets and the lighter weight of the typeface, where the pen would find its end point on the letter is pleasant. Compared to Garamond’s sculpted serif, Century’s slab serif doesn’t settle as well with me; it looks like it was cut-off abruptly. Both are nice fonts, with similarities and differences, but the sense of flow and history rather than the thought of modern day and “edginess” when studying the fonts forced me to choose Garamond over Century.

Out of the 5 classic typefaces century is my favorite, and my second pick being Baskerville. Both of them are serif fonts. They both have thick and thins, which to me, adds personality and depth to the type. Not only does it add personality, but it is easy to read as well and flows smoothy with the eye. The hooks on baskerville are very curvy with smaller serifs, while century is curvy as well but with very large serifs. Century’s style is more curved and rounded, while baskerville has more of an U curve. The counters inside of Baskerville are also smaller than century’s. The openness off century and rounded curves really draw attention to meand make the eye flow within the dark and thin variation of the lines. Century’s serifs have a very deep curve in them as well, adding a more curvy look to the type. My least favorite is Helvetica Neue. The consistency of the thick line, and the type not having any serifs makes the font dull. However, I do think Helvetica is the easiest font to read out of all of them.

After looking at the five type faces, Helvetica is my favorite, followed closely by Century. The reason that helvetica and century are my favorites is because of their simplicity. Both of these fonts, to me, are very eye catching as well as very legible. Whatever project you are doing, you can use either of these fonts and it is easy to make it work with a design. I also really like how century has a sort of cursive effect to its letters, like the “t” and “y”, unlike all of the other options. Helvetica doesn’t have any serifs which makes it unique, compared to the other four. I think both of these fonts have a professional effect to them which also makes them more appealing.

The research on the five classic typefaces has lead me to me picking Baskerville as my favorite type. Baskerville had a eye appealing class that I didn’t get from any of the other texts. After being able to recognize Baskerville I found the type on many brochures and magazines that had a sense of elegance, importance and exclusiveness. The Sculpted Serifs leave you with a nice disappearing sharpness that you don’t see in the other types, in the others you have an abruptness at the end of each letter. Curved brackets of Baskerville help transition the thick body into thin sharp ending of each serif. I also appreciated the fact that Baskerville was made in the 1700’s and is still relevant. Benjamin Franklin integrated this typeface into to a portion of the federal governments publishing.

The typeface I disliked was Bodoni. I felt as if Bodoni was unfinished having unsculpted serifs leaving a jagged and abrupt look to the typeface. I felt as if the thick to thin contrast was to great. Bodoni felt as if it had been deconstructed but too much had been removed leaving it bare. Unlike Baskerville smooth transitions Bodoni was all right angles with very thin serifs that are harsh on the eye.

I came to the conclusion that I like Baskerville and Century the most. Both of them are serif fonts and after reading about the 5 classic types faces, they both stuck out to me. They have unique thick and thins, which I think personally adds character and depth. They flow well and are not hard to read. Baskerville specifically has curvy smaller serifs. For instance, I like how the g is very sophisticated, and the y is fat at the end. While Century has a similar look but with larger serifs. Century’s style is rounded, and Baskerville is thin and classy. Many would say these typefaces look unfinished, but I think that is a positive aspect. When you read text you don’t want it to look boring and similar and you also don’t want it to look too crazy. These typefaces are a great in between.

Helvetica Neue is one of my least favorites. The thick line that never changes, and the type not having any serifs makes it bland. However, I do think Helvetica Neue is best used when there are any road signs or bus signs because its the easiest font to read. Century and Baskerville have sophisticated serifs and shape but Helvetica Neue is pretty straight forward.

 

After studying the five typefaces, (Garamond, Baskerville, Bodoni, Century, Helvetica) I began to understand their similarities and differences. Now when viewing these five fonts, I personally am attracted to Helvetica because of its simplicity. I find the minimalism of its very sharp non-varying lines visually strong and attention grabbing. With the right use of typography helvetica can be a very appealing font. I believe Helvetica is the most “universal” fonts. Out of the five fonts I am least attracted to Bodoni. I find the blocky serifs to look odd without the curved brackets that give the typeface an appealing varying of line. The extreme thick and thin contrast of shapes combined with the serifs is unattractive to me. I think the look is a little to extreme.

 

 

Helvetica

After learning about the five classic type faces, Helvetica is still my favorite because of how easy it is to work with in Graphic Design. The other four fonts are more stylistic with their variety in line size and serifs, because of this people may favor them because they are more visually pleasing. The reason I still favor Helvetica is because of it’s simplicity and how universal it is. Another type face out of the five that I favor is Century, it is one that everyone has heard of and is the second simplest out of the five.

Out of the five classic typefaces, Baskerville is my favorite due to its drastic contrast  in the thickness within the letters. This is very pleasing to the eye. As well as contrast in thickness, Baskerville has very dramatic Serifs. For example, the y and g specifically are fancy looking.

Without a doubt Helvetica is my least favorite font out of the five. It is the only font that does not have any serifs. Also It is one thickness throughout. In my opinion is just too boring. However, helvetica is one of the most commonly used fonts in the worlds. Commonly found in books and websites. Interesting fact, iOs also uses the font helvetica. It’s popularity is due to it being very easy to read. The main thing I do not like about helvetica is that the dot to the I’s are squares. Baskerville, however, uses cirlces to dot the I’s. That is my Baskerville is my favorite and Helvetica is my least favorite.

When viewing all five typefaces, Garamond is the eye catcher for me. Its rounded edges give it this simple and elegant look. It’s considered to be the most legible and readable serif. Garamond was created in 1615 and because of its history and how long it has been around, that is a reason why I think the font is so unique. Bodoni was my least favorite font, I say this because I am not a fan of the sharp edges that Bodoni’s font has on the bottom of the letters. It is more of a vertical font and seems strict with its lines. Bodoni was considered a modern type face. Considering that Bodoni was created 157 years after Garamond, the possibility of these straighter edges could have been becoming more popular and Garamond just seemed to be this old regular font that everyone was so use to. Personally I disagree and I say this because Garamond has this classy look to it and Bodoni is kind of more straight forward. Overall, the typeface of Garamond is natural and attractive which gives it that simple look to it.

Of the five classic typefaces, I like Baskerville the best because of how great the thick to thin contrast of the letters is. It is very visually appealing. In this typeface I also like the sculpted serifs. I really like the way the g and the y look in this font. I like how the g is very fancy and sophisticated, and the y has a slight ball on the end. I like Helvetica less because of how simple it is. I don’t like the look of the sans serif in Helvetica as much as the sculpted serif in Baskerville. All the lines are one width and perfectly straight or perfectly round; there is no variation.  I also don’t like how the dot on the i and j are squares rather than circles.  All of the five classic typefaces are very beautiful, but I like Baskerville the best, and I like Helvetica less.