What’s your type?
Words matter, and so does the way they are displayed! No wonder Fonts have been used for ages by designers not only as a form of communication to readers, but also to breathe life into the written word.
Technically speaking, fonts are typefaces with distinguishable characters in style, size, and spacing. But there are so many fonts available! What to do if you don’t even know where to start? Let’s begin by explaining the two main font groups you can choose from—pretty much the first and biggest decision you’ll make when deciding what font to use:
- Serif. The word “serif” indicates little flourishes and tiny decorative details that these typefaces have on their letters. Some of the most famous serif fonts include Times New Roman and Georgia. These typefaces are known for being very readable, especially on print. Just grab any book from your library—you’ll see it’s written in a serif font.
- Sans serif. Conversely, sans serif fonts don’t have any decorations or flourishes (“sans” is the French word for “without”). While these are historically considered to be less legible than serif fonts, there are plenty of exceptions and it really depends on context. Generally speaking, Sans serif typefaces are more used for graphic and design projects, as well as for the web. But this doesn’t mean that you can’t use a serif font for your website, or vice versa. The most famous sans serif font is probably Helvetica—a long-time favorite for a lot of designers all over the world.
Once you’ve decided if you’re going with serif or sans serif, there’s still a lot to do to pick the right font for your project. Why we stress the importance of this choice so much? For a few very good reasons:
- Fonts bring their own sense of personality and character to the table. Think of it this way...what would your favorite font be in a movie? The hero? The villain? A professional or romantic creative? For each scenario there is a distinct font that matches that theme, and that is the beauty of a great typeface.
- Fonts also help illustrate the narrative. Because of their unique characteristics, fonts have the ability to tell a visual story with only words. Typographic posters capitalize on this, for instance, allowing a strong font type to show the strength behind the written message.
- And lastly, fonts can inspire your audience. The right font can tug on the heartstrings of your readers or inspire them to be magnificent today :)
And finally, what should you expect when purchasing a font on GraphicRiver?
- High-quality, professionally made fonts. We review all the fonts that our authors submit one by one, so rest assured that only the best fonts make it to our collection.
- So many styles and counting. Cursive fonts, handwritten styles, decorative, graffiti, condensed and so much more—you name it.
- Available in different formats. No matter your system preferences, just know we have many format options available.
- You can test fonts before buying them. Need a test drive before your next purchase? All you need to do is scroll to the bottom of the product page and type in any message you like.
