James West at Create/Reject has recently published a neat little book outlining 50 prominent designers choice fonts, aptly named Fifty Designers’ Current Favorite Typefaces. All proceeds go to UNICEF, and though it’s since sold out, you can still donate your £3 here.
Having a think about, if asked, what my top five types would be, I caught myself thinking of faces I’d never used, and likely never would. Cooper Black is a good example. A great font for many things, but sadly not for me. It has so many connotations and previous applications (see the amusing Behind the Typeface at Veer), it would be difficult to consistently apply it in an editorial context, save for the occasional feature. And so it’s been relegated to my Favourites folder in Font Book, activated maybe twice in the last five years.
Looking through my portfolio, I began to see a pattern that I hadn’t noticed before: I use the same typefaces, over and over. Completely different magazines, different applications, but still I’ve gone back time and time again. Am I a lazy designer? I don’t think so. It’s not always, but it’s often. What it is is that the Classics are classic for a reason.
There are many reasons why certain typefaces are either selected or excluded for use in certain projects. I’m an editorial designer, so my criteria will differ from other designers doing different work. And so considering readability, weight variety, quality of architecture, and pairing potential, here are my Current Favorite Typefaces:
Caslon: I love everything about Caslon— It’s ability to be used at varying point sizes, headline, dek and body. The swash caps are sexy, the small caps perfectly balanced, and it’s easy to typeset. It’s perfect for body text, the italics, semi-bold and bold are seamless. I use the opentype version from Adobe.
Didot & Snell Roundhand: Didot has arguably the most beautiful height of any typeface. It is imposing yet elegant, masculine and feminine, all at once. It looks achingly sophisticated in black on white. Snell is another obvious choice, but I stand by it. Those who have spent as much time as I have researching script fonts know that Snell has everything going for it. It’s dynamic, sleek and accessible, completely readable and with a little imagination can make an enormous impact.
Gotham: If you can’t escape Helvetica Neue’s Ultra Light, don’t panic. Gotham has razor thin Hairlines, ranging up to super-dark Ultras. This is, for me, the most beautiful Sans Serif I’ve ever worked with, not surprising since it’s designed by Hoefler & Frere-Jones. I’ve used it here perhaps more brashly than it deserves, but have a look over at Typography.com to see what it’s really capable of.
Rockwell: Rockwell may also be an easy answer, but again, I’m sticking to it. Rockwell can be light, friendly, macho and nerdy. All you need to do is play with it.
There are others I love (Calvert, Veljovic), those I hate (Peignot, Algerian), and the ones I want (Parisine Plus, Archer). As designers, we form complex relationships with these little letters. They keep us company at the office at 2:00 am, they give us headaches. They go missing, reappear, and reflow. We see them used elsewhere, and inexplicably become jealous. Ultimately, the fonts we use say much about us and our style in general— Trendy? Experimental? Ingenious? We can all pick a handful of typefaces we’re attracted to, but in the end it’s our work that tells the story. Because the ones we like, we really like, and when we like we use them.
