Newspaper font size?

[Adam Union]

Publisher does have baselines which work perfectly...should I leave more space after larger headlines than after smaller ones? Now I leave less than 1 leading (10.2pt) after everything, which seems constricted.

Here is a prototype of my latest layout design, with 1 leading space after the heading (from the descenders). Is that enough white space?
I also bumped the inter-column spacing to .12" from .1".

[Nick Shinn]

Your layout is fine.
The design has punch and immediacy, which is so important in a paper.
And you've managed that with a considerable level of editorial complexity.
It would be a huge mistake to fancy it up by adding white space and non-news types such as Chaparral...which I can see you've just done, and already it's starting to look like a wishy-washy corporate newsletter.
In the context of newspapers, rules are much better than white space for demarcating content.
In general, it's a good idea to do the opposite of what graphic designers and typographers recommend for newspapers --unless they actually have experience in designing one.

[Adam Union]

So Myriad is beter than Chaparral? I thought Myriad was far too bland...I even considered switching to Helvetica because it looks noticeable and original by comparison

Before Myriad I used the new Microsoft font Candara for headlines, which is extremely informal. Myriad was better, but I didn't think it was a great headline or caption face.

As the type designer for the Globe and Mail (I think it looks fantastic, by the way), I will blindly listen to any newspaper layout advice of yours...what do you think the headline/sans font of the newspaper should be?

[Reed Reibstein]

Well, Nick, maybe you do have a point; the current version above does feel newsy and a bit different. But those wide columns, especially at the bottom of the page, can feel oppressive without some white around them. At the least, I think you should make it consistent; if you're not putting space between article, then you shouldn't between columns within articles, either.

If you only want to use type already on your computer, you could try Corbel; it has a slightly harder feel to it than Myriad.

[Adam Union]

I was thinking of Corbel earlier...I'll try it again. Thanks for the advice.

I must be doing columns differently: I have .12" between every single column, even if they are in the same article. The only difference is that between articles, a vertical line seperates columns with .06" of room on each side.
You seem to be refering to another way of handling column spacing...what do you mean?

Thanks,
Adam

[Nick Shinn]

While it's possible to use any face, it's usually a good idea to pick something with short descenders for a newspaper. Corbel, for instance, would be nasty in "Grade eights..." with the descender of g and ascender of l bumping.

I thought Myriad was far too bland
Unless you're picking a specific display face, e.g. Meta Headline, it's probably better to go with a generic sans, and take the blandness off it by nuancing tracking, leading, and horizontal scaling to suit your layout.

If you're experimenting with controlling white space Adam, how about tightening up the tracking on the (Myriad) heads a bit?
That would "drive" out" the white space into the surrounding area.

At the least, I think you should make it consistent

Right.

[Adam Union]

OK, thanks. The Myriad and Chaparral in the sample are tracked at 95% but I could always make it a little more condensed...

The real problem with Myriad, I think, is the the bold: its so bland as a headline font it hurts. The semibold is even worse. For captions and roman-weight titles it's excellent, though.

I just compared Myriad to Corbel--Corbel has a nice clean look but feels too simple for the job.

The school does have Helvetica and Cheltenham: would either of those be good as the caption and/or headline font? I know the New York Times uses both but its look is probably too formal for this setting.

[William Berkson]

You may find that Myriad Semi-Condensed or Condensed works better for you for headlines--and you may have them on your machine as I believe that they have come bundled with some of the Adobe software.