About The Text Tool

Photoshop Standard Text Dialog Box

PhotoTools™ Text Dialog Box

Use it to pick a color directly off the image. It also has a magnifier to zoom in to find that exact color. The RGB read-out gives exact values. Switch back to the pointer and the RGB read-out changes to precise X and Y coordinate values.

Point Size The height portion of a type face determines the point size. Ascenders, descenders, and width are not considered. So depending on these other factors, type can be taller, shorter, wider, or narrower.

Helvetica 23 point Font Times New Roman 23 pt. Font Brush Script MT Italic 23 pt. Font Microsoft created Arial to replace the classic Helvetica.

Rule-of-Thumb Times New Roman 12 point font is considered a good default size for body copy. Notice that if Helvetica or Brush Script MT Italic 12 point fonts were used in place of the Times New Roman, the body copy area would change affecting the layout. Many children, senior citizens, and adults with reading glasses prefer a larger type size than Times New Roman 12 points for their body copy.

12 points in a pica 6 picas in 1 inch

Kerning is an aesthetic regard for the negative space between characters. Study the two kerned samples to the left. The difference is subtle. I prefer the letter spacing of the lower sample but kerning is a personal judgment call. The only difference between them is the kerning pair "Ty".

Unfortunate Discovery

When I began this tutorial, I was using PhotoTools™ 1.0. Extensis gave me an upgrade to PhotoTools™ 2.0 after I discovered a bug. Unfortunately, it still has a critical flaw. It discounts the font's kerning pair information. This cripples the power of PhotoText. Extensis is working to correct the problem in future upgrades. The PhotoText example given at the beginning of this Text section still gives a strong idea for how text might be handled in future Photoshop upgrades. I still recommend Extensis™ PhotoTools™ for their other power packed components: PhotoBevel PhotoEmboss PhotoGlow PhotoCastShadow PhotoButtons, and more.

Leading The space between lines of type, measured base-to-base in points. A 14-point type has a standard leading of 18 points (120%). Leading is a term left over from the hot-metal typesetting days, in which strips of lead were inserted between lines of type.

Font A typeface can include many fonts. Helvetica is a typeface. A 16-point Helvetica is different from a 24-point Helvetica and from a 16-point Helvetica Italic. A font includes all of the type capitals and lowercase letters, numerics, and punctuation marks of one typeface in a specific point size.

Serif and Sans Serif Fonts

Serifs are the ornamental finishing strokes at the end of the main strokes, such as the "feet" at the bottom of the Times New Roman "F". Sans is the French word for "without". It is a blend of Latin sine and absentia, in the absence of. It also has another name, Gothic. Compared to Gothic, Serif has more of a Romanesque presence. This sans serif example is Helvetica.

RAGGED AND FULLY JUSTIFIED TYPE

Left justified This is a text block. This a left justified text block. This is a left justified text block.

Center justified This is a text block. This is a center justified text block. This is a center justified text block.

Right justified This is a text block. This is a right justified text block. This is a right justified text block.

This completes this section. The next section is the Real World Example. You might take a breather before moving on. The following section is fun but intense.

Additional Resources:

• The Text Tool
• Fonts

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Introduction to Web Design with Adobe Photoshop | Table of Contents
Introduction to Web Design with Adobe Photoshop