80 Project three Illustrated type

80 Project three Illustrated type

Adobe Illustrator
Create
illustrated
type from an
existing font
Rodrigo Francisco
shares a great shortcut
for creating beautiful
custom typography
Designing a unique piece of illustrated typography
can be a great way to draw attention to your work. But whether
you’re working on a commission or a personal piece for your
portfolio, there isn’t always time to start completely from scratch.
In this project, I take you through the process of creating a piece
of illustrated type, based on an existing typeface.
I wanted a manuscript-style typeface that had a knotted,
‘tied-up’ feel to it, and would be easy to manipulate. I chose Bello
Pro by Underware (www.underware.nl) for this – you’ll find a sample
outline on your cover disc for following the steps, but feel free to use
your own font if you prefer.
When choosing a typeface to illustrate, look for a font
with ‘flaws’ – parts that you can work into and redesign – and when
you’re making your final touches, think of it as a 3D object, with
overlapping parts, where shadows and highlights will appear.

Rodrigo Francisco On your disc Skills

Brazil-based You’ll find all the Recreate
Francisco is a files that you need to ligatures using
freelance graphic follow this project on the Pen tool
designer and your cover disc, in the Create shadows
illustrator. The Resources section and highlights, add
20-year-old has been depth and simulate
passionate about 3D objects
typography since a Master colour
young age. www. management
runandshout.com

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 Create illustrated type from an existing font 81
Create an illustrated typeface 81

01 Begin by selecting the typeface you want to use (in this case, Bello Pro), or open BELLO.outlines.ai on your
cover disc. When selecting a font, think about the look you want to achieve: do you want to create an ornate piece, or
something more functional? Once you know what you’re after, search through a font library and look for a typeface in
a similar style, with areas – or ‘flaws’ – that you can personalise. When you’ve got your font, open Illustrator, and type
out the word (or words) you want to illustrate. Select the word, and Ctrl/Right-click>Create Outlines. This allows you to
modify the image. Now identify the flaws: I wanted my illustrated typeface to ‘flow’ a little more, so I highlighted the
areas that could be adapted.
02 When using an existing typeface, you’ll generally be working with the outlines of
the letterforms. What you need is the exact opposite: you need to know how each part of the
letter bends and overlaps other areas. To do so, remove the fill from your object, leaving only
the strokes. Think about how each letter connects and flows into the next. Now select the
Pen tool, and begin to re-trace them.

Respect the font

Since this is a script typeface,
I tweaked several ligatures to help them
flow better. Choosing where to make your
changes will depends on the theme you’re
aiming for, and on your personal taste of
course. Since you’re using an existing font
that’s already been carefully designed, I
think it’s important not to misrepresent
it – be coherent and make subtle changes,
leaving the magic to shades and highlights
later in the process.

03 As you trace the letters, bear in mind the flaws – or areas you wanted to work into – that you identified at the start, and accommodate these in your drawing.
You’ll soon start to see a difference between the original typeface (light blue, in my case) and your modified version (pink). Remember to pay attention to issues such as
spaces between letterforms, adjusting it so that it doesn’t look too cluttered or spaced out.

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 82 Project three Illustrated type
82 Project three Illustrated type

04 Once you’ve traced everything out, double-check for any errors in format, spacing,
consistency or flow that might have slipped in. Now is a good time to start thinking about
your type as a 3D object, and consider where the shadows and highlights will sit. However,
before you start working on this, first hit Ctrl/Cmnd+C and Ctrl/Cmnd+B, and make three
copies of your work. Create three layers, and place each object on a different one, naming
them ‘thin stroke’, ‘fill’, and ‘thick stroke’. Outline all three objects with a colour that’s clearly
different to the one with which you’ll be filling your letterforms, so it’ll stand out.

05 Select the middle layer, choose the Live Paint Bucket tool (this only works within closed paths), and click
on the layer to make it a Live Paint object. This will allow you to manage the colouring process with more control. Now
fill in the entire type formation with a gradient fill – this is the first step in making your letterforms 3D. Go to Window>
Gradient, and click on the gradient that appears in the panel. Replace the colours on the slider as you like, and
remove the stroke from the image.

06 Always experiment when you’re illustrating with type – you never know what new
effects you might produce. While playing around with different stroke weights here, I found a
great way to make the type stand out more. Select the top layer, and set the Stroke Weight to
1px, then do the same thing to the bottom layer, but this time set the Weight to 5px. Notice
that you have a thicker stroke on the borders of your type, with thinner strokes where the
letters overlap, adding an extra level of detail to the letterforms.
07 It’s now time to add shadows and highlights. First, select the Fill object, then Ctrl/Right-click>Ungroup.
Go to Object>Expand, and click OK to make the gradient editable. Set the angle for it to be applied to 90 degrees, and
lock all the layers. Under the top layer (thin stroke), create two more layers, and name them Highlights and Shades.
Create a third layer under the thick strokes layer, and name it BG. Draw a rectangle in it, colour it as you wish, then
lock it. The goal is to make your type stand out, rather than simply having it on a plain white background.

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 Create illustrated type from an existing font 83
Create an illustrated typeface 83

Tips and tricks

Setting the gradient angle to 90 degrees will position the lighter shade
on the upper part of your type, and the darker colour on the lower part. This will make
it easier to identify where you need to place your shadows and highlights.

08 Before you start adding highlights and shadows, take some time to observe how light behaves on a 09 The Gradient tool’s Fade to Transparent function comes in handy for recreating
physical object. Your light source should fall on the letterforms in the same way that it would fall on an object, with the lightest part of a highlight. Create a linear gradient composed of white only, then go to
the highlights fading almost to a plain white at their brightest. For this project, I decided to place the light on top of the gradient slider, select one tip and lower its Opacity to 0%. Leave the other as it is.
the type, as if it’s shining on it from above.

Gradient angles
10
Repeat step nine
The optimum angle at which along the whole
to apply your fade-to-transparent gradient
word, adding more
depends on the typeface you’re using,
and the lighting effect that you’re trying highlights where
to simulate – a harsh, direct spotlight, necessary.
for instance, will cast darker, sharper
shadows compared to something softer,
like dappled sunlight. Set your gradient
angle to best simulate shadows according
to the overlaps in your chosen typeface,
and vary this if necessary. To make your
outlines as accurate as possible, it can
help to redraw the sections of the typeface
that you want to cast shadows.

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 84 Project three Illustrated type
84 Project three Illustrated type
11 Now move on to adding the shadows. To give it a crisp, bold outline, you want the border to be the
darkest part of your type – don’t reference your physical object here, as this is a more stylised touch. Repeat the
process of making Fade to Transparent gradients, this time choosing a colour that’s slightly darker than your
Fill colour, and make the first and the second set of shadows. Again, set one tip to 100% and the other to 0%.
13 Repeat this process along the full length of your word, until you’ve created a real sense of depth and
emboss. The idea is to trick your eyes into believing it looks like a 3D object using the light and shadows, paying
particular attention to the overlapping areas to emphasise the twisting form.
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Keep an eye on legibility
Before calling your work finished – or even before you start to add shades and highlights, as
in this process – make sure everything is intelligible, not just legible. It has to make sense. Imagine you’re
illustrating a typographical T-shirt for a client, saying their name or product, and they can’t read it – they
won’t be happy. Of course, if you’re going for a personal type piece, for which intelligibility isn’t important,
it’s much easier to make an exception.
12 The greater number of shadow objects you use, the greater the sense of depth you’ll achieve,
so make one more shadow object, with an even darker colour, to emphasise your shading. Be careful
not to place shadows over highlights and visa versa because they’ll cancel each other out.
14 Remember to pay attention to even the tiniest details. Common mistakes include not
following the original ascender and descender heights of your typeface (you can of course change
these to better suit your needs, but do so carefully), and increasing or decreasing the leading too
much when illustrating a phrase. When it comes to creating printed material – or even just for use
online – you can’t let a mistake go unnoticed, so check your final piece thoroughly before finishing.
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