The ultimate guide: everything you need to know about the current trend of color fonts.
In short, color fonts are simply colored fonts. They are typefaces that have several colors, gradients, transparency, etc. Research proves that colors can influence human mood and emotion. This is one of the reasons why colors are essential in design. As such, the font color you use when designing matters. Color fonts present you with a way of utilizing color in typography. They give you the power to dictate and influence the mood of those who view your designs. They are great fonts to use as they encourage creativity.
More than as a means to add colored letters, color fonts offer distinct details. The font files of these types include both vector shapes and bitmap images. In some circles, they are referred to as chromatic fonts. This is because they can exist as multicolored characters. They can also exist as single-tone and hued characters. The ability of these fonts to display color is attributable to the additional data they contain.
Due to the detailing involved, files of color fonts are usually more substantial than traditional fonts. There are currently five different formats in which color fonts exist. Initially, there was no industry standard font type. This is due to different companies developing and publishing their formats. Opentype-SVG has, however, emerged as the industry standard. This is because of its preference by two industry giants. Adobe and Mozilla are these giants, and they have agreed on OpenType-SVG. The five formats in which color fonts currently exist are the following:
- SVG: preferred by W3C, exists in both vectors and bitmaps format
- CBDT: favored by Google, supported by Android systems, bitmap format
- OpenType SVG: preferred by Adobe and Mozilla, exists in both vector and bitmap formats
- SBIX: preferred by Apple, supported by Mac and iOS systems, bitmap format
- COLR (Microsoft): supported by Windows 8.1 and above systems, vector format
OpenType-SVG is breaking grounds and seeing industry-wide implementation. Apart from its developers, it is now supported by others. Recent operating systems from the stables of Windows and Apple support it.
How large are color fonts?
Color fonts can be quite large depending on the volume of data they contain. For instance, color vector fonts can be up to a couple of megabytes large. Color bitmap fonts, on the other hand, can be tens of megabytes in size. The files get even more significant when they contain a combination of formats.
Are they scalable?
The scalability of a color font dependents on its format. For instance, fonts in vector format are scalable to any size. No matter the size, fonts in vector format won’t lose their resolution. Fonts in bitmap format, on the other hand, are limited. This is because they can be scaled only to a certain degree. If they get scaled past this point, they will become pixelated.
When is the best time to use color fonts?
Color fonts can be used in many different scenarios. It is advised that they are not used indiscriminately, however. This is because when not used in the right way, they will do the opposite of what you set out to do in the first place. This is to say that the otherwise great fonts will become hideous instead. The following are instances where you can use a chromatic font.
- For typography-based designs
- To spice up very basic designs
- To design an icon/logo
- For highlighting text
- For fun, colorful and creative projects
- To draw people’s eyes to a short word
When should you not use color fonts?
Color fonts are great fonts to use for a designer. Care should be taken in their use, however. The following are some of how to not use these fonts:
- In conjunction with other specialty fonts
- To write blocks of text
- Combined with images
- Combined with other colorful visuals such as animation
Making use of these fonts in such scenarios will give your design a disjointed feeling. This defeats the purpose and artistry of design.
How do I get a color font?
Chromatic fonts are rapidly increasing in popularity. They are, however, still quite hard to come across. This is why here’s a bundle provided by Pixelo that presents a great opportunity. This bundle contains 52 different font families with more than 85 unique fonts. This gives you a diverse range of options to choose from. As such, you will be able to create great and artistic designs. The different font colors at your disposal will enable you to utilize color psychology in your designs.
Color fonts are great fonts to use for some different reasons. One of the most important is how it helps you communicate messages on a subliminal level. This VIBGYOR bundle gives you that power, and you will do well to have it in your library. For those looking for more typeface, feel free to check out our Fonts category.
The post What Are Color Fonts? appeared first on WE AND THE COLOR.