Chapter 5. Letterspacing, Tracking, and Kerning

More than just letters, typography is also the space between those letters. Each letterform and each word inhabits a field of negative white space, and this space helps establish the rhythm of the text. Tight- or loose-fit type may be in or out of fashion, just as jeans may be skintight one season and flared the next. But whatever the trend, for the type to be readable, the rhythm should be steady.

InDesign offers three distinct but related approaches to adjusting the space between words and letters. From global to local they are these: Letterspacing is the overall adjustment of space between letters and between words. Tracking is the adjustment of the space between the letters and words across ...

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