Modern yet conservative font

Neil,

Thanks for the suggestions! I'll definitely look through those and see what I think. Yeah, Univers is a bit dull even if it's worked better than the others I've toyed with so far. It's certainly readable and doesn't detract from the icon I made. But I want more interest and warmth is a good way to go. I do want this to appear inviting. I appreciate the input! I'll go with a legitimate font-site. I don't care too much for the free fonts, and I can always use the font for something at work. :)

Thanks, Phyllis

Phyllis,
>Wish there were more font-sites that would let you make a sample image of a few words in a particular font. So much easier to tell than by looking at the alphabet

Go to myfonts.com. Choose the font; type in sample text and choose a size.

Neil

Phyllis,
>a logo for a business that's very conservative but also modern (an Internet bank)

Whichever font(s) you choose, purchase them from a legitimate foundry. You'll have better/more reliable font engineering and visual realization. Choose fonts based upon the company persona, readability, how they will be used (including different media -- print, signage, and Web; colors; materials; sizes; text density; etc.). Consider ALL possible uses for the font before deciding. A font doesn't have to have been designed in a particular year to be appropriate; it just has to "look" and "feel" right for your client and his needs.

Personally, I'm not a big Univers fan; it's looks a bit sterile for me. Other possibilities; fonts with a bit more "warmth" you may wish to explore that may work:

Scala Sans
Meta
Futura
Gill Sans
Cronos

Arno
Veljovic
Meridien
Warnock
Chaparral
Brioso

Neil

Phyllis,
>a logo for a business that's very conservative but also modern (an Internet bank)

Whichever font(s) you choose, purchase them from a legitimate foundry -- better/more reliable font engineering and visual realization. Choose fonts based upon the company persona, readability, how they will be used (including different media print, architectural, and Web; colors; materials; sizes; text density; etc.). A font doesn't have to have been designed in a particular year to be appropriate -- it just has to "look" and "feel" right for your client and his needs.

Personally, I'm not a big Univers fan -- it's looks a bit sterile for me. Other possibilities; fonts with a bit more "warmth" you may wish to explore that may work:

Scala Sans
Meta
Futura
Gill Sans
Cronos

Arno
Veljovic
Meridien
Warnock
Chaparral
Brioso

Neil

BTW I often think of sans-serif fonts as looking more "modern" than serif fonts. The serif fonts just have a more traditional feel to me. Is that a skewed perspective? Hard to tell exactly where I picked up on that idea.

The actual age of a font doesn't matter much to me. If it works anything like fashion, old styles can quickly become the modern look again. :) But of course the highly decorative stuff would suggest specific eras.

Phyllis

Oh it's a legit version (just didn't think to post the whole name which was "47 Light Condensed Oblique" -- part of Univers LT Std).

I wasn't more specific about the project because I'm trying to learn to be better at picking fonts! :) I'm taking a design class and trying to design a logo for a business that's very conservative but also modern (an Internet bank). I didn't want to be *too* heavily influenced by suggestions (need to learn to pick for myself!) but wondered what fonts came to mind for other folks when I named that as a theme. Some websites list fonts by theme, but they tend to show only the most exaggerated fonts that fit that category. The logo's primarily a symbol so I have to pick something that isn't too decorative. I imagine if I posted the actual logo somebody out there could name the perfect font for it. But then I wouldn't have learned as much! I'm trying to learn to understand the "personality" of fonts better. I guess that's too broad a request. :-\

Wish there were more font-sites that would let you make a sample image of a few words in a particular font. So much easier to tell than by looking at the alphabet.

Thanks, Phyllis

Incidentally, you must be looking at a cheap knockoff or pirated Univers if you have come across a Univers Condensed. That terminology is not used in the real typeface.

Its designer used numbers instead.

From the blurb at http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/adobe/univers/ :

With the release of Univers, Frutiger began using numbers rather than names to designate variations of weight, width, and slope. The full Univers family consists of twenty-one typefaces, and Frutiger has used this numerical system on other designs, including Serifa and Frutiger. Linotype also has adopted this numerical system for many other faces.

All twenty-one Univers faces were designed to work together, so they can be mixed in a variety of ways. Their legibility lends itself to a large variety of applications, from text and headlines to packaging and signage.

Univers is the one I prefer when absolutely forced to use a sans serif typeface. But that's hardly " internet age". It's been around for over half a century.

If you give specific details about how and where it is to be used, there are plenty of folks here who can make appropriate recommendations. When choosing a font one has to consider the message, the intended readership, the paper, its color, texture and weight, the ink, etc.

Univers Condensed has been my favorite attempt so far. Wonder if anyone else would consider it as a modern but conservative look.....

(now I'm trying sans-serif stuff like Univers and Frutiger. I'm open to any kinds of suggestions as I don't think I have a good grasp of what fonts are suggestive of particular themes)