Type Effects: Photoshop vs. Illustrator

There’s no doubt that you can create some stunning type effects with layer styles. However, there is a downside to creating all of your type effects in Photoshop. Unfortunately, in most cases you wind up flattening the file, which results in a bitmap graphic, and as you know, bitmap graphics are made up of pixels. When you’re working with pixels in print design, it doesn’t matter how high the resolution of the graphic is, if it includes type, the characters will  always appear too soft when printed. Most important—all the type in your print designs should be easy to read. Ideally, you want the type in your layouts to appear nice and sharp when printed, not blurry and soft. Before you start creating all your type effects in Photoshop, consider creating as many of them as possible in a vector-based program such as Illustrator, Freehand, or even InDesign.

Vector-based applications such as Illustrator allow you to create graphics that are based on a series of mathematical curves, not pixels. Vector graphics always print nice and sharp, and are not resolution dependent. This means that you can size them as large or as small as you want in a layout without having to worry about how well they will output.

Additionally, many raster effects, including drop shadows and outer glows, can be created in vector applications such as Illustrator and InDesign. When these types of transparent raster effects are applied in a vector application, they are rasterized when the file is output. Depending on the transparency flattener setting you’ve chosen to apply when outputting the layout, the type should remain sharp while the effect remains soft.

Photoshop does contain some layer style effects, such as Bevel And Emboss and Satin, which you can’t reproduce as well in vector applications (although the new Bevel And Emboss and Satin effects in InDesign CS3 work extremely well for vector). However, keep in mind that from a design standpoint, applying these effects can sometimes make your type stick out like a sore thumb in a layout. I can always spot a Photoshop type effect when I see one, and that’s not always a good thing. My advice is, if you’re going to use Photoshop layer styles with type, be sure to use them tastefully.