Phototypesetting is a typesetting technique in which letters, stored on a film or a transparent disc, are projected by light onto photosensitive paper or film. It appeared after the Second World War, gradually replaced lead type, and then gave way to desktop publishing at the end of the 1980s.
Where to see it
Phototypesetting owes a great deal to the Lumitype, developed by the Frenchmen René Higonnet and Louis Moyroud. Adrian Frutiger adapted many typefaces for this machine at Deberny et Peignot, and his Univers, released in 1957, was designed from the outset for both lead type and phototypesetting.
Why this detail matters
Phototypesetting marks a decisive stage in the history of typography:
- By replacing metal with light, it freed typesetting from the physical constraints of lead, such as tight spacing or overlapping letters;
- It made it possible to change the size of a typeface from a single design, a flexibility that foreshadowed digital typography;
- It led to the redesign of many historic typefaces, sometimes with noticeable differences from the lead versions.
Related term
Typesetting refers more broadly to the process of assembling characters, of which phototypesetting is one of the major stages.