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Why ems?

If the world were an ideal place, we’d all use pixels. But it’s not, we have the broken browser to contend with. IE/Win will not allow readers to resize text that has been sized in pixels. Like it or not, your readers will want to resize text at some point. Perhaps they are short-sighted, doing a presentation, using a ridiculously high resolution laptop or simply have tired eyes. So unless you know (not think) your audience won’t be using IE/Win or will never wish to resize their text then pixels are not yet a viable solution.

Keyword-based text sizing will allow all browsers to resize text so this is a possibility, but I don’t find it gives me the precision that pixels would give me. Using ems however, allows all browsers to resize text and also provides pixel-level precision and so they tend to be my unit of choice.

I had to start thinking about all this again as I’m starting to re-edit my book to start sending out.  I’m nervous, and I keep putting it off, but the sooner I get it done, the sooner I can either start facing rejection, or getting jobs.  Hopefully the latter.  I’m also facing another problem with the direction my book should take.  It’s the whole fine art versus editorial/commercial conundrum, and well, I don’t know, I’m stuck.  This is where I need a strong edit.  I’m sure theres a way I can mix both, but I’m still working on it.  I’ll post my final edit, or edits in between, and you can feel free to write and let me know what you think.  Just remember, stab in the front…

Here’s a great article I was reading earlier today on Exposure Compensation about portfolio editing.

Also one of my favourites, A Photo Editor, was talking about how everyone takes bad photos:

Yes it’s true. Everyone. All the top editorial photographers take bad photos.
They just don’t show it to me. Ever.

This really stuck for me.  Read the rest here.

Without the content, or copying someone’s images because they have the look of the day, seems like chasing after someone else’s dream. Examples that I remember are the Hosemaster Phase in the late eighties, the overpower the sun Octabank phase in nineties, the make the subject look like an idiot short-lived fad in business magazines in the eighties to the lens-baby throw it out of focus trend, the over-exposed FL look on color-negative, the list goes on and on.

If the image has content and a purpose, then you remember it or are impacted by it. If it is just the trend of the moment, it glosses by.

Jesper’s images are just this. There is a lot of this point and shoot style going around right now (I’m guilty of shooting this way too), and I’m not quite sure if it’s a fad, or a cop out (more on this later), but when you throw out the complications of bulky equipment and fancy cameras, what you’re left with is pretty much a raw image. What you see is what you get, and this where the content becomes important. Take a look at Jesper’s pictures and see for yourself. I think you’ll agree that his content is what carries his pictures.

*all photos on this post © William Hundley

*All images on this post © Davin Youngs