How to Use Knockout Text
Knockout text, or reversed type, is a font style in which white or light text appears knocked out of a dark background creating a stark, stencil-like contrast between the text and its surroundings. Although knockout text is used in various media, it is employed only to draw a person’s attention to a specific point, such as the title of a document, book or brochure, a word or line from a section of text or words on a photo. A basic method exists to create knockout text. As a result, you can usually create and use it quickly as desired in any project.
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Instructions
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Open your project in your word processing or desktop publishing program.
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Set up a dark background for your text. For example, insert a shape such as a rectangular box and then select a dark color on your software’s shading or fill tool palette to fill the box with the color. If you want several lines of a document to have a dark background, position your cursor on the first line, use the shading tool palette to color the entire line and then press the “Enter” key on your computer keyboard to shade one or more lines following it.
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Select white or a light color on your software’s font color palette.
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Create a text box and position it on the dark background or click the background to type directly on it.
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Type your text. The text appears knocked out of the dark background.
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Highlight the text with your cursor and use the “Bold” style typeface, or font weight, to thicken it and increase the contrast between the text and the background to make the text more noticeable.
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Increase the font size to 10 points or larger to make it more readable.
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Review the fonts available in your software and select one that fits well with your project and makes the knockout text clearer.
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Increase the kerning, the space between the letters, if the text is difficult to read. Narrow spacing can make light text appear cramped or merged. If you’re working with more than one line of knockout text, increase the leading, the space between the lines, as well.
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Tips & Warnings
Print your project on non-bleed paper or glossy photo paper repeatedly as you work to confirm that the text appears as desired, as the text may appear different in print than it does on your computer screen.
Many people can’t read knockout text when it's used on an entire document -- dark page with light text. As a result, use it only for highlighting or emphasis.
Certain thin fonts and scripts fonts usually fail to print clearly as knockout text or are difficult to read -- surrounding color can bleed into or merge with it. Fonts with thin, straight or curved serif marks at the ends of the letter strokes and small-size text pose similar problems.
Never use knockout text on envelopes for addresses when sending mail. The machines used by the U.S. Postal Service and other companies may not be able to read it.
