Preface vs. Helvetica/Futura/Gill: a different strategy of text color.

Whereas the established classes of sans serif typeface achieve a dynamic balance between stroke and space by combining a diversity of letterform with an evenness of fit, Preface switches the emphasis, driving out diagonals to create a dominant harmony of curves and perpendiculars, matched with a greater variety of inter-character space shapes—the result of extra width introduced in the “f” and “t”, and by the openness that accompanies the wide tails of the “ a” and “l”, the long ear of the “r”, and the serif of the “i”. More…

En masse, and in keeping with the present trend in typography, Preface exhibits a coarser texture than the traditional sans serif faces, but one that is nonetheless even and precise.

With tabular, oldstyle figures.