Shane Brandes was born in Minnesota and has lived in Ohio since 1978. He is a graduate of Oberlin College. Typography and calligraphy have long been an interest with his first attempts at making fonts done with the programming language BASIC during the late 1980's with the assistance of his friend Michael Stay who wrote the program used. He an Organist giving the occasional recital. He also composes and typesets music. And also has an avid interest in the Medieval and Renaissance eras; particularly the technologies used then. His family also appears to have some sort of predisposition to printing as his Grandfather was a typesetter and proof reader for the Cleveland Press and other parts of the family owned a business called Brandes Printing in the same city. He also is particularly fond of cats.