Logo
Design Techniques 3
Example
5
PUNCHING
Punching
is the process illustrated in our visual equation above.
It is a method of merging two shapes to create a single
shape that has the characteristics of both. Designers use
this technique to simplify ideas into a single form as one
image has more impact and is easier to remember than two.
We have used the punching technique here to adapt the '&'
symbol as a square tile which makes it easier to organize
as a repeat pattern.
REPEAT
PATTERNS
Spice
up a simple repeat pattern by changing the colors of the
tiles.
MIRRORED
REPEATS
This
symmetrical arrangement of reflected images, a composition
technique that goes back hundreds of years, creates an old
fashioned crest design.
AN
ASYMMETRICAL ARRANGEMENT
At
first glance, this asymmetrical arrangement looks random.
On closer inspection you can see that it is carefully arranged
so that each shape overlaps the next at a key points in
the design.
LESS
IS OFTEN MORE
Repeating
an image sometimes weakens its impact as it gets lost in
the complexity of a pattern. An image often has a stronger
identity on its own.
COMBINING
IMAGE AND TYPE
The
'&' sign is a printing symbol and an ideal image for
our publisher's logo: 'Writers' & 'Critics'. The simple
addition of some appropriate typography
completes the design.
'Edwardian
Script', an elegant calligraphic font, was chosen for
'Writers'. This stylish black typeface illustrates
the crafts of writing and printing.
'Jokerman',
an awkward novelty font, was chosen for 'Critics'.
Its angry red form bristles with rage as it impertinently
jumps onto the design.
The
square green '&' symbol creates a neutral zone between
these two adversaries.
The
style, shape, colors and arrangement of this logo all combine
to evoke the complex nature of the publishing industry.
Example 6
NOT
EVERY IDEA WORKS
A
visual curiosity is a must for any designer. You must try
to understand the possibilities that exist in any image
you use. In the design above, the natural interlocking qualities
of our question mark have been explored to create an interesting
image but no obvious conclusion has been reached. Not every
idea you develop leads to a design solution but each adds
to your general knowlege of design and becomes part of the
bank of ideas that you may draw upon for future projects.
GOOD
DESIGN IS OFTEN A NATURAL SOLUTION
Rotating
an image round a point provides a natural solution to
the design for a CD in a computer quiz game.
LOOK
AT A PROBLEM FROM ALL SIDES
By
examining a problem from different points of view we can
find the most natural path to a solution.
THE
ANSWER DEPENDS ON THE QUESTION
Designers
must ask themselves searching questions about what they
are trying to do. Intelligent questions give you informed
answers - "It is not the answer that enlightens,
but the question", Eugene Ionesco.
THINK
OUTSIDE THE BOX
This
'punched' image suggests another approach to developing
ideas: 'think outside the box'. It just needs a little typographic
help to improve the dialogue between the visual to the verbal.
TEXT
IS A CREATIVE TOOL
The
text in this design is broken up into sections to link the
visual and verbal communication of the image. Although,
in Western society, we read from left to right and top to
bottom, you can take the odd liberty with typography
for graphic design purposes:
- 'think'
forms the missing curve from the question mark and together
they emphasise that part of the idea.
- 'outside'
is placed physically outside the box to stress its meaning.
- 'the
box' takes its natural position inside the box,
but on a smaller scale. This helps with the order in
which we read the message as we tend to read the larger
words first.
COLOR
AS A COMPOSITIONAL TOOL
Red
and white are used
in a counterchange that unites the image and its typography.
Red strengthens the link between 'think' and 'outside'
to ensure that they are read first while 'the box',
in a contrasting white, completes the statement.
| Logo
Design Techniques |
In
this lesson we use the images below to demonstrate a range of composition
techniques that are helpful in developing ideas for logo designs.
Once
you have studied these examples you can use our free Image
Resources to adapt what you have learned to create your own logo
ideas.
Click
on the images below to see how they are developed into ideas for
logo designs.
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