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The Logo Thread


Dark Qiviut

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(edited)

The logo that defines me the best:

 

Posted Image

 

There are a few issues with this logo:

 

1. The typeface wrapping inside the band is Arial. Arial is a computer font with some of the letters stretched out to make the characters read better on the computer. In addition, it's designed specifically for Microsoft because Helvetica was too expensive at the time. It would've been better if "The Royal Regiment" was in Helvetica instead.

 

2. Speaking of the font, the kerning needs fixing. The spaces between the characters are uneven and uncomfortable to the eye. This is a big problem when wrapping text in a circular fashion altogether— The little details in the curves make the spaces problematic. It's especially an issue in "LOYAL."

 

3. There is way too much detail in it. The bolts in the crest and petals in the crown would disappear when scaled to a much smaller size. The same goes with the cross in the crown and every little detail in its base. Moreover, the green leaves behind the flower create another problem for the same scaling issue: If the logo becomes a smaller size, then they'll look like mistakes.

 

4. There are way too many colors. I counted about ten to twelve here. While plenty of colors isn't a bad thing, usually the best logos have much less color, about three at least with maybe a fourth to push the boundaries. Speaking of which, I do NOT recommend gradients to create depth, because they're very unpredictable to print.

 

5. The black strokes need to go. In many logos, you'll notice that so few million-dollar professional companies rely on strokes. The reason is because strokes themselves make the logo look tacky and weaken its message. It makes the logo's presentation look poor. Especially when using the default one-point black stroke. Combine the strokes with the rest of the crest, the black strokes are a major eyesore and ruin the composition. The logo would look much better if the stroke is removed; it would make the logo's presentation look so much cleaner.

 

While the composition is great, the logo needs to be really simplified in order for it to be very versatile and modernized.

Edited by Dark Qiviut
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Hm.....I never heard of them... :huh:

 

Anyways, at first glance, I really like it. It's not as attention-grabbing or as iconic as other logos that utilize a similar typeface that come to mind, but chrome is a good concept. And it definitely mixes well with that cursive. It looks a bit outdated though. Maybe they could revamp it with a modern 3D graphics program, I think the lighting on this is a bit iffy.

 

Yeah I agree with you ^_^ But the logo looks much more modern when it's as a LED-sign on guitars or a chrome sign on amps.
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There are a few issues with this logo:

 

1. The typeface wrapping inside the band is Arial. Arial is a computer font with some of the letters stretched out to make the characters read better on the computer. In addition, it's designed specifically for Microsoft because Helvetica was too expensive at the time. It would've been better if "The Royal Regiment" was in Helvetica instead.

 

2. Speaking of the font, the kerning needs fixing. The spaces between the characters are uneven and uncomfortable to the eye. This is a big problem when wrapping text in a circular fashion altogether— The little details in the curves make the spaces problematic. It's especially an issue in "LOYAL."

 

3. There is way too much detail in it. The bolts in the crest and petals in the crown would disappear when scaled to a much smaller size. The same goes with the cross in the crown and every little detail in its base. Moreover, the green leaves behind the flower create another problem for the same scaling issue: If the logo becomes a smaller size, then they'll look like mistakes.

 

4. There are way too many colors. I counted about ten to twelve here. While plenty of colors isn't a bad thing, usually the best logos have much less color, about three at least with maybe a fourth to push the boundaries. Speaking of which, I do NOT recommend gradients to create depth, because they're very unpredictable to print.

 

5. The black strokes need to go. In many logos, you'll notice that so few million-dollar professional companies rely on strokes. The reason is because strokes themselves make the logo look tacky and weaken its message. It makes the logo's presentation look poor. Especially when using the default one-point black stroke. Combine the strokes with the rest of the crest, the black strokes are a major eyesore and ruin the composition. The logo would look much better if the stroke is removed; it would make the logo's presentation look so much cleaner.

 

While the composition is great, the logo needs to be really simplified in order for it to be very versatile and modernized.

 

Mate, you do realize that's the logo of the Loyal Regiment, an infantry regiment of the British Army in 1881....?

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loyal_Regiment_(North_Lancashire)

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Twitter has turned around their marketing strategy, as they changed their logo to go along with the modernized “simple” theme most new logos have today.

 

Posted Image

 

(this one replaces the previous “Larry the Bird” logo, and Twitter has officially retired their iconic wordmark)

 

This one is composed of few very geometric shapes, circles, to be more specific. They're trying to go along with their “social circles” motive of the network. I really like this one and I think it will definitely stick. Like I said, the simplicity of the logo is the biggest improvement, especially the wings and the beak.

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  • 2 weeks later...
(edited)

(My latest post got auto-merged with this one from mid-June, so I'm splitting them with em dashes.)

 

————

 

Mate, you do realize that's the logo of the Loyal Regiment, an infantry regiment of the British Army in 1881....?

 

http://en.wikipedia....rth_Lancashire)

 

No, I didn't realize it, but my point still stands.

 

The actual "logo" isn't a logo. It's a medal—a badge. The detail is there as a means to tell people who they are on a piece of metal. They're not designed to be put on a billboard, business card, ad campaign, or anything printable. It's a great badge, but it'll make for a TERRIBLE logo because there is just way too much on it to be put on corporal media. The badge is intended to be in one size only on medal. A logo's intentions is to be as simple as possible so it can be utilized across multiple printable media.

 

Also, the real badge doesn't use Arial. If Arial were put in a logo, the designer will be torn to shreads because he used a clearcut ripoff of Helvetica instead of spending his money to purchase the typeface or something else just as feasible.

 

Twitter has turned around their marketing strategy, as they changed their logo to go along with the modernized “simple” theme most new logos have today.

 

Posted Image

 

(this one replaces the previous “Larry the Bird” logo, and Twitter has officially retired their iconic wordmark)

 

This one is composed of few very geometric shapes, circles, to be more specific. They're trying to go along with their “social circles” motive of the network. I really like this one and I think it will definitely stick. Like I said, the simplicity of the logo is the biggest improvement, especially the wings and the beak.

 

Absolutely agreeing here. Twitter has been a huge part of pop culture since its inception just a few years ago. Anytime we saw that cyan bird, we think of Twitter. The simplification of the company's brand identity is a mjaor improvement for their brand. Larry might've had some details in its feathers, but they didn't mean anything. They do here, because they're based on perfect circles. Furthermore, Larry was just flying straight ahead; the new logo is ascending, creating an uplifting personality for the brand.

 

Also, one more little piece of detail that not many see. Larry is a lowercase "t" flipped the other way, but the details and imperfect geometry masked it. The revamped bird makes the "t" much more noticeable.

 

To show a comparison/contrast, here is the old Twitter bird and new one side-by-side:

Posted Image

————

 

With BronyCon coming up in later this week, I decided to go ahead and create a logo concept for it. As just about everyone here in this forum knows, BronyCon is the biggest fan convention for MLP:FIM and is usually one of the most anticipated. People all around the country visit this expo and witness great art from our fandom, from animation to plushies to posters from several well-known members. In addition, some of the people from the fandom and/or the actual show attend for questions and autograph sessions or just conversation, two of them being John De Lancie and Tara Strong.

 

Earlier this year, the new BronyCon logo for this summer was released.

 

Posted Image

 

There are some huge pluses here.

 

1. There is a gigantic emphasis of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. The sans-serif typeface is thinner than the MLP logo, but there are some similarities in the shape and gentle flow with a more modernized approach. The Pegasus on the right displays adrenaline and excitement. The barrier in front of the Pegasus's head indicates a rush for the summer session.

 

2. Throughout the logo is a casual, "easygoing" audience. "BronyCon" is all lowercase, capturing the more youthful, family-friendly audience in today's world; people tend to read words or phrases in lowercase faster than in ALL CAPS due to the clues in each character's anatomy.

 

3. The light blue drop shadow and typeface unite. If it weren't for the Pagasus, then the drop shadow would lack the necessity it needs. In addition, the blue drop shadow is pastel (representing Rainbow Dash's fur color, for she's one of the show's most popular characters), and it makes the logo pop from the background better.

 

But there are some issues:

 

1. The shockwave is unnecessary and too stylized. The rainbow is a gradient, and I've mentioned why gradients aren't recommended in logos: Gradients are extremely unpredictable to print. Furthermore, there are small little details within the ring and insider the inner circle that will meld together when scaled small. It would've been better if the little details were removed entirely, especially the zip lines within the ring, because they don't add anything symbolic and will all but vanish if the whole logo is scaled down to two inches across. I would suggest a foreshortened ring with sharp shifts of color from one to another or remove it entirely.

 

2. The rainbow lines of light, while giving a fantastic sense of speed via the Sonic Rainboom, are in danger of disappearing when scaled. In addition, they interfere with the beauty of the logo, as the italics and the Pegasus flying already give us the sense already. The lines appear better when "bronycon" is on the white background (a reverse effect, as color is more visible on darker surfaces), but get severely muddled on the black background.

 

3. With the logo on the white background, the black outer stroke is unneeded. The illusion of the white stroke exists via the cyan drop shadow. As for the logo on the black background, the letters blend in a bit too much because there's no contract shift in contrast, making the logo appear lost. It's a black ground and then black letters separated by a white stroke. My recommendation is to make the letters white and the stroke black so the letters can appear better.

 

4. There is no emphasis of "New York." We know Bronycon takes place in the Tri-State area, but if a Bronycon took place anywhere else, this logo would still fit. There's no relationship between New York (or New York City) with the logo at all, especially with the "NY[C]" blending in with the background.

 

So, with that, I propose a solution via a brand new logo.

 

Posted Image

 

Here is a concept of my BronyCon logos. One of them uses all lowercase ("bronycon") and the other has an initial cap ("BronyCon").

 

ITC Bauhaus is the font for this concept. Originally a concept in 1925 in Germany, it evolved into a published typeface in 1975. It is a sans-serif art-deco typeface, which relies on precision in their shapes, whether they're circles, ovals, rectangles, squares, or triangles. Art deco was popular in the 1920s, '30s, and '40s, and they're found in several New York City landmarks such as Radio City Music Hall, the Empire State Building, and the Chrysler Building. The purpose for this is because almost every pony in "My Little Pony" relies on near-perfect circular geometry, particularly the head, iris, hooves, mare muzzle, and shoulders.

 

One little change in the lettering, though, is the "y." ITC Bauhaus has the "y" descender under the middle of the letter instead of to the side. For this logo, the descender is repositioned to the right and flows to the left as a tribute to the "My Little Pony" logo that we have today.

 

But one little detail you might notice if you look closer is the end of the tail. There are two variations. On the left, it's the top of a heart but stylized to make it a little more organic. On the right, it is the top of an apple (New York City's nickname is the Big Apple).

 

Currently, I'm considering colors that fit both the show and the city. Possible color combinations are as follows under the "spoiler" tag:

 

Posted Image

 

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You'll notice other concepts of the apple top, too, but I'm more into the one I chose in my first spoiler because the stem can be seen much easier in a small size. Also, in each colorized logo, the "NY" is in another color to emphasize "New York." If I go with the color switch in the "NY," I'm more or less considering "BronyCon" instead of "bronycon" to prevent confusion (i.e., pronouncing "BronyCon" as "Bro NY Con") and having the color alterations much more subtle to blend in. This means the sharp color contrasts (like many of the ones I presented here) don't qualify.

 

Thoughts?

Edited by Dark Qiviut
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  • 2 months later...

This is in response to this topic dealing with the announcement of Microsoft's new logo.

 

For twenty-five years, Microsoft's logo looks like this:

 

Posted Image

 

It's a black italic Helvetisa with a slice in the first "o" as a means to open a new era of technology. It's a classic, identifiable logo that doesn't need any color to pop.

 

Recently, in order to connect with their computer products better, Microsoft adopted a new logo:

Posted Image

This logo uses the four colors right from Windows's flag, only to simplify it into four cubes. In addition, the typeface was replaced by Gill Sans, with the color from black and italic to gray and standard.

 

So far, the reception has been mixed. I, for one, consider this a major upgrade. The old logo is bold, but the slice makes the "o" look like an "e." So instead of the logo reading as "Microsoft," it reads as "Micresoft." Furthermore, the new logo ties itself down to Windows, their flagship franchise. It correlates to their Windows 8 logo here:

Posted Image

 

Earlier this afternoon, I researched reception of the logo and located this concept posted last month. It ties Microsoft down to its computer products — the smartphones, computers, and Microsoft Office. "Microsoft" is one plain logotype, but its products use an edgy trademark variation in the form of slanted windows. There's even a conceptual ad campaign for it.

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I really like their 2010's/"modern" look on things in marketing, and their brand new logo reflects just that. Simplicity is a key factor in their products nowadays, it seems as if they're trying to compete with Apple in that sense. Now, while Apple may always be the leader in simplicity, Microsoft will never stop making amazing products that still keeps them in the competition.

 

Now, I like that it shines off the Windows logo, because that should be their main focus of this era, to improve Windows 8 from its inevitable hideousness, and evolve it into a bigger and better OS than 7 ever was. Plus, it's always cool to see a red/blue/green/yellow logo.

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  • 8 months later...

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