“Seafood Market” – A Successful Logo

This logo is an example of one that successfully incorporated a visual into its name. The designer of this logo creatively and cleverly turned the top of the letter “S” and the top of the letter “d” into crab claws. I especially like that the crab claws each come from the opposite end of the logo, and even give the appearance that the logo is in the oval shape of a crab. The two claws are also pointing towards the center and make “Seafood Market” stand out clearly.

The color and type chosen for this logo also work well. The color is blue, which is the first color that comes to mind when thinking of seafood because it comes from the sea, which is blue, obviously. The font is playful and laid back, two other characteristics that come to mind when thinking of seafood. Seafood is typically most popular in beach areas and is consumed in high amounts at the beach. Typically, the  beach is a place where people are relaxing, on vacation, and enjoying themselves. This type gives off the right feel, as opposed to if it was an elegant script it would make it appear to be a fancy restaurant where you would need to get dressed up.

Lastly, it works well that there is an even amount of letters on either side of the “f” in seafood which is the center of the logo. Geometrically, it makes the logo even. In sum, I think this is a very effective logo and did a nice job of incorporating a visual into its logo.

Blog Assignment #8

I know you are all very busy getting your logo design’s finished up this week, so I thought I’d keep your post simple.

All you need to do is find a logo which links it’s visual with the type successfully and give a brief explanation why.

Keep your response short but concise.  You need to still talk about the principles of design, but keep it simple.

BlackBerry’s hidden Bs

Everytime I see those little dots I know the commercial for the BlackBerry Torch is on and I can’t stand that Verizon doesn’t sell it yet.

As you can see, BlackBerry’s old logo is untinteresting and would be unappealing after being shrunk down to the size needed to display on a phone.

The recent BlackBerry logo is unique and identifiable. In fact, according to http://www.landor.com there was a 57% increase in brand strength between 2006 and 2009 after the creation of the new logo.This logo is creative, modern and memorble.

It wasn’t until researching the logo that I realized that the graphic is made up of Bs. The negative space surrounding the dots are 2 connecting Bs in the middle with 2 Bs on either side.

I believe the logo sybmolizes the concepts that Landor Associates strived to create. It signifies movement and connections of ideas and informations through the fluidity of the Bs in the logo. I believe the logo and type work very well together. The type of the capital Bs in BlackBerry ties teh graphic in with the type. I believe this is a very sucessful branding. For the full history and explanation of the logo revival visit http://www.landor.com/index.cfm?do=ourwork.blackberry

World Series Logo

Design Analysis:

What’s unique about the Philadelphia Phillies Logo is that they have their own typeface.  The typeface for this logo is called scriptwurst and it is designed and owned by MLB. I think that this scriptwurst typeface is fun and inviting to the fans and encourages the enjoyment of baseball.  I also think that the underlining of the name could pass as a baseball bat which also engages in the sport. I like how they used stars for the “i” in the word because it express the all-star spirit of the team. Lastly, I like how they displayed a picture of the liberty bell in the background because it expresses pride in the city of Philadelphia and the history of the city in which this team represents.

The color of this logo is very noticeable because it holds the darker color blue in the background and they use the very vibrant color red for the letters and to outline the baseball diamond shape of the logo. I also think that outlining the “Phillies” in white and using the white space in between the blue and the red nicely corresponds with the white of the liberty bell.  Lastly, I think it was clever of them to make the stars in the name and the crack in the liberty bell blue because it goes along with the background.

Logo works

I think that this logo works well because it is simple and well-organized. Also this logo represents not only the team Philadelphia Phillies but also the city as a whole. The Phillies have had many logos in the past but I think that this one would be the easiest to market and to place on paraphernalia for the team. All in all I love this logo.

Outside Sources

http://www.interpretationbydesign.com/?tag=phillies-font

http://www.sportslogos.net/team.php?id=70

Branding in a Global Community

Design choices

The most notable design choice in this logo is the use of color.  The two dominant colors, orange and blue, are complementary.  The cool color of blue recedes to the background allowing the warm color of the fox to come forward and thus be emphasized.  The blue ball is recognizable as a globe with lighter and darker shades differentiating land verse water.

Why it works

The body and tail of the fox wraps around the globe, which is one of the reasons the logo works for Modzilla’s purpose.  Firefox is a worldwide browser and they value their global community.  This image respects the diversity of their target audience by using a logo that can be used effectively around the world.

Development of logo

In the end of 2003, Modzilla was attempted to re-brand their Firebird browser.  “Firebird” was already being used and thus Modzilla decided to make a change to respect the other company’s trademark.  They e-mailed Jon Hicks and invited him to be a part of their branding team, an opportunity which he jumped on.  Hicks, who is now considered the creator of this logo, recounts the process in his blog The Hickensian.

The first thing to change was the name of the browser to Firefox.   Why firefox?  Modzilla responds that, “It’s easy to remember.  It sounds good.  It’s unique.  We like it.”

Once they decided on the name, it was time to create the logo.  Hicks was inspired by Japanese brush painting and originally came up with the following image:

The concept of a fox whose tail morphs into flames was carried into the final design sketched by Stephen Desroches.  Using Fireworks, Jon Hicks made this sketch into the logo as we know it.

All Day I Dream About Simplicity

The Adidas logo was created by Adi Dassler, founder of Adidas. When you think Adidas, you  right off the bat, think of the three stripes, but also a brand of products ranging from shoes, apparel and accessories for basketball, soccer, fitness and training to adventure, golf, and just about every other sport out there.

Adidas incorporates two styles of their logo, the “Trefoil” from 1972, and the Three-Stripe brand mark made in 1996. Both logos are extremely simplistic, both in design and being one solid color, but work extremely well for the company. Both logos have a common feature, three parallel stripes.

In the beginning, Adidas’s “Trefoil” logo design was the only symbol associated with Adidas. Adidas believed that the Olympic spirit was symbolized by the three leaves, and the threes representing the three continental plates as well as the heritage and history of the brand. The “Trefoil” was adopted as the corporate logo design in 1972.

In 1996, the company decided that the Trefoil logo of the corporate identity would only be used on heritage products. The Stan Smith, Rod Laver, A-15 Warm-Up, and Classic T-Shirt are all examples of products still featuring the Trefoil logo design.

So then the Three-Stripe brand mark was was born. It was what would be to become the worldwide Adidas corporate logo. The company felt that this logo represents both performance and the future of the Adidas brand, that it would help with the corporate branding identity.  The shape of 3 stripes on the Adidas Logo are said to represents mountain, pointing out towards the challenges that are seen ahead and goals that can be achieved. This logo has become easily associated with the Adidas name and also the company’s dedication to producing high-quality athletic products. Click here, for a brief history on the Adidas logo.

I believe both designs both work very well with each other, having similar features. It is all about simplicity but this simple visual works tremendously well for the branding of the company. Both logos could have been easily designed they are just simple solid colored shapes, the “Trefoil” then having empty space of three parallel lines in the three leaves and the three lines of the newer logo simply made from angled rectangular shapes.

I think it might be true to say that any athlete, and even many other people, easily recognize and associate this logo with the Adidas brand.

Cake, sweet and simple

I chose this logo because I thought it was very minimalistic and successful in creativity and selling the idea of the company. Cakefilm is a company of wedding photographers that will be (maybe already is) operating in Australia. I could not find their company’s website online, but could only find information about the actual logo, http://logopond.com/gallery/detail/60275

In class, when we were looking at various business’ business cards, I was overall disappointed with many graphic designer’s and photographer’s logos. Not many were creative. So when I came across this logo online, I was immediately drawn to it.

I like how it chose to be colored black and white. The contrast makes it have stark personality. I like the simplicity in shape. The designer made something so common and iconically cliche like a wedding cake, and made it into a minimalistic shape that solely consists of rectangles, and circles. This gives it a modern feel. I think it is genius that the top layer is the camera that replicates the circle detail design throughout the cake.

No one can mistake this logo for being anything else other than wedding photographers. But then again, it is not girly, flowery, or overtly romantic. It also doesn’t overdo the symbols of photography, by using a suggestive simple square shaped camera. I think this design is truly successful because with the black block shaped cake and the sans serif modern typeface, this wedding photographers logo comes off as clean, modern, and efficient. The logo gets right to the point and also speak to both genders. No clutter, and definitely no tulle.

Vroom Vroom VW

The logo for Volkswagen is one that is unique yet simple.  I believe that when creating a logo, the most important aspect should be simplicity.  Being in the world today where there is a plethora of logos, if the design is overly complicated, no one would stop to look at it or figure out what it means.  Volkswagen, like Apple, as another student pointed out, mastered the design of simplicity.  The first great element of design that VW used was creating a placid shape.  Have the dark blue circle encompass the silver outline of the initials was genius because it creates definite shape.  I think the contrasting colors used of the blue and silver is also very strong.  It creates a gender-neutral design that is easy on the eye.  When analyzing the type I think the designer made a great decision on choosing a sans serif.  Without any edges on the lettering, the basic, thin type is easy to read.  This was very important because the initials, V W are slightly broken up and would be extremely difficult to read if the font was bolder or fatter.  I think the designer also used positive and negative space to his or her advantage.  It made it possible to see the initials through the shape, which ultimately creates the logo.

 

Because Volkswagen is a German car company, it was necessary for them to create a logo that could appear on cars and look appealing.  The placid shape and neutral colors made this a complete success.  It is easy to spot any car by this company by seeing the VW logo on the front of the hood.  The characteristics of the logo makes the company look classy, yet approachable.  It differentiates itself from other car companies, such as Mercedes, that appears much more stuffy.

 

Volkswagen began in 1937 in Germany.  Today it is now the largest supplier of cars in Europe. The history of this company is extensive and very interesting.  The original name was “Gesellschaft zur Vorbereitung des Deutschen Volkswagens mb”, but since its early days has modified its name to just Volkswagen.  Clearly the company also realized the important of finding simplicity in its advertising so it can be used conversationally in daily life.  Now, we see the company as just VW, a whole 50 characters shorter than the original name.  Known for creating small, compact, trendy cars, VW uses the a logo that definitely represents its company well.

 

 

The Five Rings

The Olympics rings are globally known. They represent cooperation between countries, regardless of the political state. This logo does not use any words, and yet it is easily recognizable. It uses only basic colors to convey the idea of many different cultures uniting. I found the choice to put white space between the circles interesting. It would not have necessarily been my first idea, but I think it separates the colors nicely.

The shape of the two rows is also not my first thought, as the circles could form a circle themselves. But this way, almost all the colors touch. The circles have space between them which keeps it from being to cramped. Also, having the three circles on top instead of the two creates a straight line so that text can be incorporated above. The primary colors were obvious choices for three of the five. I think it was important that the green be light to keep the logo bright. A darker green would have been too much with the dark blue and the black.

The Swoosh

The Nike logo, aka “The Swoosh,” is one of the simplest and most successful logos ever created. In fact, the swoosh logo is now synonymous with the Nike name, often appearing on its own.

The simple design of the logo is its genius. It appears to be a simple check mark, often placed under the company name. Yet, the swoosh, as it is now called, is actually a wing of the Greek goddess of victory, Nike.

The logo is also versatile in color. While it often appears in black, it can be seen in a wide array of colors. This versatility allows the logo to be placed on any merchandise, advertisement, or other form of media.  This is extremely important because the logo is used a variety of mediums and is highly visible.

The sans-serif typeface used compliments the logo nicely. Both the swoosh and text are very clean and simple. The harsh straight line of the text also contrast the curves of the swoosh.

Yet, the most interesting part of the Nike logo is its origin. The company, then named Blue Ribbon Sports, decided to re-brand the company on a short time deadline in 1971. It went to Caroline Davidson, a graphic design student at Portland State University, to design the new logo. Davidson presented the company with several options and the well-known Nike swoosh was selected. For her work, Davidson was paid $35.

Since its original introduction in 1971, the logo has been simplified to the swoosh without the company name. Yet, it is still highly effective. Nike truly understands that sometimes less is more.