Creating a Brand: Logo Development

Although l described in my last post about how l wanted to use my name as the logo as hat was something l discovered when researching into people within the industry, l also wanted to experiment with different logo designs and to see if they could represent my branding any better.

For all these designs, l used my name and initials as the main focus as l want to brand myself as multi-skilled l thought presenting my name as you do with a company would give my portfolio a sense of professionalism. I also found that in my research people either refer to themselves in the third person or would have their name in their logo and contact email address and not anywhere else on the website. So, l thought that using my name as my logo was the easiest way for users to identify me and my role within the industry.

My Sketches 

When designing anything, l like to begin by drawing out my basic ideas and any sketches l want to
out to see what they look like visually. For me, logo development is an important stage of this whole process as this is what your identity will be and you can really begin to brand yourself within your logo and get across the tone of your work within your logo.

 For my first design, l wanted to play around with the A section of my initial, and l thought it would be interesting to see what it looked like to write my name over my initials and merge the two together to create a more complex logo. I wanted to try out this logo design because l thought it looked quite corporate, but also simple, allowing me to symbolise my seriousness about the industry in a stylish and contemporary form. Creating a good logo allows me to showcase my design skills and creativity so this is something l wanted to play with in my initial sketches.

For this design l took inspiration from the more modern business designs that incorporate lines and graphics to the outside of their logo. I also took inspiration from my own logo designs l did for my Final Major Project, as they were for a futuristic company, so l thought the harsh outlines around my name made it more noticeable, different and futuristic. As the media industry is competitive l wanted to make my name stand out and create a design that is unique and had an impact - and l think that's what this design does.

I also tried out this same technique on my initials, however l didn't like this effect as l thought the outline took away attention from my initials.

To add some variety into my designs, l decided to incorporate a graphic into the logo. Although this isn't something l want to have in my overall design because l think graphics can age quickly and make m portfolio look outdated, l did want to experiment mixing a graphic in with my name. I don't think it looks awful, however this isn't the branding l am looking for, l don't think it represents a media practitioner so therefore l don't think l want to use it.

I will design this in photoshop to see what it looks like incase l change my mind. 

Lastly, l sketched out my original logo that l created for my CV. This is just simple, the visual hierarchy of this is nice, how the two names fit together. I like this kind of simplicity and when l create my designs virtually l think this will be fun to experiment with different colour-ways and typography because l think this logo has a level of sophistication and style l want my brand to have.