Last month I was able to bring two of the organizations I am involved in on campus, Hofstra’s Association for Graphic Artists (HAGA) and Zeta Phi Eta, together. I was pleasantly surprised by the success of the event and by how many of my fellow Zetas are genuinely interested in learning about the Adobe programs and design in general. A few of our members left the computer lab with well-designed professional logos to be used for personal branding.
Below is an logo created by my friend and fellow Zeta, Alexi Velasquez. During the tutorial she was able to create this minimalistic and professional logo simply by utilizing her initials, a circle, a bold font and a professional color. It’s simple and it works. She has since added it to her resume/cover letter and it definitely achieves its purpose as a visual aid that will help her to stand out.
Though I am sure there will be more design and tutorial focused events in my Zeta future, I would like to take this opportunity to go over some tips and tricks to designing a logo. This can serve as a refresher for those who attended our event and as a starting point for those who couldn’t make it!
** All you will need is a computer equipped with Wi-Fi and Adobe Illustrator. No real design experience is required! **
1) Do some research.
Google ‘logo’ or ‘personal logo’ and scroll through the images for a bit. I find looking at other designs and ideas help me to be creative on my own.
2) Sketch it out.
I am terrible at drawing but I find it easiest to work out my ideas on paper. There are no restrictions or limitations when using a pencil.
3) Familiarize yourself with Illustrator tools.
Go through the tool bar and play around. The Type and Shape tools in particular will become your new best friends. Tip: hold down shift when trying to create a perfect circle, square or straight line.
4) Use your initials.
Unless you have a specific visual in mind and would like to test your illustrator skills, your initials are the best and easiest way to go. Tip: If you do have a specific visual in mind, I suggest you hit up some illustrator tutorials on YouTube. Or hit up a graphic designer for some help. (You can e-mail your friendly neighborhood graphic designer at clang5@pride.hofstra.edu.)
5) Pick your font wisely.
Do you want to use a serif or sans-serif? Do you want to be bold? Tip: Download a unique (and FREE) font at Dafont.com. Tip #2: Stay away from Comic Sans.
6) KISS: Keep it simple, stupid.
The most successful logos are minimal and not confusing. Tip: Start out using a basic circle, like Alexi.
7) Stick to a professional color palette.
Tip: President of HAGA Amanda Bentley introduced me to colourlovers.com, a site full of color inspiration.
If you have any questions about this tutorial or ideas for another professional design tutorial please feel free to reach out to me…and don’t be afraid to flaunt your logo design when you’ve finished!