01
With logotype updates, I usually like to start my process by creating an assessment of the current logo. I outline the positive aspects of it, like why it has worked well up to this point, but then detail the things that could use some work. I try to be sensitive while offering criticism—often times there are people at a company that feel very strongly that the logo should not be updated (maybe they had a major hand in creating the initial mark). I create a detailed pdf explaining my thoughts. Here you see the before and after, and below I’ll walk you through my process.
02
The first step was to simplify the logo. There were all sorts of outlines and drop shades going on in the original mark which I felt were unnecessary, especially during the developmental process. I stripped it down to the essential logotype, and then began making notes about things that needed to be updated. Once you see a logo in black and white (instead of printed or in full color) the flaws become a lot more transparent—with enough “makeup” you can hide even the knarliest of scars. I pointed out that there were a number of basic changes to be made, such as smoothing out the curves to correct funky vector digitization and fixing inconsistent stroke widths throughout the lettering.
03
There was a lot of excessive rounding of corners going on in the original logo. Designers love adding rounded corners to things because it makes the design feel friendly, but there is a correct time and place for adding them. The interior of letterforms, where strokes overlap each other, is definitely not the place to have them, as it can make a design feel heavy and inky (or badly printed). I would correct for this as well as make adjustments to the weight at stroke connections to make the logotype have “even color”.
04
I don’t always show a before and after of the changes I’m talking about in very early presentations, but in this case I felt that it would make a huge difference to show the client how large of an impact these seemingly tiny changes could make to the overall mark.
05
Finally, in my first presentation, I showed a sketch with many of the updates I suggested in place. Showing a logo client a pencil sketch can be dangerous, as you are not always dealing with visual people (which is why most designers choose to show more finalized looking logos in their proposals), but because I had included the vector before and afters I was positive that they would understand that the final vector artwork would be tighter and of course not have the pencil sketch texture.
06
Here is the first vector round of the new logo. I presented a version close to the original—a vectorization of the sketch I had created (with the R on an angle, and a bouncier cap height) and also presented a simplified version, with a consistent cap height and minimized swashes.
07
It was also shown in two weights. In this version, the thins are made a bit bolder so the overall mark is less delicate.
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I also showed a low-contrast option, which made the lettering come closer to a monoline script.
09
Ultimately, as often happens, the final combined features of a few of the options. The angled R was kept from version 1, especially for use outside of the logotype (though it was reworked for that use). The rest of the logo was derived from version 2. Many small adjustments were made between that initial vector round of presentation and the final mark.
10
When working on logotypes, especially scripts, I usually deliver an alternate version of the logo to be used at smaller sizes. Here you can see the small scale logo I created compared to the large scale final logo scaled down. I make small adjustments to correct for legibility at small sizes, which can include making adjustments to letter spacing, increasing x-height, adjusting swashes, opening up counters, etc. The end result is quite a bit easier to read than the original.
11
Last but not least, the R was adjusted to create a monogram that could be used for social purposes or any other place that the full logotype might not work.
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Paravel did a beautiful job with the implementation, including changing the brand’s color scheme to a brilliant purple.
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