3

I am a beginner logo designer, I started creating some fake logos. I have to spend lots of hours finding the correct position for my logos. For example, In the "DPT Shipping Solutions Logo," I am stuck to get the best layout. I created the logo mark successfully but adding the slogan in the correct position has been a big problem for me. I know to create a good logo needs a huge experience. But I am asking you how to get the "working" logo layout fast.

See my image. I am not happy with those layouts but I don't know how to reach that level. I am having problems with the placement of the text and the balance of the text with the logo.

enter image description here Thank you!

2
  • 2
    Hi. Welcome to GDSE. This question is very opinion based. What is "best" depends on what you or your client wants. What exactly don't you like about what you have tried already?
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Nov 6, 2022 at 13:05
  • Above all five designs look like logos but are not perfect. Look at the slogan. I placed the slogan in 5 different ways with "DTP". But where should I place it to become a logo and how to balance it with "DTP"?
    – Kawishka
    Commented Nov 7, 2022 at 5:00

2 Answers 2

5

This question is opinion based, and my answer is therefore opinion based. But I think it's worthwhile talking about balance here, since you did mentioned this in your comment, and balancing logos and text is all part of graphic design.

Here are some observations.

I am not fond of the first three examples, but that's down to personal taste. If you or your client likes them, then fine.

The bottom two logos look imbalanced with the text to me. The problem here I think is caused by the asymmetrical nature of the letter P, which makes the line of text look too long in the bottom left example.

The bottom left example uses normal text rather than italic which is somewhat jarring to the eye. The logo is italic, and to match its slope, I think italic text would look better.

The kerning of the logo letters needs improving. In the bottom left example, the D is too far from the T, and the T is too close to the P.

The example with the text above the logo is a bit odd to me, since it doesn't read right in English. It reads like "Shipping Solutions DTP" which is strange. Therefore I would reject that design.

I realize you are probably trying to make the length of text in the bottom two examples exactly the same as the width logo, but geometrically perfect size matching can end up looking imbalanced, especially if your logo has a letter which is asymmetrical like the large letter P.

It's often necessary to adjust positioning by eye, making an adjustment to make things look more balanced to the human eye, even though they may no longer be geometrically perfect. This is often known as "optical adjustment". Basically, you adjust it until it looks right - which of course is subjective. But your eye and brain is as good as any other, and most humans perceive things in similar ways. Add to that the fact you have already noticed that, and you already have the feeling that something is not quite right.

Anyway, here's an example/suggestion on how I would go about fixing it. Notice I say "I" because other people might have other solutions that are equally valid. This is where it gets quite subjective.

  1. Use italic text to match the text of the logo

  2. Adjust the kerning of the logo.

  3. Reduce the point size of the line of text to make its length shorter, to compensate for the asymmetrical letter P at the end of the logo

  4. Draw some guide lines to help you with the positioning.

  5. Rather than have the text align with the extreme edge of the curve of the letter P, bring this in a little to compensate for that imbalance.

Something like this perhaps

enter image description here

3
  • 1
    Nice answer. Another option, depending on how important the "slogan" is, is using the same method with two lines. The extensions of the two words are different, so some experimentation needed to be done.
    – Rafael
    Commented Nov 7, 2022 at 17:38
  • Thank you for your instructions.
    – Kawishka
    Commented Nov 8, 2022 at 13:32
  • @Kawishka You're welcome, but these aren't really instructions, just suggestions
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Nov 8, 2022 at 15:35
3

This is all really just based on opinion and one's personal aesthetic acumen. There are really no "rules" one follows.

Just like exploring letter shapes to create some symbolism, one explores positions, size, etc for any additional brand content. There is honestly no "one size fits all" when it comes to brand design.

Basically, this question is similar to asking "What shapes should be used to make a logo?" -- there are no predetermined forms one need adhere to. It's all up to your creativity.

What you have is not a horrible mark. But, to be perfectly honest, the "D" bothers me. It could be kerned better. (Actually the kerning is all over the place and different in every image you posted.) The large visual space the D creates next to the T is a magnet for the eye in my opinion. And the arrow, while a decent concept for placement, could be more dynamic/interesting. These aspect bother me before even noticing the "tag line" - but again, that's all purely my opinion.

One also has to think...

Will DTP ever appear without "shipping solutions"? If not, then shipping solutions is actually part of the mark and needs as much design attention.

A helpful tip I got in school from an instructor... I'm paraphrasing...

"If you always use uppercase type for logos, you'll often struggle to create something visually interesting. Uppercase text is nothing more than a horizontal rectangle. A series of horizontal rectangles isn't very intriguing."

This may be why you are struggling - searching for a way to make a bunch of rectangles seem more interesting than they really are.

4
  • 1
    It's funny, but I always associate bold upper-case logotypes with the construction industry, because I worked in construction for a brief period. Builders seem to think in terms of bricks, uninteresting as that may seem to the rest of the human race. LOL
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Nov 7, 2022 at 12:59
  • Some industries do seem to think everything needs to be uppercase... no matter how much you try and explain. :)
    – Scott
    Commented Nov 7, 2022 at 13:02
  • Or angular/geometric/brutalist designs for those associated with stereotypical male industries, but curvy/ornate for stereotypical female or artistic industries . . . humans can be so very predictable and boring at times.
    – Billy Kerr
    Commented Nov 7, 2022 at 13:10
  • Did you mean CAPITAL TEXT = A RECTANGLE? Does adding lowercase text in the logo, help humans read faster and look better in most times?
    – Kawishka
    Commented Nov 8, 2022 at 14:01

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.