Print Design: Simple logo design in Illustrator

We’re going to develop a very simple logo design using Illustrator and creating a proof for sending in Photoshop. First, we develop a name and a concept. For this tutorial, we’re going to select the name “Team Force.” After sitting down and sketching, which is always a must for logo design, we have decided on a concept. In this case, we want to use polygons. Using the polygon shape tool in Illustrator, we create one polygon that is even on all sides. To do this, make sure you draw the shape while pressing the shift key. We want to colorize this design using radial gradients. I picked a dark to light red.

Now, we need space to place the name. We want to create a polygon that connects to a rectangle. So we copy the polygon and then draw a rectangle that is exactly the same height as the polygon.

Now to connect the two and make the radial gradient smooth and work perfect, you have to open up the Pathfinder window from the window menu at the top of the application. By selecting both the rectangle and the polygon, you click on the “Add to shape area.” This joins the two shapes, and makes the radial gradient spread throughout the design.

We decided to change the color of the top polygon just for aesthetic reasons to a black-gray radial gradient, which gives it a different feel. Now we come to adding the text and name for the logo in the rectangle to the right. In this case, we have selected Bank Gothic font. In this case, we have tracked out the type to 100 and made the two words different colors. Instead of using a space in between the two words, by coloring them separately, it creates a division between the two.

With the logo finished in Illustrator, we select it all, group it and copy it for placing into Photoshop. We open a new document in Photoshop and create a radial gradient from a light gray to white in the center. This gives the logo a Web 2.0 feel and prepares it for proofing for the particular client. Now you paste the file you copied in Illustrator. It will come over as a Vector Smart Object, which will allow you to resize the image without pixelating it. Once the image is centered in the middle of the document, you can save to a particular setting, and send away.

Tags: design, logo design, Print, teamforce

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