Logo design is one of the most common tasks for graphic designers, so this will be the first in our chain of projects. In this chapter, we will create a logo for a tech company. We will start with designing the logo. Then, in the following chapters, we will look at icon design and illustrations and banner image design, and then combine all these into a website design. During this project, you will learn about how to use paths, color, and text effectively in Inkscape to create a fresh logo!
In this chapter, we are going to cover these main topics:
You can download the supporting files for this chapter from GitHub at https://github.com/PacktPublishing/Inkscape-by-Example/tree/main/Chapter02
As logo design is an important job for anyone working in the creative field, it is only natural to expect Inkscape to be up to the task as well. But what are the criteria of software that you can use to create awesome logos? Let me answer that question from another angle: what makes a good logo?
First of all, a good logo has to be versatile. Technically, this means it has to be vector-based. Vector files are scalable, editable, and portable. They allow us to transform the final logo into any color or size to use it on (almost) any surface. A vector file can be exported into the most common standard image file formats. (You will learn more about formats at the end of this chapter and even more in Chapter 7, Combine Inkscape and Other (Free) Programs in the Design Workflow)
Second, a good logo is simple. Most people think it takes no effort to create a simple design. But to create a simple but creative logo, you need to work a lot. Simple means easy to remember and redraw with a few elements, but this simplicity must be achieved first.
And finally, a good logo needs to be creative! A creative logo stands out; it is a unique visual image. A creative logo is built on a lot of thinking, sketching, and trial and error.
Being a vector graphical program, Inkscape has all the tools you can use to create a versatile logo. It can export to different formats, as well as take full advantage of vector shape and color editing.
Apart from the usage of Inkscape, in the following paragraphs, I will also share my workflow to design clever logos.
You should start designing a logo with Inkscape the same way you would start using any other graphical program. And all the designers agree that the process does not start with opening that program itself! You have some work to do before drawing anything.
We usually start every design process with the same three steps: gather information, think, and sketch.
The very first step is learning more about what you have to design. In this case, we have it easy since I will provide the information needed.
In this chapter, our task will be to create a logo for a very successful – yet fictional – company called CloudUsers. They are a small company offering cloud-based data solutions to its clients. They offer services such as hosting, data recovery, migration, virtual machines, database services, and so on. Their main values are safety, stability, and speed; this is what you have to emphasize in the visuals.
Reading the brief covers only part of the story – you usually need to do research and learn more about the company, the market, and the competitors. In this case, if you did a bit of research, and looked at the logos of other companies with similar profiles, you would see that a simplified cloud is a common symbol for cloud-based companies. Although the servers are not literally in the clouds, this is an easily recognizable image.
As the common cumulus cloud became an emblem for cloud computing and related services, we should include it in our logo design.
But what else is needed? What would make this logo blend into the tech field, yet stand out from the crowd? This is where the initial sketches come in.
Sketching with a pencil on paper helps you decide what you need to draw. It is the method of grabbing the ideas swirling in your head and putting them down on the paper in front of you. In my opinion, as a designer, sketches are for getting your ideas straight, and they do not need to be final by any means.
A cloud with rain or the Sun is a suitable icon for a weather app, but an IT company needs to have tech elements too. And as the company name suggests, this logo needs to have users or people in it:
Tips about sketching
During the sketching period, I usually write out the name of the company several times, to look for typographical opportunities to add an extra layer of meaning through the shape of the letters. I also draw elements from the name and the profession of the company. Remember: sketching is not an art form. It is about drawing a ton of bad drawings and looking for visual solutions to your design problem!
Figure 2.1 – A few of my initial sketches for the CloudUsers logo
Now that the initial sketches are done, it is time to open Inkscape.
As I mentioned previously, sketches are never meant to be finished designs for me. This means I am glancing at my sketches most of the time while working in Inkscape, but I am not using them strictly as a base to trace over.
Other designers use their sketches differently and like to work out their ideas fully on paper first, and later follow these sketches precisely in the digital design app they use. It is all a matter of preference. But even if you only use your sketches as rough references, it is a good idea to import them into Inkscape. That way, it will be easier to find the final form that matches your ideas.
Scan your sketches or take a picture of them when you plan not to follow them precisely. Since this project was created as a step-by-step tutorial, you will learn by following my logo design in Inkscape, so you do not need to import sketches at this point. If you want to use my sketches, you can download them from here: https://istvanszep.com/inkscapeexample/logo-sketches.jpg.
Click on File | Import or press Ctrl + I and import the picture into Inkscape. Because the bitmap image will not be used in the final form of the design (that is, it will be a vector logo, not a photomanipulation), choose the Link option under Image Import Type from the import popup window.
Linking your image instead of embedding it will keep your file size from bloating performance issues. Again, since you do not want to include the photo in the final design, high image quality is not a must. So, just leave the other import settings as-is:
Figure 2.2 – Linking your sketches while importing them
This concludes the very first steps of the logo design process. With or without Inkscape, you always need to work out what you need to design. Before starting up the program, always think and sketch! Then, import your sketch into Inkscape and get ready to take the next step!
Shape, color, and text are the absolute keys to logo design. In this section, you will learn a bit about the theory behind them, but we will focus on how to implement them in Inkscape! First, you will build the shape of your logo, then apply colors to your design. Finally, you will add text to finish the logo! Apart from these key steps, you will also learn a very efficient method for decision-making in Inkscape!
Now that we have some ideas in the form of sketches, it is time to turn them into proper vector shapes. The cleaner the shapes of a logo, the better it will be. This creates simplicity and helps people understand the image. Clean shapes are also based on geometry. The simplest way to achieve pleasing geometrical proportions is to recognize the basic building block of your logo and use that in Inkscape to design it.
I picked the most creative from the sketches – the one built up from simple user icons while still resembling a cloud. Now, we have to recreate the winning sketch in Inkscape.
Take a look at our sketch and deconstruct it. It was purposefully built up from the basic shape of those well-known user icons we see everywhere. That user shape can be rebuilt using simple rounded rectangles and circles. You will have to create this shape first:
Figure 2.3 – The winning sketch and the basic shape of the logo design
Tip
When editing the body shape, only move the two bottom nodes up or down with the Path editor tool. Do not use the Transform tool, as this will stretch it and change the proportion of the whole shape. This is an important tip to remember when you create a design based on different variations of the same object.
Figure 2.4 – Proportions of the two elements in the user shape
Now, create the second user shape. According to our sketch, this has to be shorter than the other so that it can build up the cloud shape illusion. Plus, it will look like a sitting figure compared to the taller one:
Tip
Remember, using the same measurements and shapes again and again will create harmony in all your logo designs. Plus, it is very effective, since you only have to figure out the rules and distances once in each project; you don’t have to measure and create them from scratch over and over every time you add a new shape to it!
Figure 2.5 – The two users next to each other at this stage
Now that the user part of our logo is laid down, it’s time to focus on the cloud side. As I mentioned previously, your logo design is based around the same half-rounded rectangle shapes. You only need three more shapes to finish this simple logo design:
Figure 2.6 – The cloud part of the logo is overlapping; the users stand separate
Figure 2.7 – All the parts are ready, but the cloud illusion is not there yet
The piece that is breaking the illusion of the cloud is the user shape on the right edge. It has a straight and edgy bottom-right corner, not a rounded one like the cloud has on the left-hand side. By applying a curve here, you will fix the cloud illusion! Since the cloud curve on the left is the same shape as all the other ones in your logo, you can use that to shape your curve perfectly.
Selecting the original and the duplicated shapes aligns their bottom edges and their right-hand sides via the Align and Distribute dialog! The reason you had to do this was to use this shape as a blueprint to shape that straight edge into a perfect curve.
Figure 2.8 – Curving the corner of this shape in Outline Overlay display mode
Tip
To measure and build your shapes here, I suggest using the Outline view, to see where the edges of your shapes are overlapping. Even better, Inkscape 1.0 introduced the Outline Overlay, which allows you to see not just the outlines but the fill colors of your vector shapes, making them easier to identify! Figure 2.8 shows the Outline overlay in work!
Figure 2.9 – The finished shape of the CloudUsers logo
Although this chapter is a straightforward project for recreating one particular logo design for practice, it is worth mentioning at this point that there is another way Inkscape can serve you during the logo design process. The program lets you explore and create, giving you a safe space to develop your ideas further! It is a clean transition from experimenting with ideas on paper to experimenting with a more flexible digital canvas.
Any time you hit a decision point in your design work, where you think about changing the color, using a different font, changing a shape, and so on, instead of applying the changes straight on, create a duplication first!
We duplicate for two reasons: creativity and effectiveness. Stop wasting time imagining how the logo would look with another color! Duplicate it and test the two versions side by side in the same file! Then, move on to the version that works better for the project and keep working on that.
But keep the previous version as well – this way, if a change does not work out, you can easily find any previous versions and start branching out from that again. This is an important part of my logo design workflow.
I use duplication to create a whole tree of logos branching out into different versions of the same logo. This is a rule you should try to keep in your design process, and never apply hard changes to the same design.
If you need a new version, just select all the elements of your current logo, and hit Ctrl + D to duplicate it. Then, holding the Ctrl key, move the duplicated version forward horizontally or vertically. This way, you will create an easily accessible tree of different versions. Here is a real-life example of how my average Inkscape logo design file looks while testing different logo ideas for one of my clients, AI media research.
The flexibility of the Inkscape interface allowed me to be flexible as well. You can experiment almost as freely as on paper – and sometimes even more. You can compare all the versions in a moment:
Figure 2.10 – This is how my average Inkscape logo design file looks while testing different logo ideas
As mentioned previously, whenever you need to make a decision. But more precisely, duplication is very useful, especially in the following cases:
Everyone with a bit of interest in design has heard about color theory and the psychology of colors in logo design. The basic rule of simplicity also applies here: keep your color palette relevant but limited. Try to express the mood of your logo with as few colors as possible. Limiting the number of colors is also crucial for the usage of your logo design.
The fewer the colors, the easier it is to recognize the logo, but it also makes it easier to replicate it on any surface.
Colors in logo design are your ultimate device to express emotions and create a bond with the viewer. That is why it is important to research color samples for your project and look for different color moods to use in your logo before choosing the final colors.
If you find a color that you like, copy the three RGB values or the hexadecimal code of it into Inkscape, like you would do using any graphical program. A hexadecimal code is usually a # followed by six digits. But in Inkscape, you will see eight digits. That is because Inkscape is using RGBA.
RGBA stands for the RGB colors plus the Alpha value, which is the transparency of the given color in hexadecimal code. This is more information that can be handled with six digits, hence why you need eight. You can find this code in the Fill and Stroke dialog window, and it is the easiest way to copy colors from one place to the other.
Whenever you find a hexadecimal color code of six digits, just copy it into its place in Inkscape; the program will automatically add FF to the end of it to show it is a non-transparent color with a maximum Alpha value.
In this case, the cloud reminds us of the color of the sky, so blue is a good first choice. Also, most tech companies prefer a blue logo, since it stands for calmness, trust, and knowledge. To break the blue up a bit, you can also add another similar color and apply a gradient.
I picked turquoise since it is fresh and optimistic, and I aim to lighten up the tech part of the cloud for the human side of the logo. It is also good to have another color to work with later on while developing the rest of the visual identity. Gradients are trendy (yet again) and even a subtle gradient created from two fairly similar colors gives you a slight 3D effect.
The cloud logo is built up from multiple shapes, which gives you two options to apply a gradient. You can either select all the objects and merge them into one by selecting Path | Union before applying the gradient, or simply select the objects and group them before creating your gradient.
If you choose to merge the shapes, it is wise to duplicate your logo first, to keep the version with the separated elements as well, so that you can come back to it if you need to change something later.
Select the group of merged objects and apply a diagonal gradient of blue (RGBA: #0088aaff) and turquoise (RGBA: #37c8abff). Position the gradient handles inside the borders of the logo. This way, you will create a clean gradient with both colors visible at the edge, as shown in the following figure:
Figure 2.11 – Applying the gradient to the cloud logo diagonally
With that, you have added the primary colors. Now, let’s move on to adding text to your logo. You will color the text as well, and you will learn about creating the different color variants later in this chapter.
Every company or organization has a distinctive name, so, naturally, every logo needs a version containing that name.
As a designer, you have three choices when working with text in logo design:
We will use the third method with our CloudUsers logo design. You will modify an existing font so that it matches the shape of the cloud emblem we created earlier.
Because it is a small and friendly company, with other small and friendly companies as their target group, we will use a fresh and simple font for our text. The font family I chose is Montserrat, a sans-serif type font with several variations, including a bold style that fits the image of the CloudUsers logo almost perfectly.
Your task is to modify the shape of the letters a bit to turn that almost perfect into a perfect fit:
Looking at the logo and the text in this state, you will notice that the letter C at the front is a bit off. Why? Do you remember the shape you created to build our cloud? That half-rounded rectangle is present in many letters in this clean and modern font.
This is yet another reason to use Montserrat as the typeface for this design: the letters U, D, and the curve of the letter R are all based on the same shape you based your logo on! But that letter C, although very nicely designed, could be forced to fit the other letters in the word. This is the letter you will modify, or, rather, recreate in a new form:
Figure 2.12 – This typeface fits the cloud image, but the C needs to be reshaped
To be able to modify the shape of the first letter, you need to turn the whole text into a path:
Tip
Typography is the art of creating and arranging text. There is a whole list of visual rules a typo graphist has to follow while designing letters and typefaces. Only break these rules if it’s necessary to your design and try to keep the visuals of the text consistent. Modifying one of the original letters is a good way to keep your design inside these set rules, while other actions (for example, distorting a whole word by skewing it) are not.
Figure 2.13 – Using a rectangle to cut a rotated letter D into a C
Figure 2.14 – Moving these nodes created a wider look for the letter C
The shape of your text is now much better, fitting the cloud shape on the left.
The only thing you need to do is apply the colors so that they match the cloud emblem. You used two colors as a diagonal gradient on the cloud emblem, and now you need to apply a color matching that. Instead of using the same gradient for the text, let’s apply another new color. But how do you decide on a color that is matching?
One of the easiest solutions is using the average color from the gradient present in the logo.
Figure 2.15 – The finished logo design with text and colors
Tip
Using the Color picker tool to extract the average color from any area works great in Inkscape. The only thing to note is to be careful about what is in that color selection circle since Inkscape gathers all the color information, including opacity and alpha values!
The main form of the CloudUsers logo is completed with a friendly geometrical shape and custom text, all presented in a fresh color. But as you know, the logo design process does not stop here. After the initial creative part has been completed, you need to work more to make your logo ready to use!
Thinking forward is the key when finalizing the logo you just designed. Every logo will be used on different surfaces and platforms, and as a designer, it is your task to prepare for that.
You should always keep an editable version of your logo design with all the graphical elements still separated. This ensures that if a change or rework is needed, you can fix things easily and you don’t have to recreate anything that is lost.
Now, this being said, every other variation – the ones you hand over to the client – should be as simple as possible! Do not give out a finished logo as a group of objects; instead, merge all the shapes that have the same color, or all the objects that are possible to be merged.
Turn the text into a path to avoid lost fonts, and do the same with strokes as well. This way, you lower the chance of possible errors, and everything will stay in the same position and proportion as intended while designed. The CloudUsers design in particular does not have strokes, and the text is already a path since you modified the font; these are just general guidelines for logo design in a vector.
The following list will show you the most used variations and how to create them. You can see these versions in the same order in Figure 2.16 going from left to right:
You can also create a white and a black version from this layout:
Figure 2.16 – All the different logo variations you should prepare
So far, we have looked into the different logo versions you need to create. These are very useful to know, but they are only visually different from each other. Now, you have to combine them with the appropriate file formats to export to.
Most of the logo variations should be exported in all of the following formats to be used smoothly. Of course, there are some exceptions, but it all comes down to one thing: usage. Generally, vector files are good for printing, while a small bitmap image is all you need on a website. These are the go-to formats when exporting the final logo design from Inkscape.
SVG stands for Simple Vector Graphics, and this is the most familiar to any Inkscape user as this is the native format of the program. But as a W3C standard format, SVG is also the best vector format used on the web! It is small and scalable, so it’s perfect for website headers and icons.
Inkscape can save to different types of SVG formats! While the Inkscape SVG has all the descriptions and metadata the program is using, when saving for web usage, it is better to choose plain SVG or optimized SVG. This will make the file size even smaller and the SVG graphics will be ready to be animated or scaled on the web.
Adobe Illustrator can also open SVG files created in Inkscape, so this is a good format to send to the client when they want to edit the file but do not use Inkscape.
Encapsulated Postscript files or EPS are versatile and considered the standard format for printing vector graphics. Whenever your logo is screen printed on a T-shirt or used in a brochure, EPS is a good file format to choose.
As the true Portable Document Format, PDF can be viewed on any platform, can be used in printing, and is harder to edit. In my interpretation, this means it is harder to create any mistakes after you have handed over the file to the customer.
PDF is also the best solution if you need to export in CMYK color mode. You will learn more about this in Chapter 8, Pro Tips and Tricks for Inkscapers.
Why is PNG on this list? PNG is small, and as a bitmap, it can be used on the web, on Facebook, and on other platforms. It also has transparency, so it can be used on different backgrounds – that is, as a watermark on a photo. This is the reason why a PNG logo, although not as scalable and editable as vector formats, is a must to send to your clients as an easy-to-use solution.
In this project, you drew the shape of your logo by using geometric principles and kept things in order. Then, you colored the logo and added text to it before learning how to create all the different logo variations and formats you might need during your work.
What you have now is a versatile logo that is a great base for any follow-up design project. Don’t believe me? We’ll put this theory to the test in the next few chapters!