In art, negative space is the background space (or white space) around and between the subject of an image. For example, in a picture of a black vase against a white wall, the vase is the positive space, and the white wall is the negative space. In design, negative space can be used to create hidden meaning logos and illustrations. In today's post, we feature a series of … [Read more...]
Free And Cheaper Options To Photoshop, Illustrator, And Other Adobe Creative Software
Freelance illustrator, artist, and author Michael Sexton has compiled a list of free and cheaper (single purchase) alternatives to Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Animate, Lightroom, Dreamweaver, After Effects, and Audition. Michael created the list after Adobe's recent price hike of its photography plan from $9.99 to $19.99. After an outcry from creatives, the price … [Read more...]
What Is The Golden Ratio, And How To Use It In Graphic Design
The Golden Ratio, also known as the Golden Section or Divine Proportion, is a mathematical ratio of 1:1.618 based on the Fibonacci sequence. It can be found in nature (flower petals, seeds, shells), in food (artichokes, broccoli, pineapple), and in the human anatomy. The Golden Ratio can also be found in art (Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, Vitruvian Man) and architecture … [Read more...]
3 Designer Friends Created An Alphabet Series Using Logos They’ve Designed Over The Years
Three graphic designers, colleagues, and friends, Alex Tass, Dalius Stuoka, and Deividas Bielskis decided to put together an A-Z alphabet series made from logo symbols, lettermarks, and monograms they've created over the years. All three designers have been in the industry for over 10 years, and have worked with a variety of clients, brands, and agencies. For this project, … [Read more...]
31 Beautiful Gradient Logos For Design Inspiration
When Apple launched iOS 7 in 2014, it not only changed the face of UI design, but also branding, graphic and logo design. Skeuomorphic interfaces and glossy app icons were out. Flat design, vibrant colors and gradients were in. In 2016, when Instagram came up with a bright new look and multicolored logo, a vast majority of its users hated the vivid gradients and demanded the … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Negative Space Logos That Visualize The Name Of The Company
Lithuania-based graphic designer Leo has come up with a series of clever logos that combine the name or initials of the company into one unique symbol using negative space. The logo in each case visually represents the name of the company. For example, the logo for Secret Chat is a pair of lips with a padlock in the negative space between the lips. The logo for Wine Rocket … [Read more...]
What Logos Of Famous Painters Would Look Like
Brazilian art director Milton Omena has come up with an interesting project that imagines what logos of famous painters from Renaissance, Impressionist, and Modern Art periods would look like. He studied the painting styles and personalities of legendary artists like Leonardo Da Vinci, Vincent Van Gogh, Pablo Picasso, and created a unique symbol for each one of them. Milton, … [Read more...]
Designer Uses Beautiful Gradients And Abstract Shapes To Describe Meanings Of Words
UK-based graphic designer Evgeniya Righini-Brand has come up with a fascinating project titled “Gradient Studies” in which she uses vibrant gradients and abstract shapes to visually describe the meanings of various words. For example, the visual for the word "flow" is an abstract liquid shape with multiple gradient meshes in blue and white. The visual for the word "energy" is a … [Read more...]
Adobe ‘Good Bones’ Lets You Change Vector Shapes Easily By Adding A Skeleton Structure
When you create artwork in Adobe Illustrator, the underlying geometry of the vector graphics can be quite complex. If you need to change the appearance of your vector figure, you'll need to edit each anchor point individually, which can be quite a task. For example, if you want to open the mouth of a vector dinosaur that you've created, you'll need to tweak each anchor point … [Read more...]
Short, Useful Animations To Help You Create Icons Easily In Adobe Illustrator
Melbourne-based designer and entrepreneur Marc Edwards has come up with a series of speedrun videos that show you simple techniques to create vector icons in Adobe Illustrator. Each video lasts only a few seconds and takes you through an optimal (and sometimes surprising) method to create common UI icons like bluetooth, headphones, inbox, settings, hourglass, lightning … [Read more...]
Adobe Fontphoria Can Capture Text In Images And Convert Them To Fonts
How many times have you wanted to know the name of a font used in a particular design or artwork? In some cases, the letters have been hand-drawn and the font doesn't actually exist. But imagine if there was a technology that could scan the text in an image and create an entire font out of it. Well, Adobe is working on a brilliant new tool called Fontphoria – a glyph … [Read more...]
10 Great Fonts You Should Use, And 9 Awful Fonts You Should Avoid
"Typography is an art. Good typography is art." - Paul Rand. Font and typography choices can make or break your design. But with so many fonts to choose from nowadays, which ones should you use, and which ones should you avoid? Tom Cargill from Satori Graphics has come up with an excellent video that features ten prominent fonts used by professional designers, along with … [Read more...]
When You’re President Of The United States, But Also A Graphic Designer
Every designer has a list of design software that they prefer, and a list of software that they absolutely detest, but are compelled to use sometimes. Based on common likes and dislikes for popular design software, Gombo Digital has come up with an epic video meme that shows what President Obama's preferences would be, if he were a graphic/web/UI designer. Which programs and … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Logos By Combining Two Different Things Into One
Indonesian designer Rendy Cemix has come up with an interesting project in which he combines the shapes of two completely different objects into one unique logo. The logo in each case is a visual representation of the brand name. For example, the logo for Mountain-Fox is an aesthetically designed symbol of a fox with ears that look like snow-capped peaks. The logo for … [Read more...]
Designers, You’ll Love These $5 Keychains Of Popular Graphic Design Softwares And Memes
Singapore-based graphic artist Yu Xin has come up with a cool series of $5 keychains for graphic designers, based on popular Adobe programs and their interfaces. If you've ever worked with a demanding client, you'll relate to the meme-based Photoshop and Illustrator keychains that feature PS and AI file icons with funny filenames. The idea came to Xin when she was working on … [Read more...]
27 Clever Ambigram Logos That Look The Same When Viewed Upside Down
An ambigram is a typographical design or symbol consisting of text modified in such a way that it can be read in different orientations - inverted, rotated, mirror-image, etc. For example, the logo of Sun Microsystems (no. 4 below) is a brilliantly-designed ambigram that reads 'SUN' from all directions. Another famous example is the New Man logo (no. 6 below), designed by … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Logos By Combining Two Or More Different Shapes Into One
Kochi-based designer Shibu PG has come up with a series of interesting logos in which he combines the shapes of two or more different objects and letters into one unique logo. The logo in each case is a visual representation of the brand name. For example, the logo for Energy Australia is a combination of the shape of a kangaroo and the energy symbol ⚡️. The logo for … [Read more...]
Clever Logos Of Letters A To Z Based On Common Words That Start With Them
UK-based graphic designers Liam + Jord undertook a 36-day typography challenge to create logos for every letter of the alphabet based on common words that start with them. For example, the letter 'b' has been designed to look like a book, the letter ‘f’ looks like a flag, 'w' looks like a whip, and so on. The objective was to use the shapes of the letters to visually … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Logos That Visualize The Name And Business Of The Company
Kuwait-based graphic designer Rami Hoballah has come up with a series of minimalist logos that combine the name and the product (or service) of the company into one unique symbol. The logo in each case visually represents the brand name and the nature of its business. For example, the logo for Groom Salon is a pair of scissors made with the two o's in the word 'Groom'. The … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Logos That Visually Represent The Name And Business Of The Company
Lithuania-based graphic designer Leo has come up with a series of minimalist logos called "Smart Logos" that combine the name and the product (or service) of the company into one unique symbol. The logo in each case visually represents the brand name and the nature of its business. For example, the logo for Atomic Burger is a burger on top of a mushroom cloud. The logo for … [Read more...]
Designer Offers To Create Free Logos For Anyone, Ends Up Creating 50 Logos In 32 Hours Non-Stop
Russian graphic designer Di Buenio undertook a personal logo design challenge titled Logotyposhnaya, in which, he offered to create a free logo for any existing company or brand in 30 minutes. He published a post on his Facebook page and received over 70 applications in the first two hours itself. At the end of the challenge, Buenio had created 50 logos, working non-stop for … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Alphabetical Logos Based On Animal Names And Shapes
Lebanese graphic designer Rami Hoballah, has come up with an amusing typography project titled 'Animals Alphabet' that showcases letters of the alphabet in the shape of animals. Each letter corresponds to the name of the animal. For example, 'a' looks like the head of an ant, 'b' looks like a bee, 'c' looks like a crab, and so on. Rami used Adobe Illustrator to create these … [Read more...]
Designer Shares Side-By-Side Comparisons Of His Sketches And Final Vector Illustrations
Ukrainian web designer Andrew Kliatskyi has come up with an interesting project in which he shares side-by-side comparisons of his rough sketches and final vector illustrations. Titled "From Sketch to Result", the aim of the project is to show the path between an idea and the final result. After completing his pencil sketches, Andrew uses Adobe Illustrator to create the … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Brand Logos By Combining Two Different Objects Into One
Kochi-based designer Shibu PG has come up with an interesting project in which he combines icons of two different objects into one unique logo based on the brand name. The logo in each case is a visual representation of the brand name. For example, the logo for Bird Vision is an aesthetically designed symbol of a bird and an eye. The logo for Owl Rider is a clever … [Read more...]
6 Adobe Illustrator Tricks To Speed Up Your Design Workflow
Did you know that you can paste an object in the same position across multiple art boards in Adobe Illustrator using Ctrl/Cmd + Alt + Shift + V. This is a great tip for when you're designing multiple page documents such as brochures or magazines. Tom Cargill from Satori Graphics has come up with a handy video that features six Illustrator tricks that will help speed up your … [Read more...]
‘Pen Tool King’ Patrick Seymour Shares The Creative Process Behind His Amazing Line Art
Patrick Seymour is a Canadian illustrator and art director known for the beautiful, rhythmic line art he creates using just the pen and blend tools in Adobe Illustrator. His most famous work is probably the lion illustration on the Adobe Illustrator CC 2014 splash screen. Interestingly, Patrick only started illustrating because the ad agency he worked for couldn’t afford to … [Read more...]
Vibrant, Dream-Like Illustrations Made With Gradients And Blend Modes
Russian designer Ilya Shapko has come up with a series of vibrant, neon-style artworks using gradients, blend modes, and transparency in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. The project, titled 'Fantasy Light', showcases colorful illustrated shapes intricately placed over each other to form abstract animals and objects against dark backgrounds. Shapko's inspiration for this … [Read more...]
Designers Share Valuable Advice They Would Give To Their Younger Selves If They Could Go Back In Time
If you could go back in time and give advice about the graphic design profession to your younger self, what would it be? Would you suggest building a diverse portfolio early on, or networking more effectively? What about the importance of continual learning and staying abreast of evolving design trends? Understanding the value of constructive criticism and resilience in … [Read more...]
51 Creative Logos That Use Negative Space Brilliantly
In art and design, negative space is the background space around and between the subject of an image. For example, in a picture of a palm tree against the sky, the shape of the tree is the positive space. The sky and the space between the branches and leaves is the negative space. Negative space can be used creatively to form compelling visuals that have dual or hidden … [Read more...]
29 Creative Logo Designs That Use Numbers
Over the past few weeks, we've showcased some brilliant logos that use minimalism, monograms, single-letters, and more. Today's post features 29 clever logos that use numbers and digits in their design. Observe the typography and the use of number shapes to create visual meanings. … [Read more...]
Free Minimal Line Icons For UI, Web And Mobile Design
Here's a handy set of 124 vector line icons by Madrid-based designer Situ Herrera. They're minimal, flat and basic, in keeping with current design trends. You can use them for a variety of UI, web, and mobile design projects. The zip file includes AI, EPS, and PSD files, so you can tweak them, change colors, and more. … [Read more...]
Designer Challenges Herself To Create A Logo In 60 Minutes, Every Day For 60 Days
Karoline Tynes is a freelance graphic designer and economics student based in Oslo, Norway. To develop and promote herself as a designer, she undertook a design challenge in which she had to create a new logo every day for 60 days. The rule was to use a maximum of 60 minutes on each logo, which is why ideation was important. She used Copic markers for sketching, followed by … [Read more...]
Designer Creates Clever Typographic Logos Of Common Words We Use Every Day
Morocco-based brand designer Bachir Bachchar has come up with an interesting project titled "66 Smart Words" that showcases typographic logos of common words we use every day. The impressive bit is that the letters of each word have been designed in a way that they form a visual image associated with the meaning of the words themselves (a.k.a. calligrams). For example, the … [Read more...]
Cool, Disney-Style Animations Of Logos Of Popular Social Networks
The students at Motion Design School in Kharkov (Ukraine) have come up with a series of gorgeous animations of logos of popular social networks, messaging platforms, and portfolio sites. The list includes Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Google, Pinterest, Snapchat, Skype, Reddit, Tumblr, Flickr, Behance, Dribbble, Slack, and Telegram. The challenge was to create the … [Read more...]
45 Brilliant Alphabet Logos With Hidden Meanings
Last week, we featured 50 monogram logos that merged two or more alphabets to form one unique symbol. In today's post, we focus on logos that use just one alphabet and typographical creativity to form a distinctive brand identity. Single-letter logos are trickier to execute than monogram logos because you just have one letter to play with. But the designers who crafted these … [Read more...]