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When you are working on a logo design project:
1. First you will have taken a design brief
Read Why is a Design Brief so Important
2. Then done some research and started brainstorming
You can read a bit about doing some basic research in Logo Design Tutorial to Design a Charity Logo
See an example of brainstorming in one of the the previous Logo Design Tutorials
3. Sometimes a moodboard will help you find the right feel for a logo
You may find the odd project where you really struggle for ideas or to work out the right sort of “feel” for the logo. This is where moodboards can come in.
If you haven’t heard of moodboards before they are traditionally big boards (pieces of mountboard or card) which are filled with images, bits of type, perhaps colours and anything which you feel is in the direction of the type of design you are trying to achieve.
When I produce moodboards I generally get together any leaflets I have lying around, buy magazines which I feel fit with the type of market or niche I am designing for and rip out bits and pieces that I like and then paste them on to a big board. I might also include images, logos and type that I find online and print out. There is something about the act of getting away from the computer and really looking at other images that really helps to get you mind going again. Once the moodboard/s are complete you can then use them alongside your brainstorms to stimulate logo ideas. Perhaps you might really like the way a piece of typography works or a colour combination on some of the bits you have torn out.
If you are pushed for time (and I use this method too) you can always create digital moodboards or image collections. The simplest way is to simply collect together images you find on the web download them to a folder on your machine and then pull them all in to a program like iphoto so you can view them all at once (a bit like a moodboard). If you prefer you could alternatively drop the images into layout design software, or if you are using an iPhone or ipad use an app like the aptly named Moodboard.
Still stuck?
Try out some of these other creative exercises
See Also
Logo Design Tutorial 1
Logo Design Tutorial 2
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9 Comments
Thanks for the info, great advice for a novice like me:)
thank you, very helpful article. I wait for the next update
Thanks for the 3rd part to this tutorial, some really great views here on how to develop a logo from a brief to a final piece. Mood Boards were something i used at university when I was starting a new product I use something very similar now but using the internet and photoshop to put together a bundle of pictures that closely resemble what the brief is after.
Thanks!
Moodboards are really helpful when you’re suffering from a mind’s block..
It’s good to know that some stuff we learned at college was actually on the money! Moodboards and mind maps are a part of my every day life. They work, keep trying them!
Mood boards are a great idea to help the ideas flow. Unfortunately limited time-scales commercially can dictate the use of other methods, for me I find a good old mind map / spider gram the quickest easiest route to take.
If you would permit me a shameless plug, I have a post about how I created my own logo which might prove fruitful for some learning the process?
my logo process
Hi Tom
Thanks for your comment and shameless plug
Hi Tara,
As always – GREAT stuff you are sharing here on the blog!
Made me (re)discover a few great posts here on the blog.
Thanks
Thanks Marc