A Complete Beginner’s Guide for all Budding Logo Professionals: The History and Beyond

With the advent of high technology and eCommerce business growth- logos have taken a greater place as marketing strategies. The logo is one of the powerful assets for any business, whether you are running a small business or managing various businesses. Apparently, many brands are marked and identified by their logo. Logos are powerful icons for any business which are easily detectable by their customers.

                                                            Image Credit: pexels.com

If you want to be a part of logo design services- you should know where did the logo come from and how has it evolved over a long period?   

Let’s Talk About the Origin:

This is one of the controversial facts to say! But, according to research, it can be stated that the first logo was used by the ancient Egyptians. 

The people of ancient Egyptians used hieroglyphics to mark their possessions during medieval times when graphic imaginations such as arms, coats were used to differentiate between the realms and nobilities. 

Know Some More Shocking Facts on the Logo:

During 70,000 BC and 7000 BC, peoples from the different medieval eras from all over the world started the main foundation of the graphic imagery by painting animals in caves. 

In 8000 BC, people who belonged to various corners like Egypt, Persia, Syria, and Sumer formed pottery that became a sign of decent and aesthetic culture, and it also symbolized religious formation.  

If you follow the time of ancient history- you will see the stretches of most of the people representing their culture through different images. Not only did the ancient Egyptians create and develop hieroglyphics, but they also invented a formal writing system through various kinds of particular signs, images, and colors. 

There is no other way to say that this was the beginning of today’s modern logo and Egyptians were professionals enough to do so because of their unique symbolic features. 

Now, How did it Come Along in Europe?:

• In the medieval period in Europe, there were two different visual languages- heraldic crests and symbolic signage.     
• Heraldry is a set of rules assigning design fundamentals and societal meaning status.
• A certain set of colors and shapes would represent a certain royal family. This is a kind of status symbol of their kingdom or monarchy.
• The real reason will amaze you- during the long war-, these various symbols distinguish between two kingdoms.  

That’s how “logo” became a part of history. 

How does a Logo Become an Essential Part of Industrialization?:

• When talking about industrial revolution- the first thing pops out in our mind is engines, huge factors all over the world and cotton mills. But this was not the only type of technology that developed in the early nineteenth century.
• During the time of the 18 th century- the printing press opened a great chance to produce printed materials. The color- printing technique became so popular by then, and it is called chromolithography. 
• In 1840- color printing first came to the US and got a huge response among US people. The colorful printed labels, advertisements, and posters became the common scenario.      
• The popular logo maker, Mr. Frank Mason Robinson, designed the Coca-Cola logo in 1885. From this time, the modern era has begun. 
• Commercial logos gained huge popularity during the time 1910 to 1913. 
• Logo design reached another level when Pierre de Coubertin designed the first Olympic flag in 1914, England.

Let’s Move on to the Fundamentals of Logo Designing Methods:

When it comes to logo printing method and designing- there are some fundamentals terms you should be aware of.

Before you proceed with your logo designing classes- you should know some basic facts on logo printing: 

So, before your class starts off with the technical part of printing on specific materials- here are some quick wordlist and concepts to help you understand the significance of being a logo designer.   

What are CMYK and RGB?:

These are two distinct color modes used for logo and normal printing.

The color names are mentioned in their abbreviation that is Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Key. To more traditionally state that the colors are: Red, Green, and Blue.

But, what is key? 

Particularly, the key is black- when you mix red, green, and blue- you will get the color black.  

With CMYK, unique types are created by combining cyan, magenta, and yellow in different proportions. 

This logo color mode was industrialized to use physical liquid ink, and if you print a test page from an old comic book, you’ll see distinct dots in these three colors and the innovative colors they create when these colors overlap.

What are Raster and Vector Images?

This is the next thing to understand by the beginner. There are some differences between raster and vector images because, in logo designs, there are various image files used. The experts from logo design services recommend vector images for logo printing.

Raster images are made up of pixels, and vector images are made up of geometric shapes. When a raster image is built, the number of the containing pixels is fixed. You can make it smaller or bigger according to your need. 

But the image gets blurry as those pixels get stretched. On the other hand, vector images don’t change their resolution- it remains the same when you make them smaller or bigger. So, it is more suitable for logo designing.   

Resolution Matters:

Resolution is now a common word to us as we live in the smartphone era! We know the meaning of 720P and 1080P- these are all the set of resolutions that creates clarity on the image. 

The resolution is the number of pixels displaying per every inch of the screen- it may take TV, monitor, smartphone. This is nothing but the number of pixels within one inch of your screen.

The more pixels on the screen- the sharper your image will be. While speaking of pixels- you should know about DPI. DPI stands for Dots Per Inch, and PPI is pixels per inch. 

These are the unit measurements of raster resolution. In most cases- the larger the screen you are printing on- the higher the resolution should be. So, you need to know DPI and PPI concepts.    

Soft Cotton Logo Printing:

Nowadays- T-shirt has become popular culture, and many artists are making T-shirt printing, and this has become a popular way to promote brands by printing logos on T-shirts. 

Apart from T-shirts- there are other options to wear and do the swag like long sleeves t-shirts, gloves, stockings, etc.      

Process of Logo Printing:  

There are three main ways to proceed with logo printing on soft cotton and fabric:

Screen Printing:

This is the standard process to print on a cotton T-shirt.

The printer will make original shades for your T-shirt design, and it will allow you to print in the majority. 

This is the best idea if you have bulk orders to print. It is also good for printing bright colors.

Vinyl Graphics:

This is popular among all. Vinyl graphics are developed through the various printing processes, and it is a result-driven method to create a more creative look and texture from screen printing. 

If you believe in minimalism- then this process will give you the best result by simple graphic printing. 

Direct Printing: 

In this method- the spray inks spread on the garments like computer inkjet printer printing on the paper. This method sprays the ink onto the clothing—like inkjet printing on paper, but now it is on the fabric. This is the best for small-quantity orders with high amounts of detailing on the graphics. The whole process and the end result are really fascinating.  

The chosen process depends on what kind of detailed work and printing you want. If you want to print in bulk, then direct printing is a good option for you.     

Printing on Mugs and Other Ceramics Materials:

A logo is all about a promotional weapon for every small to the big brand- agencies keep promoting their products through printing in cups, coffee mugs, and other ceramic surfaces. 

After T-shirt- it is coffee mugs which have gained the same popularity as T-shirts. Everybody loves to use printed logo-designed coffee mugs. Some are fascinated with this. This is a really simple and inexpensive technique of branding.    

Why Logo Design Services Gain the Popularity of Swag?:

There are various reasons behind logo designing and printing among commercial and industrial sectors.

• This is the popular visual representation of brands. As human brains always capture the visual factor first- the logo remains the brand name followed by the other factors. 
• A good and unique-looking logo attracts more attention than a low-key image. So, when you are making the design for the logo- you should keep many factors in your mind, including brand services, brand value, colors, name, and client’s requirement. 
• A logo holds the significance of trust and authenticity. When you choose a brand- you indeed will see the company’s logo and other details. 
• Logo creates a great impact on consumers' minds, and whenever they think of their favorite brands- the logo image will flash on their minds. 

 Final Thoughts:

You may wonder about the logo designer profession and future- if you are really serious and join a logo design company in Kolkata- you should first learn and apply the processing of logo printing and making.