Week 7: Fume Buster and RJEA Logos

Craft:  For this week's assignment, we had to create our own logos based off titles that were given to us by our teacher.  We had to have two variations of a logo: one consisting of just text and another one with text and image incorporated into the design.  Adobe Illustrator was used, along with the Pen tool and the Type tool. Since these designs were our own interpretations, we weren't allowed to trace any images from the internet.  The Pen tool was only used to make shapes that would contribute to our own image.  For the text only logos, I didn't use the Pen tool at all, only to make an outline of the half circle for the Fume Buster.  I did use the Line Segment tool to produce straight lines in the RJEA logo.  The lines were created by holding the Shift button done and dragging the line across. The Type tool allowed me to type the words and/or letters contributing to each specific logo.  I then chose what font I wanted for each word/letter.  The color for each word/letter and background was chosen using the Fill button. I was able to change the intensity of the stroke using the Stroke button.  The shapes were created using the Rectangle and Ellipse tool.
Composition: The viewers are able to perceive the logos differently since two variations are used for each logo. For the Fume Buster logos, the focus is mainly on the letters.  While the fan is incorporated into one of the Fume Buster logos, the fan is equal with the letters.  It is proportional to the surrounding letters. By having the direction towards the letters, viewers are able to clearly see what they are reading.  Nothing is overpowering the letters.  On the other Fume Buster logo, the letters are black so they stand out more against the blue contrast.  The fan that's located on the left logo is blue and green so it also takes the attention away from the black letters and also creates a small contrast between the letters. In both of those logos, the background isn't the main focus. For the RJEA cougar paw logo, the red letters are what viewers see first since they are very bright and are placed in front of a dark background.  Immediately after, the viewers are able to see the words written underneath since they are part of the cougar paw.  By placing the letters inside the cougar paw, viewers are able to see them right away and associate the letters to the words.  Also, the letters are bigger in size compared to the words.  They fill up less space so they're easier to distinguish first.  The triangles are what viewers see last because even when they are located on top of the paw, they are a different color than the whole paw.  The colors connect the two parts of the symbol together while the triangles stand alone.  The other RJEA logo doesn't include any images but the letters and words balance the attention.  Alternating placement of the letters and words helped create unity within the rectangle.  The colors exaggerate this point. Also, the colors keep the eyes moving since the letters and words are diagonal from each other.  They're not all placed in a straight line.  The lines blend into the background since they are black and don't pop out as much as the other colors used in the logo.
Concept: Each of the logos elicited a variety of reactions, both positive and negative.  The designs might have gotten the message across, but the background and use of color didn't quite fit in with the logos and was overpowering the main focus.  The Fume Buster logo that had the drawing of the fan was pleasing to the eye, but the background could have made the letters and fan stand out more if it was a solid color.  Having a plain background would help distinguish the fan from the background since the background does distract the viewers' eyes. The word, Buster, could have been a little bigger since it does include the fan on it.  This idea of a gradient background connects to the RJEA logos where the gradient goes from light to dark.  The gradient distracts the viewers' from what they should be looking at because the background is too busy.  For the RJEA paw logo, the black letters located in the middle of the brown paw could have been brighter in order for them to stand out more.  It's hard to tell what the words are saying without reading them up close.  Also, decreasing the size would allow all the letters to fit inside the paw without blending into the outline of the paw.  The RJEA logo with just the text could also have had a simpler background.  It's a little difficult to read the first part of the words, Justice and Action, when the yellow and white blend in together.  When the letters are against the black portion, viewers' can read the words very easily.  Although since the lines were black, some of them were hard to distinguish against the black background.  While the blue Fume Buster logo didn't have a gradient background, the similarities within the shades of blue make it hard to view the contrast between the two different halves of the circle.  The shades are very similar so having two opposite colors on the color spectrum would give the audience a different perception towards the contrast within the background.  Overall, the themes and designed were rightly perceived, but the colors with the incorporation of the background are some things to revise in the future.