LOGORAMA

Hi there,

Logorama is a short film based on the numerous logos that engulf our life. Check these videos:

Logorama Part 1

Logorama Part 2

FYI: This short won the Oscar award for the best short film this year.

Cheers, Vijay

Logolysis of Walt Disney

Animation is the transformation of still images turned into motion by constantly parading the stills, one after another. Through creativity, dedication and technology, this form of art can be advanced to great limits and even beyond imagination.

Co-founded by Walter Elias Disney, the Walt Disney Company today has branched out to various entertainment studios, theme parks, products and other media productions with an annual revenue of approximately US $30 billion.

  

The Walt Disney logo, like the company, has served as a beacon for decent family entertainment and worldwide recognition. The Walt Disney logo is a ‘stylized version of the founder’s signature’ that signifies the brand name and promises secure, cheerful and quality American mainstream entertainment.

Other than the regular logo, the company uses different logos on its different products. A castle on a blue background version of the Walt Disney logo is used for the movie releases and as the curtain-raiser to its films.

Similarly, the Walt Disney signature with “World” added to it is used for the company’s resorts "Walt Disney World Resort", a Mickey’s head is adopted for the company’s Mickey Mouse Club and “Studios” was added to the Walt Disney logo signifying Disney Studios around the world.

The original Walt Disney logo, to a large extent, has retained its uniqueness, however, over the time, different animations and styles were introduced in the Walt Disney logo to complement the entertainment quality and the technological breakthroughs of the era. No doubt, the Walt Disney logo has branded the company.
 

Logolysis of Intel

Intel is a great technology company. It has been consistent in its delivery of innovations in the world of computer chips. Now they are gaining ground in other kinds of markets like mobile, gaming devices and other electronic devices which require the power of an electronic chip.

For 37 years Intel had the same logotype indicating its relentless focus on consistency and stability as a brand. They didn't have to focus on re-branding and other management stuff because of their true pursuit of bringing excellent products to the market. They were instantly recognized for their technology excellence and product focus.

Until recently they changed their logotype and added some logo elements like the swirl around the font of Intel. This shows their evolution from a computer chip manufacturer to a more technology dynamics oriented company. The present logo has more dynamism in it and will stay true to the brand values of Intel.

The old logo had a very informal look to it with an asymmetric structure. The new logo has a more formal and polished feel to it and helps in recognizing the company thats behind the great technologies.

Blue has always been a color of identity for Intel. Blue stands for intelligence, stability, unity, and conservatism which applies to Intel in every way. Intel's color identity and logo identity perfectly fit the company that will innovate its way into the future.

Logolysis of Toyoto

Toyota's Logo Analysis:
The Toyota automobile company as it began, specialized in making cars, but now also forms a leading pioneer in bus, trucks, robot manufacturer, truck, auto and financial service providers. The Toyota logo is a simple one, derived from a Japanese word meaning ‘eight’ which was thought of as bringing luck and success which the company’s journey cannot be denied of.

The Toyota logo, much like the company itself, is recognized as a paramount in the world of automobiles. The logo speaks of simplicity and elegance with a sleek look, upbringing style, attraction and philosophy all at one place.

Design Elements of the Toyota Logo:

The unique design of the Toyota logo not only symbolizes great quality but also ties the tradition of its founders by the Japanese culture behind it. The parallel ovals represent the company’s trust to its customers and a promise of satisfaction.
Shape of the Toyota logo:
The shape of the Toyota logo is elliptical, appearing as an oval slightly elongated from the horizontal sides. Furthermore, there are three ellipses symbolizing the heart of the customer; the product and the great advancements in the technology the company has made.
Color of the Toyota logo:
The main colors used in the Toyota logo are red and white, both speaking of their own beauty. The ellipses are made in either red with a white background or seen as metallic; sequentially giving the Toyota logo a sleek and an elegant look.
Font of the Toyota logo:
The font of the Toyota logo is simple roman style saying ‘Toyota’ which is brief enough to let the customer know of it. Simple yet graceful, the fonts give the Toyota logo the beauty it is worth of. Today, the Toyota Company forms a signpost in the quality automobiles recognized and trusted all over. The Toyota logo likewise is exclusive in its layout and provides motivation to the customers of its luxurious soothe and quality product.


Toyota's Logo Evolution:

The Toyota logo, like the company, is widely recognized for its creativity and simplicity. It has become a symbol of pioneering automotive and non-automotive products and services. The Toyota logo bears a meaningful visual identity with strong visual impact. It symbolizes the energetic transition of the company from a family business to the expansion of a worldwide company.

In 1936, when Toyoda Automatic Loom Works Ltd. was launching its first passenger car, it needed a new trademark to commemorate the launch. For that purpose, a competition was held to establish a logo that would promote the company’s vehicles. The design requirement of the company was to create something that will express ‘the feeling of speed’. Thus, the winning logo resulted in the change of the name from ‘Toyoda’ to ‘Toyota’. This was as the Japanese lettering of ‘Toyota’ gave the logo a sleek look and was also chosen because the number of strokes in the Japanese word ‘Toyota’ (eight) was considered to bring luck and prosperity. Although no longer used on products, the original Toyota logo is still used as the company’s emblem and is given to the employees of the company upon joining. The current Toyota logo consists of the name “TOYOTA” in roman type with three ovals in red and white color scheme. ‘The two perpendicular center ovals represent a relationship of mutual trust between the customer and Toyota.  These ovals combine to symbolize the letter "T" for Toyota.  The space in the background implies a global expansion of Toyota's technology and unlimited potential for the future’.


Visual identity of any brand does not only raise effective awareness of the product, but also assist in expressing the company’s mission and philosophy to the customers. As you can see the Toyota logo brilliantly and perfectly fulfills these qualities.

Announcement ! Change in my posting frequency

Hi All,

From now on I will post once every ten days which makes it three a month. I think this change is required because of need to put in more effort in analyzing the logos thoroughly.

Thanks for reading!

-Vijay

Logolysis of Google

The Story of how Google got its colorful logo!

In just a few short years, Google's logo has become as recognizable as Nike's swoosh and NBC's peacock. Ruth Kedar, the graphic designer who developed the now-famous logo, shows the iterations that led to the instantly recognizable primary colors and Catull typeface that define the Google brand. Kedar met Google co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page through a mutual friend nine years ago at Stanford University, where she was an assistant professor. Page and Brin, who were having trouble coming up with a logo for their soon-to-launch search engine, asked Kedar to come up with some prototypes.

Google No. 1
Typeface: Adobe Garamond

"It was very clear from the very beginning that they wanted to go with a logotype as opposed to just a logo," Kedar says. With this first version, Kedar wanted to keep the majority of the text untouched so the legibility was still intact, while adding some playfulness by bringing primary colors and two-dimensionality to the Os. The pattern here was used to visually imply that something goes on ad infinitum. According to Kedar, "Brin and Page liked this because it looks a bit like a Chinese finger trap."

Google No. 2
Typeface: Catull

Instead of working with the two Os and creating something larger in terms of space and pattern, Kedar modified just one letter to make it multidimensional. This design ended up being part of the basis for the multiple Os at the bottom of Google's search results page. The cross hairs reference both target and precision. Brin and Page wanted to clearly differentiate Google from competing search engines and convey that the service was a search provider first and foremost, with an algorithmically complex yet simple-to-use application, Kedar says.

Google No. 3
Typeface: ITC Leawood

"I look at this now and think, 'Google has gone to the Olympics,'" Kedar says through a laugh. The interlocking rings are a metaphor for far-reaching searches that involve different cultures and different countries. "It's funky and clunky, and those were the things we were exploring at the time," she says.

Google No. 4
Typeface: Catull 

All the letters in this design are uppercase, giving it a more corporate and solid feel, but by changing the letters' sizes and adding colors, Kedar keeps the logo playful. The colors don't appear in rainbow order, so things aren't quite the way you'd expect them to be. The design's fault was that it was too busy. "They liked the magnifying glass and the cross hairs, but not all at once," Kedar says.

Google No. 5
Typeface: Catull 

This is a further iteration of the previous design, but Kedar gets rid of the cross hairs and the ability to see through the magnifying glass. She adds a smiling mouth, though, to represent "happy" results and a positive search experience. "At the beginning and end, the letters are the same color, but in between, all kinds of things happen," Kedar says, possibly referencing the different routes your search can take as a result of the gaggle of information Google returns.

Google No. 6
Typeface: ITC Leawood

This design was close to Brin's original concept, but by using the Leawood font, shadowing and shading, Kedar gets some dimensionality into the logo as the letters go through thick and thin stages. The logo floats on the search page, which they knew was going to be clean and mostly white. This iteration also started a discussion regarding how many colors Google wanted and what kind of color progression would work.

Google No. 7
Typeface: Catull

"This is where we started simplifying," Kedar explains. "The idea was, 'Can we create the sense of playfulness without having recognizable or identifiable objects that are going to end up limiting us?'" By taking out the magnifying glass, Kedar opens up the logo to signify that Google can become much more than just a search engine. By playing with the angles and colors of the letters, she tries to make clear that Google isn't a square corporation.

Final Design
Typeface: Catull

 

"There were a lot of different color iterations," Kedar says. "We ended up with the primary colors, but instead of having the pattern go in order, we put a secondary color on the L, which brought back the idea that Google doesn't follow the rules."

Google also encourages its users to create their own versions of the Google logo. Apart from these, Google comes up with holiday logos and other logos for special occasions, you can check them out at http://www.google.co.in/logos/official.html

Logolysis of McDonald's

McDonald's Logo analysis:

Likewise all businesses, it started on a small scale with a single location in Southern California. In 1937, McDonald’s was first a restaurant that sold hotdogs, orange juice, coffee and tea. Then, it was moved to San Bernardino and it was converted to a BBQ restaurant. Soon after, an investigation of sales showed that hamburgers accounted for 80% of items sold. That is how the switch was made – from a BBQ to a fast food chain. For more on McDonald’s history click here. Let’s focus on the logo :

In the begining there was the chef character named “Speedee”  ( #1 and #2. )  Then, in 1953, the arches were introduced. One of the founders, Dick McDonald sketched a pair of stylized yellow arches on both sides of the new outlet in Phoenix, Arizona. On #5 is one of the McDonald’s history museum locations. When the arches are viewed from an angle they resemble the letter M. From this reminiscence came the concept of the new logo, introduced in 1962, and designed by Jim Schindler.

The vintage cup on #3 is a McDonald’s waxed paper cup from the 1960s for milkshakes. It is part of “The All American” advertising campaign ran by McDonald’s at the time.

The logo expert Andy Payne, creative director of Interbrand, said: “The interesting thing about this logo is that it was born of architecture. The arches were a design to be used in a building and that has created the unique nature of the “M”. It does rely on colour, in that you might not recognise it as McDonald’s if it was not yellow and red.” Later on, in 1968, the name ‘McDonald’s’ was adjoined with the McDonald’s logo.

There are numerous variations of the arches as you can easily see. What is the difference you might ask? Well, to me it was fascinating to try to decipher the different advertising messages that a variation in the shape, colour tint and colour choice, orientation and size, could propose.  For example, in #12 and #14, the edges are sharper, which speaks of a more solid, business-like and  corporate character. On the contrary, #10 apparently targets a funnier, happier, and more casual audience. This ‘M’ is used mainly when advertising to children. The wider arches, the brighter yellow, and the imitation of a drawing are all elements that contribute to the attempted young-spirited vision. Another use of wider arches is when the logo is utilized as a street/road sign – the thicker arches are seen easier from the passing cars.  

My take on McDonald's Logo:“The simpler the font of the logo, the more radiant it becomes for the spectator.”