Something extravagant. Went with the blue theme you suggested for sydney. but more so, because it represents the nightlife a whole lot more. threw some glows + effects.
made the '+' appear as if it were coming from above and beyond, etc. hope you like it, please let me know.
Hey Tyler Thanks for your entry - I like the feel of it but it needs some reworking... I like your use of lighting effects & colour transitions. The overall layout is nice & compact & would work in various print situations. However I'm not a fan of the block 80's style font - I'm definitely looking for something a bit more timeless. Fonts like Handel Gothic BT & MV Boli might be closer to the mark. Another idea could be to try something with a well-rendered 3D effect. I definitely want to use '&' instead of '+'. Please change the slogan below the business name to "DJ'ing Excellence!" I look forward to seeing what you come up with - good luck! :)
Cheers Tyler #30 looks good - only I forgot to mention we need the full business name: 'Above & Beyond DJs' - ie pls add the 'DJs' & also maybe just a little more breathing room between the letters. :)
Hey Tyler - #36 looks good but business name is spelled DJs not DJ's. Are you able to render the text with any gloss 3D effects to help it really stand out nice & strong?
Gave the face another 3D gloss, as well as extruding the back out a little to give the logo some depth. But as far as vector effects go, theres not too much more you can do while its still a 'vector' logo. however theres always potential beyond the original vector logo in other programs, like after effects, flash, photoshop. (just to keep in mind :) The small window does not give the logo much justice as theres so much detail in there.
But I hope you like it! if theres any other tweaks, just let me know. cheers.
Hi Tyler Thanks - #45 looking good. Thanks for heads-up re potential for 3D after-effects - is this something you could do?
I'm just wondering if there's anything that can be done to make the text stronger/richer as I'm concerned it may be a little washed out if printed small or photocopied in B&W?
Also can you also pls show me a version without the slogan below (ie just 'Above & Beyond DJs').
I just took the gloss back down a little bit, so its still visible, but it doesn't wash out the logo as much. (gives the logo more colour and depth) So, when printed greyscale, it holds together better.
Another point to mention regarding the size of the logo. Logos, are generally designed to suit most forms of application (web, print, etc) But, because a lot of logos have the extra detail and information, they usually become distorted or harder to see when the logo gets smaller. This is usually fixed with a logo version, thats specifically used for smaller uses, (such as the bottom of flyers, posters, website or the top of an envelope.. anywhere that the logo is going to be seen but only to be recognized)
I’ve done that with this logo, and just taken away both the stars and 3rd line.
Forgot to mention, after-effects is mostly used for things like, movie intros or showreels etc. for a logo design, flash & photoshop can pretty much get any final logo you want, with effects or whatever you're after. and any trained graphic designer should be able to do that :) (including myself)
Hi Tyler #s 47 & 48 look good, thanks. Can u edit #48 to a more flat (as opposed to gradient) colour? Please pick whichever uniform shade of blue & level of gloss you think would be strongest. Cheers :)
hey! thankyou, I'm glad you're still liking the design after all this time aha. (a good start for a new logo ;) Wasn't quite sure what you meant exactly with the colour, so i took the gradient colour out of the logo, just kept a mid-tone blue from each of the gradients and took the gloss down a little bit.
Hi Tyler I like #47 & 48. Both versions could work for me depending on application. 48 because of the darker/richer colours, & 47 because of the twinkles - Can you please do a version with better twinkles - less like ninja stars, more like star-bursts? Also I will also need a mono version but the greyscale versions (#49 & 50) are too washed out. - Can you please do a version with stronger/bolder black/grey/white? Cheers mate :)
Cheers Tyler - #134 looks better for mono application but would probably need to be blacker/darker still. #132 looks good but compared to #48 seems slightly washed out - maybe that's just my screen & coz the text is smaller to fit in the sparkles? Re the sparkles any way of making them more in the style of #15 by Mare or #42 by dapc79? Do you think that could work with your design/style? Marc :)
Hi Tyler Another request... the current colour grading leaves 'DJs' in light blue but since DJs is who we are it would be better to have it in the darker/richer colour. So please adjust so that the gradient finishes with 'DJs' in darker/richer blue (eg maybe the '&' could be lighter instead if you needed to swap gradients around etc). Cheers :)
okay, so I can't quite figure out exactly what it is you want the starbursts to look like. do you want them to be positioned the same way that I have been doing? or do you want them to appear as if they are reflecting off the letters (as seen in other designs).
the mono version: I've used the darkest grays I can without it actually being black, and I've taken the gloss effect right back down as low as It will go without losing the effect appearance. But yeah, the lightest grey in the logo is like, 90% black.. which will almost be black when printed. So, I really don't imagine you would have any problem with it being printed and it looking washed out whatsoever :)
the look with the starbursts coming off the logo, only really works on the darker background where it can notably be seen better. whereas if you applied the starburst on the letters using a white/light background.. it won't be effective at all, and could hinder more then compliment the logo.
but again, this is one of those effects that is generally added to the logo after, and is applied when needed (such as on darker backgrounds where it is more effective)
#140 makes 'DJs' darker but the rest of the business name becomes washed out - any way of keeping the richness of colour in #132 but including 'DJs' in the parts of the design that are dark?
Re starbursts - I realise that you have them positioned as separate elements but would be interested in seeing your ideas for a reflected version.
#142 looks awesome mate. The black really brings out the definition & colour, & the reflected twinkles look great - or is there more that you've done aside from adding a black background & the twinkles? I will however mainly need to print my logo on a white background so assuming you are the final winner I trust we'll be able to get that version strong enough. :)
haha, thankyou! nope, it was the same as #140, just added the black background and twinkles :)
with this logo, I changed the colours around to suit the DJs better (so it would be darker) but if you'll notice, theres no part of the logo thats any lighter then before. this way all the same amount of colour and contrast is still in the logo, just if different positions, thus keeping the logos colour and strength, without washing any of it out. :)
#155 looks great - much stronger :) Can you add some of the reflected starbursts to this? Also for both #142 & 155 can you make the '&' the same point size as the bottom line's text while still right-justifying it? Cheers
I made the '&' the same point size as the bottom line, and right justified. Had to make the 'above' larger though because there was too big a gap in between the end of the above and the '&'.
I gave the on white version the sparkles as well, so that you could see how that looked. they don't appear too much on the smaller version, but up close and bigger.. they do stand out a little more
#156 looks good, but please lighten the shade of ''DJs" & also just a touch lighter on the first 2 letters of 'Beyond' so that they stand out against the black background. Also maybe try starburst size halfway between #156 & #142.
Re #156 & 157 - do you think the '&' would look best bottom or top justified? Please try the '&' point size halfway between the top & bottom so there's not such a difference in size between 'Above' & 'Beyond DJs'. Also please increase the gap between 'Above' and the '&' just a little more.
changed the size of the & and above, made the gap between smaller, lightened up the 'abo' and 'djs'. changed the size of sparkles.
Just a gentle reminder to keep in mind, it's always possible to have 2 logos, 1 for light (white) backgrounds and one for dark (black) backgrounds. that way you have a logo specificly designed for each setting, and will look perfect for either a dark background (the logo may have brighter highlights, and white/light sparkles) and the light background (the logo will have more colour, and be darker and stronger against the BG, as well as the light grey sparkles which will not work as well against the dark BG).
Thanks for your work & comments - we're definitely getting there :)
Yes we definitely see eye-to-eye re 2 logo versions - actually I was thinking 3: * 1. on black BG * 2. on light/white BG * 3. mono on white BG for B&W situations (probably be mono of 2. with slight contrast adjustment). I hope that will be easy enough for you - you've done most of the work with #158, 159 & 138.
So I reckon as long as we can get those sorted I'm happy to declare you the winner :)
Here are the final tweaks I see that need to sort these::
#158: Please lighten of the 'BE' of 'BEYOND' a bit more again so that they stand out against the black background - maybe to a similar tone as used for the '&'. (Also a quoestion - I noticed you applied some white highlights to the right-hand edges of the 'E' of'ABOVE', '&' + the 'BEY' of 'BEYOND', but not the other letters - was this to help the darker letters stand out better?)
#159: Please slightly darken the 'A' of ABOVE' & slightly lighten the 'BEY' of 'BEYOND. Also please make the sparkles a bit easier to see against white BG & same size & number/location as used for 158. If I use this version in a large format can the sparkles have a metallic silver gleam? 159 seems matt/flat/washed out & less dynamic compared to 158 - is it my screen or have you got more gloss & dynamic 3D effects on 158? If so please give 159 the same treatment :)
Finally please do a mono version of #159 with any tweaks you need to optimise for mono.
Thanks mate - if any of what I have requested isn't clear then please let me know. You can always give me a buzz on 0413 365 382, or txt me & I'll be happy to call you back.
Made all the changes, made the bey of 'beyond' a little lighter (ref from '&') in regard to the highlights behind the logo, I put those in a while ago just to give the logo some depth, make it stand out a little more from the rest of the logo, if you look at the opposite ends, you'll notice a blue highlight, all just so the logo has a bit of shape and definition.
the light one: made the 'A' of above a little darker, made the bey of beyond lighter (same change as the dark bg version) sparkles: okay so when it comes to these sparkles, it goes on one of the things I mentioned before, you can only really do so much with a static logo (vector logo) before it start to looks ruined (you have to remember that your static logo will be applied to all aspects of design from here on out, and that depending on form of design it will take after the initial design process leaves the opportunity for special effects, styles and appearance is limitless. with all web and visual media, you have plenty of editing programs and animation effects which can make things like the starburst glisten, twinkle or even change colours. With print, there are many print techniques and inks that can do virtually anything. So my main point im trying to say is that when you're designing a successful logo, the simpler, the better. and then afterwards, the skies the limit).
BUT, with all that said. I reflected the glistens off the colours of the logo. which is a little harder to notice on the smaller thumbnails on the LT website, but trust me they do stand out. I also sharpened the glossed appearance on this logo so it looks bolder and not so washed out.
i hopee that this is the finished look you're after :) :)
Wasn't sure about the sparkles, so i made them dark so that you would still be able to see them, otherwise you might have had a hard time seeing them. but yeah, the colours much darker and stronger against the last logo #138
Looking good. Re mono #166 I reckon let's try a plain solid black on white with no sparkles - that might work better.
Please adjust #165's sparkles so they are same size/thickness as #159 but maybe try a darker shade of blue for them (instead of the aqua in current).
Also please do a separate version of #165 with no sparkles.
Re vector logo vs "using editing programs and animation effects to make things like the starburst glisten, twinkle or even change colours" - I don't know much about vector graphics - but do you mean that it's a limitation of vector graphics that you can't apply those extra effects over the top of your current designs?
When you say 'static logo' - I wasn't after animations - I was more hoping you could add some more reflections & 3D rendering on the actual text & even on the sparkles (eg look at the polished 3D effect on the sphere in submission #78 by chriss.fr that I've ranked #35). This would be particularly powerful for use on my new website's home page, as well as DL sized business cards & large physical pull-up banners for trade fairs etc. So I know I may seem picky & asking for a gazillion different tweaks (& appreciate your efforts) but I hope you can appreciate the importance of achieving the result I'm aiming for.
I hear what you're saying re "designing a successful logo, the simpler, the better. and then afterwards, the skies the limit" - ie that I'll have more options/flexibility if I have a simple logo template that can be tweaked later for different applications. On the other hand I guess I also came into this contest thinking I would come out with finalised versions of the logo which can be used for large print & web home page etc.
Hope that all makes sense & you get where I'm coming from. I appreciate your work & patience as nail this!
just regarding the size of the sparkles in each of the designs. I've used all the same sizes for the past 10 or so submissions, so they may appear smaller or bigger in the preview boxes, but really its all the same size :)
I went down and did some major fine tuning on the sparkles. I'll send you an email of the close-ups just so you can see what kind of detail there is there. also went down to each individual and made the colour match off the letter its reflecting off.
If they do appear a little too light, then just say so and I'll submit a version with the darker blue sparkles (which I don't think looks much better, but its up to you) :)
With #170 the sparkles still don't quite look as right on the white BG (compared to the black of #164) so please remove some - only keep the sparkles on"A" "O" "&" "B" and "S". Thanks.
#168 - not sure if it's my screen or is there still some lighter shading running diagonally across the "AB" of "ABOVE" - if so can you try an evenly flat black version too? Thanks.
Thanks also for the email with the close-ups. That gives me a much better idea of how it will look. I love your design but am still hoping that a final version could be made which had the almost reflective/polished plastic 3D effect like the sphere in submission #78 - Not sure if this makes sense - let me know if you need me to explain it another way.
Okay, this.. is pretty much the end of the line as far as effects and stuff I can do in vector. I've done it to the best of my ability to give it that look you were trying to describe, and from my professional point of view, anything else will not only take more and more of our time to create, but It will turn your simple branding logo into a jumble of over effects. I am really happy with how the logo has progressed, but I'm kinda hoping you're ready to make your final decision really soon. I don't mean to sound pushy whatsoever, but i hope you can appreciate the time that I've already poured into this logo over the past 2 and a half weeks. As it is well and truly beyond what it is worth to me as a certified designer. I am more then happy to make a couple of final changes before the final artwork is ready to be handed over. so please feel free to email me with any concern.