Design consultancy B&W Studio, based in Leeds, UK, created this brand identity design for Seven back in 2007.

I saw it today for the first time. Liked it. Thought you would, too.

As with many brand identities, the logo in isolation isn’t what makes it work, and what I enjoy most is consistency of implementation across both print and web, giving a strong and professional unity.

View more work on the brand spanking B&W Studio website.

Or visit the Seven website to view the identity in context.

Photography by Matt Wright.
Via Grafikcache.

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Given that I’ve been back in Northern Ireland for a little over a year now, I thought it appropriate to put some focus on local design studios. Belfast-based McCadden Design has been working with organisations in the UK and Ireland for more than 25 years. Here’s a small selection of its brandmarks.

Titanic Quarter

“Currently the largest waterfront development in Europe, Titanic Quarter is a massive yet dynamic undertaking which takes its name from the part of the site where the Titanic was built. The four funnels of the iconic ship play a key role in our identity – a decision that was recognised as “hugely distinctive” by brand expert Wally Ollins (On Brand, 2005).”

FOLD

“One of the best-known names in the local social housing sector, FOLD is a brand that rests upon a fundamental central value – protection. Protection of the elderly, the infirm, the disadvantaged. Our brandmark balances contemporary typography with an abstract icon that exudes qualities of embracing, encompassing, surrounding; protecting.”

MAG

“Charged with encouraging government to embrace creativity and innovation within the spheres of architecture and urban planning, MAG is a brand that deliberately aims to challenge the mundane.”

Origin

“First known as the Belfast Fertility Clinic, we renamed Northern Ireland’s only private IVF facility as Origin, a brandname that sums up the entire essence of the brand. Friendly, contemporary type and a simple graphic reminiscent of the symbols for male and female, complete the appropriate identity.”

Capella

“Capella is a high-tech product design SME named after a star in the Auriga constellation. Working with the brand since its inception, our identity solution is deliberately challenging and beyond normal horizons. This is the core of the brand.”

Biomara

“This small but highly innovative retail brand sells mostly in Europe and the US. Our client wanted a brandname that pointed towards the pharmaceutical nature of the product and hinted at its Irish roots. Mara is Irish for sea, the source of all the brand’s raw materials.”

Distinctive work, and coming out of a gorgeous office space in Belfast (click on the image below for a closer look).

More projects on the McCadden Design website. And more Belfast design studios to follow soon.

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If the new Kellogg’s Corn Flakes with laser-etched logo is for publicity, then hat’s off. If it’s a legitimate marketing move an actual change of the cereal production process, isn’t it a needless use of energy and cash?

Landor calls it very cool. I call it a waste of money.

What do you think?

Photo courtesy of Mail Online

More here:

• Kellogg’s to laser-brand individual Corn Flakes
• Hoax, stunt or breakthrough?
• Kellogg’s says laser-etched Corn Flakes are real

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• Stock trade marks from 1975

A.G. Low Construction logo
By Rebecca Low

Martin Newcombe Property Maintenance logo
By buddy

Nexcite logo
By Amore
Via Blair Thomson

American Institute of Architects Center logo
By Pentagram

Ogden Plumbing logo
By Astuteo

WWF
By Sir Peter Scott, modified by Landor

FreemanWhite logo
By Malcolm Grear Designers

The Brand Union logo
By The Brand Union

Egg n Spoon logo (same day couriers)
By Thoughtful

Human logo
By Social UK

Dolphin House logo
By Ico Design

Eaton logo
By Lippincott (thanks, Brendan)

Elefont logo
By Logo Motive Designs

USA Network logo
By Peloton Design

CultureBus logo
By Pentagram

Carrefour logo
By do you know?

Henri Ehrhart monogram (shameless, aren’t I?)
View the design process on David Airey dot com

Sinkit logo
By smashLAB

Guild of Food Writers logo
By 300million

ED logo
By Gianni Bortolotti

Blade logo
By Subversive Design

Premier Catering logo
By Madhouse
Via Logolog

The Waterways Trust logo
By Pentagram

FedEx logo
By Lindon Leader while at Landor

Knoll logo
By NB: Studio
Via Logolog

Ryan Biggs Associates logo
By id29

Hartford Whalers logo
By Cummings & Good (thanks, Jeff)

Conception logo
By The Chase

Yoga Australia logo
By Roy Smith Design

Hands On Network logo
By Duffy & Partners

MyFonts logo
By Underware

Vanderbilt University logo
By Malcolm Grear Designers

Recycle Taiwan logo
By do you know?

NBC logo
By Steff Geissbuhler while at Chermayeff & Geismar

New Bedford Whaling Museum logo
By Malcolm Grear Designers

Mouse logo
By Johnson Banks

Can you pick a favourite?

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The logo board game. It’s all fun and games (apparently). Well, it is for the over 12s anyway—sorry kids.

Evolution of the LEGO logo. Such a simple product. If I was to tally the hours spent with it as a child, I reckon it’s easily triple figures.

Logo Design Love book available for pre-order. Time’s a pressin. Not long to go.

Commonwealth logo in overhaul. For the English out there.

The 9/11 Memorial brand identity. One of my favourite designs of the naughties.

New Doctor Who logo revealed. I’ve never been a big Doctor Who fan. I quite like the “tardis” monogram, but it’s not working so close to the type.

The Wolff Olins Guide to Corporate Identity. One I’d love to get my hands on.

Apple bites over Woolworths logo. A bit over the top from Apple’s legal team, no?

$500 logo design contest. 102 submissions. No winner. Same old.

85 automotive logos. No chat. No details. Just logos.

Yale University Press to ditch Paul Rand’s logo. Another one sadly bites the dust.

Tony Spaeth reviews Hilton’s new logo.

Punctuation-inspired logo designs. But none can match Pentagram’s Curious Pictures logo.

LEGO logos.

Google and LEGO have a fun and special history… The Google company founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, are both avid lovers of LEGO toys, as are many of the company’s employees.

New Nickelodeon identity. More contemporary, with consistency across networks, but more corporate and I’m not sure about the uppercase K.

Typembrya—a homage to Herb Lubalin’s Mother & Child logo.

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Let’s begin.

6 steps to logo design greatness

Step 1
Launch Adobe Photoshop and create a new file (no larger than 3 inches square, RGB at a maximum of 72dpi).

Step 2
Create a shape using the rectangle or ellipse tool (for the more adventurous, go crazy with the custom shape tool—a bit too mad for me).

Step 3
Rasterize your shape before applying a gradient (the more colourful the better—you want to stand out from the crowd, remember).

Step 4
Type your name over the shape using the horizontal type tool (extra credit for those who use either Brush Script, Comic Sans, Papyrus, or Stencil).

Step 5
Flatten the image so you can make use of the filters available (release the creativity—use at least three filters).

Step 6
Save your file as a JPEG for maximum usage online and in print.

Infinitely more memorable than that old rubbish from before.

Assignment deadline
As soon as iStock stops giving a $5 bonus for “logo” uploads.

Now, go forth and prosper, my dezigner chums!

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Here are the results for just one of their brand identity projects. The client was Expodium—a platform for young art.

You can view more identity design on the CLEVER FRANKE website.

Via Blair Thomson.

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In 1975, and in response to the trends of blandness and similarity in the trademark design of the day, designer Jerry Herring, of Herring Design in Houston, produced a satirical pamphlet advertising “Stock Trade Marks.” It was reprinted in the March/April 1999 issue of Communication Arts, and with the recent happenings at iStock, now seems like a good time to remind everyone that cheap “design” is certainly nothing new.

Here’s part of the May/June 1975 issue of Herring Design Quarterlies.

Stock Trade Marks

Dear corporation president, public relations director, or agency art buyer: Are you in need of a dynamic new image to replace the smoking smoke stacks you or your client is now using as a trade mark? Well, I’m sure the answer to that question is YES! But you’re hesitant to act because of the time, expense and uncertainty of selecting an image to represent you or your client.

That is precisely why Herring Design Studio of Houston, Texas has gone to the effort of preparing this collection of Stock Trade Marks. Long a leader in the design of trade marks and logotypes, HDS now draws on this vast experience to offer trade marks that are not only inexpensive, but can be used for almost any company.

So why not order a trade mark today? You may want to order one for yourself and all your subsidiaries.

When ordering specify the full name of the company and whether you want the trade mark centered over the name or to the right side. All the designs are available in black, green and blue. A few are available in red. Allow 2-3 weeks for delivery.

The World Trade Mark
Very versatile, although you should have at least one out-of-state office.

The Arrow Trade Mark
For companies on the move, on the way up, or on the go. Specify if you are going straight up or to the right.

The Star Trade Mark
Perfect for those doing movie, government, or occult work. Special clearance needed to use in red.

The Modern Trade Mark
Can be interpreted in many ways. An ideal choice when dealing with a committee.

The Tree Trade Mark
A must for a real estate project. Goes real well with woodsy names like Oakmont or Pinesap Apartments.

Communication Arts page spread

You can view more stock trade marks in the full Communication Arts page spread by downloading this PDF: Stock Trade Marks (376kb)

Thanks very much to James Bowie for the PDF tip.

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So iStock are to sell pre-packaged logos. They’re billing it as a “huge opportunity for designers”, and are giving $5 for every design that’s uploaded and approved for sale.

Given iStock’s size in the marketplace, I imagine there’ll be thousands of uploads. Wouldn’t that need a boat-load of copyright policing?

“We are placing the burden of checking for trademark-ability on the client.”

Oh. I see.

That’s a big burden. And whilst many designers won’t perform a trademark search (that’s where trademark lawyers come in) what they will do is conduct weeks, possibly months, of research into the client’s industry, their competitors, their history, their goals etc. So if there’s a decent chance of copyright infringement, it can be picked up early.

I’ve learned a lot during my years as a designer. One of those things is that a logo in isolation is like lipstick on a pig. It needs to be treated as part of an overall brand identity strategy, not picked off a shelf. This is no different from the “make your own logo” websites out there, or the logo contest spec work sites that harbour an equal amount of “design” nastiness.

iStock’s actions shouldn’t make designers worry

Many a professional photographer succeeds despite stock photography, but I am concerned for those small business owners who will undoubtedly find themselves in the middle of a legal battle, and for those professional designers who will undoubtedly find their work copied time and again by hacks looking for a quick five bucks.

Yep, it’s a good time to be a trademark lawyer.

More elsewhere

• AIGA President Debbie Millman, “What iStock is doing to designers is deplorable. Truly heinous.” Via Twitter
• Have we become cheap whores?
• iStockphoto to sell stock logos
• iStockphoto.com Now Selling Stock Logos… Your Thoughts?
• $5 Reward for Stock Logos
• iStockphoto to begin selling stock logos
• Window-shopping: the Future of Design?
• If you find yourself uncontrollably compelled to upload a logo, knock yourself out

What are your thoughts on the latest news?

Update: 06 October 2009
To be in with a chance of nabbing a $5 iStock bonus, I’ve created this nifty logo design tutorial that will set you on your way. Good luck!

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In this short video Milton Glaser answers the following questions: Are you ever annoyed by the prevalence of the “I Love New York” logo? Are you upset you don’t have the trademark to the image?

Image from Wikipedia

New York loves its trademark

New York officials show no mercy in their bid to protect the “I ♥ New York” logo. The trademark, supplied free of charge by graphic designer Milton Glaser in 1976, helps beckon 140 million tourists to the Empire State each year. As others tried to tap the design over the years, state legal eagles have filed close to 3,000 trademark objections.

Excerpted from Business Week.

3,000?

Image from Milton Glaser

Image from MR38

Image from geirarne

Image from Spare type

Image from Is There Life After New York?

Without doubt one of the most iconic logos of our time.

Milton Glaser.

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