How you can use a logo grid into your design

Credits: Shirsendu Das

A logo grid is a geometric design technique or guide – necessary and a popular tool for every multimedia designerto create a logo or any design accurately. The grid system is used especially for a design that might often render at extreme sizes like- very large or small. It also helps to create something that has visual harmony, an organized aesthetic and purposeful design.

What is a logo grid

Logo grid is a construction guides or tool ,which is a powerful technique forbuilding a logo. This tool helps to create shapes with geometric harmony in the process of making a logo. Grids helps in many ways to give an underlying structure to a design and also provide guide to where certain elements should be placed. Grids are often made from an actual square grid, just like a grid paper. But it totally depends on the preference of the logo designer , whether he likes working using a circular logo grid, or believes in creating his/her own unique grid system according to the project requirement, which includes “invisible” lines for heights, spacing between elements and whitespace. The common factor in all logo grids is that they employ a mathematical approach, where space and filled space is aided by placement along the grid in the design process.\

Few of the common grid styles

Grids are a common tool used for various aspects of design for – the designers who have been creating different kinds of printed projects and screens. There are old and time-tested grid concepts, as well as modern or even custom grid available these days.

Few of the common grid styles

Grids are a common tool used for various aspects of design for – the designers who have been creating different kinds of printed projects and screens. There are old and time-tested grid concepts, as well as modern or even custom grid available these days.

Some of the most common grid systems that you use every day is the common photography tool; the golden ratio; or a column and gutter grid which can be a worth example so far.

Let us focus on few more options for creating or using a logo grid. The type of grid you select should be based on the project and ofcourse our comfort level in working with grids.

• Do you feel comfortable in the structure of a grid?
• Hav you designed a grid in the past?
• How do you feel about “breaking” the grid?
• What shapes and styles are you considering for your logo design?

While creating your own design, there are some options that are commonly found, which you can see from the above examples.

Advantages of Using a Grid

There are plenty of benefits of using a logo grid or construction guide.

• Grids helps to create an organization and focus.
• It also give us the focus to create something simple and timeless. For example if you consider – logos for companies such as Apple and Shell, which use super-simple, classic logo forms.
• A grid helps to create a logo with versatility. Like- the guidelines for something as small as designing an iOS icon, it starts with a grid we should follow before submission.
• While some think of grids as constricting, they actually help to design with more flexibility. The lines of a grid can help to see more options for where to draw and move lines and how to put the pieces together in a way that makes visual sense.
• Grids help to plan better for elements such as space and create harmony with ease.
• It also helps to add polish to a design.
• Some grids just exist whether you use them or not, it depends on the way people look at information. (The rule of thirds grid is a good example of this because of the way a person’s eyes move across a visual element.) So even when we don’t use a grid, some grid concepts will still apply.

Things to keep in mind when using a grid

There are some disagreement against using a grid system for creating a logo.

• Grids can restrict creativity as some logo designers feel they are “locked in” to specific shapes or patterns. As a result the logos gives the same feel at the end of the day.
• Creating your own grid can be difficult and time-taking. There can be a bit of a learning curve when it comes to using grids for the unfamiliar.
• It’s easy to get caught up in the mathematical nature of the grid, resulting in a very grid-like geometric outline, rather than a true logo.
• Designers can get stuck in the grid and not know when to break grid rules, limiting the design process.

Do you need to use a logo grid

Almost every designer are different. So you work first from gut and put together an outline and then put it on a grid. This process gives an idea of how “sound” the logo is structurally and helps you to think about potential changes moving forward. Building a logo from scratch is almost like constructing a building. If the foundation is solid, it will last and be useful for years to come. If we are thinking about corporate branding or something that will be a part of a brand identity, at least consider a logo grid when looking at the structural integrity of the design.

Conclusion

Logo grids are a touchy matter for a lot of designers, but it is a topic that’s fun to debate. The main challenge comes when the shapes are not dictated by a specific canvas, such as a- rectangular postcard or billboard. In this case when more flexibility in the shapes of lines and curves is required, few logo are designed using construction guidelines that follow the principles of the grid.

If you research in Google with keyword as “logo grid”,you’ll find hundreds of deconstructions of logos debating whether they fit a grid or are designed freehand. You’ll be surprise to know that – Even Apple’s signature logo has been long the subject of debate.

Similarly , you use grid for construction of a logo, however,

As with any design technique, logo grids are perfect for some designers and at the same time pain for the others. Depending on your experience in working with logos, you may like the idea of a custom option and hate working from a basic set of gridlines. Whichever way you belong to, you can all agree that Graham Smith put it best: “The idea for a logo often comes from the mind or pencil in a hand, and not a startlingly large quantity of guides, grids and pretty circles.”