colour

After I had transferred my sketch of my logo to Illustrator, I had to choose a colour scheme as well as how I wanted to colour it, for example just the lines or fill the whole thing.

I started by using my rough colours that I had chosen for my colour palette, but not finalised yet, to use as the lines.

I thought that this looked alright but I wasn’t entirely happy with it as I felt that it looked a little boring. The first colour I had chosen looked too dark on the lines, and almost looked black and the final colour I felt was a bit too light. I also had another colour after that one but that was far too light.

I wanted a watercolour background, similar to that of the watercolour tattoo I had previously seen but in my colour palette. I found this really difficult to do in Photoshop, despite downloading watercolour brushes. I wasn’t happy with how any of the colour was going onto the page or how it looked. I also tried finding a watercolour background that I could put straight onto it although I was still not happy with how this turned out.

I had put a font at the bottom although I hadn’t picked a final font yet. I liked that the octopus was filled in as I felt that it stood out more but I wasn’t sure what I could do with it.

I asked for some feedback from my housemates and one suggested filling in each section of the octopus with a different colour from my colour palette.

(again, I hadn’t chosen a font yet or a position)

I liked this a lot more and I felt that it stood out quite well. The only issue that I had was that I wasn’t entirely convinced that it could be used as a logo for a tattoo studio.

Another suggestion from my housemate was to change the colour of the lines to white so that the octopus was just made up of the coloured panels.

I like this as well, although I feel that it looks a lot lighter.

Alongside looking at the meanings of shapes, I have looked at the attributes and meanings of different colours.

RED captures attention and is one of the most visible colours. It has a physiological effect on the viewer and prolonged periods of viewing can have an increased effect on a persons heart and breathing rate. Red can suggest aggression, energy, provocation and is the colour of danger. It can suggest luxury and celebration when used in conjunction with rich golds.

Attributes:

– increased enthusiasm

– more energy

– action

– confidence

Uses in media:

– to make people take action or make a purchase

– to indicate energy and passion

– often used as a warning sign

– best used as an accent colour as too much red can overwhelm

BLUE has obvious links to water and the sky and suggests trust and has a calming sense. It can be seen as being stable and reliable. It is often used in finance, medicine, science and technology.

Attributes:

– conservative

– safe, predictable colour

– orderly

– suggests direction

Uses in the media:

– conservative corporate businesses where trust, dependability and honesty are important

– light blue relates well to health and wellness and to travel and relaxation

– dark blue is a serious colour which inspires integrity, honesty and is used by political organizations, religious groups and legal firms

YELLOW is the most luminous colour and easily captures our attention. It is warm, positive, friendly, inviting, vibrant and stimulating. It is a highly dominant colour when placed with others and is preferred as an accent colour.

Attributes:

– represents sunshine

– happiness and warmth

– indicates caution

Uses in the media:

– For children’s products

– To stimulate the mind and creativity

– For leisure products – promote playful and fun activities or entertainment businesses

– To keep people moving

– As a caution colour

GREEN has connotations of growth and health through its links to nature. Dark greens suggest wealth and luxury, whereas lighter greens and pastel shades have a calming effect. Green is found in branding that represents or wishes to imply healthiness, energy, environmental sensitivity and intelligence.

Jess Claxton

Tag Archives: colour

Colouring the octopus