Brain Tree Films: Logo Designs 3

After some great feedback from my presentation and my own minor tinkering with the logos I was developing I decided to have a go at developing my logo once more. The design below was the one I most favoured but during my presentation I presented all of my completed logo designs and asked my peers for their opinions. As there were two graphic designers in the audience I really wanted to press them for their take and opinions.

Feedback from peers on logo designs overall.

• They loved the company name Brain Tree Films.
• An uncomplicated is best possibly using the company name or one simple logo. Many of mine were too complicated, were confusing over "film" too old fashioned, or confusing.
• The name was the strength and do I really need to show a brain, tree and film icon? 
• Possibly something but simpler with the braintree logo with the brain as the foliage would be best they liked this version.

Taking all of these comments on board I decided to try and strip the logo back to absolute basics and go for a simpler design.

This is indeed a much simpler and cleaner design. The green and all the connotations it brings is still present and the logo is much tighter and the font has stayed the same but the green rectangle and white tree text highlights this and creates a nice composition. I do have concerns over it looking a bit colloquial and perhaps not as professional as the logo at the top of this post but it is definitely simpler and still quite memorable. I need to get a few more opinions to see if I go with it as I am undecided but feel the final logo will come from this post, or a variation on these designs.

Reflections: Presentation, Peer Feedback and 1-1 Tutorial

The deadline for this unit is on the 11th August when unfortunately I am away on holiday. Due to this I have had to give the presentation of my Professional development this week rather than on the 11th. A link to the presentation is below.

http://www.slideshare.net/jsaward/ma-professional-development-final-presentation

The plus side to having to give my presentation early is that is that I have had to leave the project a little open ended as I still have a week to get the projects strands tidied up and submitted. So I can use my peers on the course and my tutor to get a few pointers as I head into the final straight. Below are the ideas, thoughts and opinions of my peers which were all very helpful.

Logo feedback
Some great feedback on the logo design especially the two graphic designers in the room. They loved the company name Brain Tree Films and said that an uncomplicated is best possibly using the company name or one simple logo. many of mine were too complicated, were confusing over "film" too old fashioned, or confusing. they said the name was the strength and do I really need to show a brain, tree and film icon? Possibly something but simpler with the braintree logo and the brain as the foliage would be best.

Dealing with evasive clients
No easy answer but it was suggested that trying to get a face to face as soon as possible is best so you then have a face and a personal relationship between you and them. They did all find it hard to believe that Bishop Nick did not rip my arm off to get free video content and that they were daft for not grasping the opportunity. they did suggest possibly cutting my losses with clients in the future if communication is too much of a struggle especially when working for free.

Money, money, money
Some great advice here and a fellow student (Sara) suggested looking for any funding and available to me and start-up companies which is something I have not really considered. Another excellent point was to look for funding that small companies can get for the type of work that I can offer and then to make them aware and to help them apply if they work with me. Their costs are greatly reduced and I get the money to carry out the work!

All of these areas are great to help me to continue to move forward!

As an aside to the presentation I bumped into Alex Leaney who runs the BA Film production, Film and Screenwriting courses at UCS and really firmed up doing some classes for them next year. I just need to get her the dates and to remind her of what I could deliver sessions in.

Reflections: Rejuvenation of Bishop Nick Project?

I finally got word back from Libby at Bishop Nick about creating some video work for them following my visiting the brewery and leaving a message. She apologised for a lack of communication and stated how busy they were. They are still interested about some video work and were keen to try and establish times for possible shoots. Whilst it would be nice to tell them the ship had sailed on the work I do still need some interesting client based video to promote myself and to use as content on my website.

I responded saying that I am still interested but stating that we really do need to get together to work out exactly what they want. I mentioned my list of questions to get a better feel for the brand and the need to meet up ASAP. I also said that developing the idea for now and one piece would be the way to go and that I may be able to work on an animation with their blessing and happiness with the idea. I am looking to move forward albeit tentatively after the last few weeks lack of communication and to still keep developing the marketing and promotion elements of my project still and see where the video work with Bishop Nick goes.

Reflection: End of Bishop Nick Project

Still no correspondence from Bishop Nick so yesterday I went to their brewery to try and meet up with them and find out once and for all if they were still interested in working with me or if the project was never going to get off the ground. Neither Nelion or Libby (Owner and wife) were around so I left a message and phone number to call me on. I have had no response and am more than a little annoyed as I was offering them work for free and feel that the relationship could have been really positive for us both!

So have decided to bite the bullet and divert all of my attentions to the branding and promotion of myself and my company as well as look for other potential work ventures to kick-start the company and to use as content in my marketing.

Lessons that have been learnt from the whole Bishop Nick relationship and will be able to take forward into new client dealings. These will also prove useful as I move on with the marketing, branding and creation of my company.

• Money is always a tricky topic. they were after something for free and even mention of a little money to cover any small expenses may have put them off.
• Greater efforts at communication and much more regular communication. It was sometimes a few too many weeks between correspondence. Work and family commitments contributed to this but also my time management should have been stronger.
• Following on from the above I need to work on stronger project management skills. A planned timescale and diary of calls and communications in a planner would have helped.
• Sell myself more! This is to show them more of my work to get them to realise the excellent offer that was on the table. this is a little chicken and the egg as the whole purpose was to create some corporate work to use for promotions. However I should have also trumpeted former glories in similar areas so they would take more of an interest.
• Sell my prices more in this case gratis! Did they realise they were getting something for nothing and potentially £3000-£4000 worth of work for a tiny bit money (£100) for expenses only.
• Try to meet the client face to face as soon as possible. I did have a couple of phone conversations and some email correspondence but from experience once you have met face to face you are then dealing with a real person.

Reflection: Seminar with fellow students

Some interesting things came out of this and all had sympathies about the lack of client engagement. Another student is doing a website to promote his work and some interesting ideas were kicked about here concerning, reinvention, use of copy, images and text as well as promoting oneself.

Reflection: Last Attempt at Contact with Bishop Nick.

Today I sent an email and what I see as being my last attempt to contact Bishop Nick to request a meet up to discuss how we could work together and firm up some plans and dates. I have still not heard from them for the last two months! They did state that they were busy so I have tried hard not to pressurise them too much or be too forceful BUT it is now eight weeks and it looks like it is unlikely to happen.


I am still ploughing on with the branding and marketing though and this is starting to really take shape and move forward.

Video Production Company Website Analysis: OFFSHOOT FILMS

Having looked at the bigger picture and interesting and ground-breaking websites from all over the web I also wanted to focus more directly on a few from companies operating in the same field. I looked at a great variety of video production web-sites and companies as well as the services they offer to see how others are promoting themselves to glean ideas for my own online presence. A second one I am going to look at is Offshoot Films.

OFFSHOOT FILMS: http://www.offshoot-films.co.uk/

Offshoot films are a small video production company based in Sudbury in Suffolk. Unlike Bruizer they do a variety of works a lot of it in the middle to low end of the market and incorporating a lot of courses, educational and film club types work alongside some corporate work with institutions. they will provide an interesting comparison with Bruizer as these are some of the areas I could potentially work in too. The logo is very simple and just the name of the company within a blue square slightly off-centre perhaps mimicking the Offshoot in the title of the company. The logo although basic has a slightly professional edge not giving much away and the blue is of a light shade suggesting refreshing and energising. The company tag line "Create, Inspire, Enthuse...." obviously demonstrates their leanings towards education work more than corporate work.

WEBSITE TYPE?

The website itself is purely a vehicle for showing off the work they have done and giving insight into the services they can provide. It is basically an interactive brochure for their services and provides lots of information about the company for prospective clients and perhaps too much information. As you can see from home-page illustrated above there is a lot of copy and the company focus is illustrated as Commercial, Educational and Film Club. There is a slight content sharing element but only one way with them sharing their content with the user and a little social media element too with posts, tweets etc from clients and them about work they are doing or have done.

Further copy on the website announces "Welcome to Offshoot Films. We are a Suffolk based film production company that delivers high quality films to both commercial and education organisations. Our modern approach has allowed us build a broad client base that includes Suffolk County Council and London Overground." This outlines again their aims and stresses high quality and commercial and organisation work and a modern approach. It also mentions a couple of big'ish clients that they have created work for. Lower down there is a slideshow of images demonstrating the type of work that has been undertaken all very much of an educational nature.

WEBSITE LAYOUT AND STYLE?

Style Appropriate to Purpose?
The style is pretty appropriate for purpose and their is lots of information about what they do but there is far too much text and not enough video. However they do communicate what they do pretty well. There are examples of the work they have done and testimonies from clients to illustrate their happiness.

Simple, Busy or Cluttered?
The website is pretty cluttered and whilst not disorganised the layout is more school notice board than professional and clean. It is all a little "bitty" with often too much information on the screen at once and the eye drawn to nothing in particular and left to wander over the pages. A little too busy and cluttered which gives it less of a slick high end feel more like a cottage industry. For the work they do they are obviously trying to attract different clients to Bruizer and this may be appropriate but the design could be stronger

Use of Colour & Text?
Lots of use of the bright blue which as mentioned earlier suggests refreshing and energising. It is a little bright and unsubtle too and has undertones of childlike quality which diminishes the professional feel of the site a little but does make it seem bright a friendly. The images are less photos and often just stills for the video before they start playing but they do inject a little more colour into the website. In some places there are B/W and colour images used to show various shots of students and young people working on projects and the kit that Offshoot has access to. The font used is a variation on courier and for some of the headlines a different font is used in capitals. Lots of blue on the headlines and headers and overall a simple and friendly font that is not click and does not scream high end but this suits the company.

Web Images and Video Optimized?
The web images all seem to be optimized and load quickly. The video is all hosted on Vimeo which is a professional streaming service and designed for more high end use and high definition video as opposed to Youtube which is not as well suited to this.

FUNCTION, NAVIGATION & INTERACTIVITY

Menu/navigation Simple and Clear?
The navigation is at the top of the page in a blue banner and is clear and present across every page making navigation simple and the naming of these makes the click throughs very clear.

It is complicated though by the numerous drop down options on a few of the buttons which at times are a little untidy and overcomplicated. A good example is the education one where there is a huge sub-menu. It is clear so no issues there but I cannot help feel there may be a better way to do this.

Overall though it is clear, the navigation does work it could perhaps be a little simpler.

HOME
This has been analysed above so I will not do so again but it seems to be a bad idea to have the social media links at the top of the site as instantly users can click off of the site and go elsewhere. Best to have them at the bottom to make this happen less and your content to be looked at first. The ticker-tape at the top with a news feed of projects underway and news is good though it is moving and gives this page an up to date and live energy.

COMMERCIAL
A really flat and uninteresting page linking to more of the same. It does say the services they can offer and has a video clip but the layout could easily be stronger. It is all a little confusing in here with in my opinion too many areas and click throughs. streamlining would improve as it all seems cluttered and a little disorganised.

EDUCATION
This is the page where there are multiple options on a drop down before you get to the main education area. There is a good eye catching piece of video as the page loads that demonstrates one aspect of the companies business but as above there is simply too much going on. Cleaner less cluttered pages would be better. Far, far too much text too documenting the work and what was done exactly. Let the work speak for itself and keep the words to a minimum or have a click through page for each project.

YOUNG FILMMAKERS
Very much the same problems as previously mentioned. Too much content, too much text not enough organisation and design. Not all that user friendly or engaging.

OTHER
This simply covers other services they can provide. Birthday parties, hen/stag parties etc.

ABOUT US
This contains the company mission statement “WE STRIVE TO EMPOWER STUDENTS, BY GIVING THEM THE NECESSARY SKILLS TO FULFILL THEIR CREATIVE MINDS AND AMBITIONS.” Which shows the definite slant to education. It also has brief biogs of the two people involved in the company. Again lots of text, images of the players would have been good. Also there are client testimonies which is a nice idea but wierdly lots of logos with what I assume are previous clients that do not link to anything.

NEWS
This details projects, workshops etc coming up "Very parish notices" and also reflects on successes and prior work.

CONTACT US
The usual and a very basic page of contact details. No email box to fill in for ease though.

All Links Working? Any Cul-de-sacs?
All links were working and I could find no cul-de-sacs so all good here.

Elements of Sharing?
Yes through the social media icons at the top of the page. Pretty much one way traffic from what I could see though and not much socila media updates and posts from Offshoot themselves.

Sticky and/or Regular Fresh Contact?
The content of the projects that they have completed looks very up to date. The news area looks really thin and could be fuller with content on current projects, shooting details and updates etc. More fun elements to do may be good also such as a quiz, process to creating, behind the scenes etc.


ACCESSIBILITY and SEO

Accessibility? 
I tested the website in Google Chrome and Safari and there were no issues in either. I did not try it on a tablet. On a mobile phone the version was Aa little clunky and the layout confusing. it id work but was not a hugely user friendly experience. This is hugely important as a huge percentage of surfing and browsing is now done on mobile phones and is an area that I must also really consider and make sure I get right.

Contacts Area?
The contacts page is basic and would benefit from a built in email box but does the job. They also use social media with links to twitter, facebook, vimeo and youtube at the top of the page.


SEO ranking?
If you search for Offshoot it comes out at number 5 on Google but is on the pop up advert to the right of the page. Offshoot Films and it is number one though. If you search for Video Production Companies Suffolk it appears at number three. However you search for Video Production Companies East Anglia it does not appear in the first 10 pages then I gave up! Could be stronger but OK and again areas I will need to consider.

OVERALL
Nowhere near the high end polish of the Bruizer website but the company is a very different beast specialising in education primarily. the layout and design is as I have mentioned throughout cluttered and confusing. Given that high end clients are not essentially what the business is all about and it having a friendly feel is OK but it is a dull website that would be better stripped right back. Less is more. However it does throw up other business models and plenty of ideas to pursue but the Bruizer way is the way to go I feel.

Video Production Company Website Analysis: BRUIZER

Having looked at the bigger picture and interesting and ground-breaking websites from all over the web I also wanted to focus more directly on a few from companies operating in the same field. I looked at a great variety of video production web-sites and companies as well as the services they offer to see how others are promoting themselves to glean ideas for my own online presence. I am going to look at a few of what I found to be the most interesting, creative and user friendly and how I feel I can use and develop various aspects of them. I will be looking at the marketing and how they promote themselves through their websites as well as the design and content and information on the sites and who I feel the audience are. The first of these I will be looking at is Bruizer.

BRUIZER: http://bruizer.co.uk/

Bruizer are a video production company based in Rendlesham in Suffolk, although on their website they say the UK. They promote themselves as a "Creative Film & Video Agency" and offer a variety of video services. The logo (above) demonstrates a lot about the company it has a real sense of fun and does not look overly corporate but does however create a familiar memorable identity. The cartoonesque face whilst portraying the knockabout, school playground and comic book bruizer does so in a non-threatening way. The black eye, mangled ear and and almost smile in a very clean logo with no fuss are certainly memorable. As is the name BRUIZER, replacing of a s with the z for more quirkiness is in bold all capitals, strong serif font and alongside the logo represents a a real strength. The colour palette is small on the logo I have included here and a simple B/W except for the black eye of the character. As the company name does not really suggest what the company does in a smaller font underneath the name it makes this it clear that they are a "Creative Film & Video Agency". The whole thing suggests power, strength, fun, fighting to do well, it also has obvious real male undertones but does make it clear what they do.

WEBSITE TYPE?

The website itself and the content is purely a vehicle for showing off the work they have done and giving insight into the services they can provide. It is basically an interactive brochure for their wares and provides lots of information about the company for prospective clients. There is a slight content sharing element but only one way with them sharing their content with the user and a little social media element too with posts, tweets etc from clients and them about work they are doing or have done. The home page above is simple but contains a moving image background of 4-5 clips that are used to illustrate the type of work they create.

The copy giving information on the front page of website home page states.

MAKING FILMS THAT GET YOU SEEN, HEARD AND FOUND!
Bruizer are an award winning creative film and video production company based in the UK, providing video solutions that transform your business. Change the way you speak to your customers through creative and powerful video production.

This states clearly what they do as well as promoting the positive aspects of using video content linking it to the all important "customers" and "transforming YOUR business." I will need to come up with my own "mission statement" and selling couple of lines intro for my website

Alongside this and all of the other clips of their work there is a news section where they will discuss and write on themes concerning moving image often topical ones. These include features analysing good opening sequences, best music videos from the BRITS and also 360 degree moving image. I like this ideas and it not only explains moving image ideas and concepts but gives insight into the company and just is good and interesting content. It is one I may seek to embrace on my site.

WEBSITE LAYOUT AND STYLE?

Style Appropriate to Purpose?
Yes to all of the above. There is plenty of content and examples of Buizers work and clients which is likely to be what clients are really wanting to see. There could be more details on the client, days shoot, concepts, making of etc profile on all of the individual pieces of work but there is a brief overview of these projects. The website is easy to use, interesting but could possibly sell the idea of why video is so important to a company more.

Simple, Busy or Cluttered?
The style of the website is pretty simple and clean. The use of text is minimal and where possible images are used as content descriptors or buttons to access content. The content is obviously video based and examples of the types of work they have created for clients. This is an area I will need to develop for my website as this content is what will appeal to prospective clients as it shows a variety of work and clients worked for as well as creativity and therefore a strong track record and a reputation built on past success.

Use of Colour & Text?
The use of colour is limited and is often of a darker or muted palette and are generally images/photographs are often abstract or ECU of examples of the work or iconography from the video/film production process. The images are used as buttons with a strong still image from the video clip they link to (see below) or often section separators (see above) for the content. this is where the colour is injected into the site usually on a white background. The only other shot of colour is orange which is used on the dates for the LATEST AND SOCIAL area of the site and also on the Newsletter sign up at the bottom of every page. This adds an interesting shot of colour and also highlights key information on these elements. See above for examples of this. Roll overs and selected content also are highlighted in orange.

I have covered the log and font above but the use of font on the site is consistent throughout and is of a Helvetica style and very clear and corporate. On a dark background it is white and on a white background it is black and headings and titles are in all capitals.

Web Images and Video Optimized?
The web images all download pretty fast in Google Chrome and there were no issues in the images not appearing quickly. The video for the site is all embedded and links to what looks like Vimeo which is basically  a more professional version of Youtube used by video professionals. It enables higher quality video to be streamed keeping the professional high end look to the work. the compressional on most of Youtube is inferior.

FUNCTION, NAVIGATION & INTERACTIVITY

Menu/navigation Simple and Clear?
The navigation is very clear throughout and the navigation bar clearly indicates what is going to be in each of the areas. HOME IS home, NEWS contains features about interesting topics (could be more), WORK is the work they have created and SERVICES is all of the services they can provide.

HOME
The home page features moving image content in the form of a short showreel that gives examples of some of the best of Bruizers work alongside some video production shots from the sets they have filmed on. the copy underneath states as mentioned earlier...

MAKING FILMS THAT GET YOU SEEN, HEARD AND FOUND! Bruizer are an award winning creative film and video production company based in the UK, providing video solutions that transform your business. Change the way you speak to your customers through creative and powerful video production. Film & Video Production If you’re reading this, you probably already know how important video is for your business. We’ve got the ideas for films which grow your business and transform your brand, collaborating as closely as possible with you, and working in small teams on big challenges. So if you’re looking for new ways to connect with your audiences, why not take a look around, and see how we can bring your project to life.

Underneath this there is some scrolling L-R video content covering all of the areas that Bruizer provide services in. These are Film, 360 degree, Post-production, Animation, Time-lapse,and Ariel. This clicks through to a page with text explaining all of these areas in more detail and the services they can offer. The news page next is also at the bottom after a click through to contact them about anything the user may be interested in. This works well as it directly links to their services etc from the very first page.

NEWS
The news page has been mentioned earlier and its full name is latest news and social and this where they will discuss and write on themes concerning moving image often topical ones. These include features analysing good opening sequences, best music videos from the BRITS and also 360 degree moving image. I like this ideas and it not only explains moving image ideas and concepts but gives insight into the company and just is good and interesting content. It is one I may seek to embrace on my site.

WORK
The work page provides links and button to all of the clients, businesses etc that they have created work for. There are a couple of ways to look for this the first being a search box to type in clients or types of work that will then select from the database examples of this. The second is a way to select the type of content you are after from a list. This areas on this list are Featured (best/newest), 360 video, Animations, Brand & Commercial, Corporate, Educational, Entertainment, Showreels and Viral. Again this selects the chosen areas and puts up graphics of the relevant areas. Clicking though from here takes you to a page with the completed video work embedded and the client and brief, a short overview of the project and the aims, objectives and concept. this is really well laid out but could possibly have more detail in the text. Putting no dates on them is a clever idea so you do not know how recently they were done.

SERVICES
The services section covers all of the services and facilities that Bruizer can provide. This is the same as the scrolling L-R from the home page but as tiled images and buttons rather than the L-R scrolling on the Homepage. These are Film, 360 degree, Post-production, Animation, Time-lapse,and Ariel. This clicks through to a page with text explaining all of these areas in more detail and the services they can offer. The content here is a little flat and again the text could be fuller but alongside the home page it dies provide a belt and braces approach to everything that Bruizer offers.

There are also links at the bottom of the page for CONTACTS US and ABOUT US. Contacts clicks through to a page with company address, email and phone numbers and about us gives a very short potted history of Bruizer thus.

A Little Company History:
Born 15 years ago, Bruizer started out as the winning combination of an editor with a love for technology, and an experienced BBC cinematographer. Since then, we have grown into a thriving film production company with a close knit team of twelve producers, editors, animators and camera crew.
How We Think At Bruizer:
We thrive on creativity, and are constantly on the look out for new opportunities to come up with original and exciting concepts. No idea is too big, too small, or too challenging for our team. We know it’s the films that are unexpected and original that provide an emotional response and maximum impact, and we have experience of creating video content in every style imaginable.
Our Experience:
Over the last 15 years Bruizer crews have travelled the globe, involved in a whole range of incredible productions from feature films in Amsterdam to documentaries in Bangladesh. We produce it all from our fantastic fire station base, where we’ve got everything and everyone you need under one roof to write it, shoot it, edit and animate it for you.

All Links Working? Any Cul-de-sacs?
Links all working and no cul-de-sacs but at times navigation could be simpler especially on the WORK pages from completed projects where if you click back you lose your search selection.

Elements of Sharing?
Not huge amounts for sharing. However users and given loads of opportunities to contact Bruizer at the bottom of every page. There is lots of access to Bruizers content though throughout the site.

Sticky and/or Regular Fresh Contact?
The content of the projects that they have completed looks very up to date. The news area looks really thin and could be fuller with content on current projects, shooting details and updates etc. also the features idea on areas of the moving image is good but has only had 3 entries up to July in 2016! More fun elements to do may be good also such as a quiz, process to creating, behind the scenes etc.

ACCESSIBILITY and SEO

Accessibility?
I tested the website in Google Chrome and Safari and there were no issues in either. I did not try it on a tablet but on a mobile phone the version was clear and easy to use. This is hugely important as a huge percentage of surfing and browsing is now done on mobile phones and is an area that I must also really consider.

Contacts Area?
Contact options are plentiful on the site and uers are regularly encouraged to do so. There is  after every feature on the work pages a simple click though to CONTACT them to discuss ideas for work. also there are links to sign up to their NEWSLETTER at the bottom of every page and also a live CHAT (not working when I tried it). they also use social media by linking in a twitter feed to their NEWS page. There are also links to twitter, facebook, instagram, google+, vimeo and at the top of the page.

SEO ranking?
If you search for Bruizer it comes out at number one on Google. If you search for Video Production Companies Suffolk it appears at number two. However you search for Video Production Companies East Anglia it does not appear until page 5! Could be stronger but OK and again areas i will need to consider.

OVERALL
A very well designed and professional looking website that perhaps conflicts a little with the fun name and logo of the company. They exude professionalism and big clients and there is lots of video content on the website to promote their skills, creativity and nature of their work and this is an area I must strengthen on my website. They look like a larger company and state they employ about 20 members of staff and this expensive but top class feel to the company comes across on the website. For my website I love the professional feel but want to aim to have a less corporate and more friendly approach and personal feel. There is no mention of staff or being looked after and the Bruizer site is a little faceless and lacking the human touch which i feel will be a strong selling point for me,

Brain Tree Films: Logo Development Part 2.

From the initial designs I did and received some feedback on from friends who have an eye for design as well as my own analysis there was no idea that really shone through so it was a case of back to the drawing board, well computer!

The idea that I felt was the strongest and closest to the feel I was after was the logo below.

As I have mentioned before I chose the green as it not only reflects the natural colour of the tree foliage but based on some colour psychology theory. Green is a colour that represents life and renewal and is a restful and soothing colour with obvious eco friendly undertones too. The colour is also associated with freshness, environment, new, money, fertility, healing and health, crisp, renewable and tranquility. the logo is closest so far to what I am after. The circular shape is less formal and more dynamic than the rectangular ideas above. Circular shapes suggest community, unity and completeness and alongside this they also mimics the shape of the brain, tree foliage and spool of film.

However the logo is all a little too complicated and I have suffered a little once more from the curse of throwing the kitchen sink at it and making it over complicated. I like the combination of all the elements but combined they all look a little confused. To this end I decided to take the elements I liked and experiment with those. These being colour, circles and a font that I did like.

The version above has really clear lines and a professional feel. the use of colour is good and really brings the logo to life especially the shot of red alongside the green and black. The circles also give a real sense of energy and the silhouetted images are simple but they do work as a collection of three, the three words and icons also give the piece a nice balance. From showing it to a few friends whose opinions I respect they did highlight that the black icon which is a film spool due to the black circle looks very like a car wheel which i had to agree with.

Sticking with the elements that were all working I changed the film spool to an old Super8 film camera which I think works really well. In a digital age it does look a little antiquated but I quite like this and in a digital world I liked the old school hands on feel it gives. I am still not 100% sold and will continue to tinker with the logo but it is much cleaner, simpler and more professional looking. There is still a little too much information perhaps and does it need all of this detail? Am I still throwing the kitchen sink at it? I feel that I am heading in the right direction though.