How to Make Company Logos With Photoshop

A basic automotive logo.

Logos are the face and name of companies. Good ones immediately paint a picture in the viewer's mind about the company, what it does and what it is. They can be simple and indirect like Nike's or more complex and direct, or any combination. The key is to make the company instantly recognizable. Here's how to do it by using Adobe Photoshop.

Things You'll Need

• Computer
• Adobe Photoshop

Instructions

1. 

   The essential first step is to decide whether you are going to use a photo or a piece of art for your logo. While a photo of your product or building might be a good idea, it precludes the possibility of continuing to use the logo if you expand your product line or move. Often, a custom design or simple artwork will suffice. Photoshop has some preset shapes that you can use as they are, or perhaps you'll want to tweak them to suit your individual style and needs.

2. Go to the File menu and then select New. Next, select a workspace that is RGB (red-green-blue), 12-by-12-inches and at least 600 dots per inch. This will give you a starting point. You want high resolution because, even if you eventually will need it lower, you will have finer design possibilities with 600 or greater dpi.

3. Go to the side Toolbar and select the Shape Tool. A pop-up menu will allow you to choose a standard shape like a rectangle or ellipse, or you can use the Custom Shape to choose a preset. After you select Custom Shape, go to the top Toolbar and click on the current shape window. This will bring a popup palette from which you can choose a preset shape. Draw the new shape on the file. Go to the Window menu and then select Styles. Then choose a pattern preset that you like. You can tweak it in Layers > Layer Styles. When you get a Style you like, save it in the Layer Styles pop-up so you can use it again later.

4. 

   Type your company information over the shape. Go to the side Toolbar, select "T" (text) and type. When you get a font and size you like, go back to the Styles palette and select a preset for the text. The text and shape styles should not clash, but there is a wide variety to choose from.

5. 

   Fade the shape behind the text if the two clash more than you'd like. Go to the Window menu and then select Layers. In the Layers palette, select the shape Layer and then use the sliders at the upper right to decrease the Opacity or Fill. This can give you a different look. The fade will appear lighter before you Flatten Layers (Layer > Flatten Layer), so test it by flattening, then undoing (Edit > Step Backward) until you get it to look like you want.

6. Print the logo and its variations. Show it to people in the company who can give you feedback. You also can show it to friends, relatives or even people in the street to get other views about your logo before it goes on every letter, web site and business card you create.