How to Make Music Logos

Make your own music logos.

Whether you want to promote your band, show off your love of jazz or create a brand for your new record label, a music logo can get your image across visually and grab peoples' eyes. Logos are graphical designs that combine artwork and (if desired) words. There's no need to pay for expensive marketing or a designer when you can make your own music logos. Your logo may be as simple or intricate as you desire; a variety of software programs can help you create a logo that's music to your ears (and eyes).

Things You'll Need

• Microsoft Publisher
• Adobe Photoshop
• Digital image
• Microsoft Paint

Instructions

1. Open Publisher and click "Blank Print Publication." Pull down the "File" menu and select "Page Setup," then scroll the "Publication type" menu to "Custom." Type your preferred logo's dimensions, such as 3 by 3 inches, then click "OK" and the Publisher workspace will automatically adjust. Pull down the "Insert" menu and select "Picture," then "Clip Art." Pull down the "Results should be" menu and check "Clip Art" for a cartoon-style logo, "Photographs" for a realistic logo or both to get all results. Type a word or phrase into the "Search for" box, such as guitar, music notes or drums, then click "Go." Scroll through the results, then double-click a graphic for it to appear on the logo workspace. Grab a corner of the image and shrink it down into size. Click the "Insert WordArt" tool, which looks like a tilting capital "A" on the left side of the screen. Select a word style, then type a phrase such as "Max's Music Shop," "The Grinning Guitarists" or "Free Piano Lessons" and click "OK." Drag the phrase into place above, below or directly on top of the graphic to complete the logo.

2. Create a new Photoshop file by clicking "File," then "New." Name the file "MusicLogo," then set the logo's dimensions such as 3 inches by 3 inches. Pull down the "Mode" menu and select "RGB Color," click the "White" button under "Contents," then click "OK." Open another file, a photo of your band, instrument or other image for the logo. Click the "Lasso" tool on the "Tools" palette on the left side of the screen, then draw an outline of the part of the photo to use for the logo. When the blinking lines appear, press "Ctrl" and "C" on your keyboard to copy the selected area. Click back to the "MusicLogo" box, then press "Ctrl" and "V" to paste in the image. If it pasted in too large, pull down the "Edit" menu, then select "Transform" and click "Scale." Grab a corner and pull the image down to fit the box. Click the "Paintbrush" tool on the "Tools" palette, then pull down the "Brush" menu at the top of the screen. Select a small, solid round brush head such as #9 and check the "Wet Edges" box. Position your cursor over the "MusicLogo" box and draw your company's name, band name or other phrase for the logo.

3. Open Paint and click the "Image" menu, then click "Attributes." Set the logo's size and click "OK." Click the "View" menu, then click "Zoom" and "Large Size," which gives you more room to draw. Click the "Paintbrush" tool, then choose the small round brush head below it and a paint color from the "Color Picker" at the bottom of the screen. Draw the outline for the logo, such as the body of a guitar or a large eighth note. Click the "Paint Bucket," then click inside the drawing to fill it with color. Change paint colors, then add more to the logo drawing, such as clefs or fire flames. Click the "Text" tool, which looks like an "A," then choose a font and size. Type directly onto the white box, adding words for the logo.

References

• In Pictures: Microsoft Publisher
• University of Washington: Working with Images
• Windows: Using Paint