How to Make 3D Logos
Logos are graphics that represent an organization, brand or product. They typically consist of styled text combined with icons that call to mind the product or company they're representing. You can make your own 3D logos with computer aided design (CAD) programs. These programs have tools for creating a 2D design or tracing an existing one. They also provide functions for converting 2D designs to 3D objects, which you can then shape and render.
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Instructions
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Get ideas for your logo by visiting stock graphics libraries, such as iStockPhoto or Open Clip Art Library. Also, view the logos of organizations similar to yours.
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Sketch several logos on paper. Include texture, color and text in your designs.
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Choose the logo you like best, then make a bigger, darker version of it so you can see it clearly when converting it to three dimensions.
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Use a digital scanner or camera to convert your logo to any common file format for digital images, including JPEG, PNG or BMP.
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Open your CAD program and navigate to its top view.
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Create a plane object, sized to the dimensions of your logo's image file. For example, if the image file is 1200 by 1600 pixels, size the plane to be 1200 by 1600.
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Load the image onto the plane using your program's texture or material editor. Lock the plane from further editing or movement, to ensure that your actions don't shift the image you're going to trace.
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Run the program's line tool, and use it to trace each shape of your logo. Shapes are closed sequences of edges. Examples include circles, polygons, and squares.
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Open the material editor, and select each color and texture displayed in the original 2D design you sketched. Apply the created materials to the shapes you just made.
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Apply the extrusion tool to the set of shapes you've drawn. Extrusion is the 3D modeling terms for stretching a 2D shape into a 3D object.
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Switch to the perspective viewport, and adjust the extrusion parameter until the logo reaches the thickness you want. (Perspective is the visual phenomenon that makes an object's parallel lines appear to converge as the lines move away from you.)
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Add a light to your 3D scene, positioning it to the right or left of, and above, your viewpoint. Use your program's other views (e.g. top, left, right) as needed to achieve this positioning.
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Complete your logo by rendering it.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit logo image by haruspex from Fotolia.com
