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KODAK VISUAL DEVELOPMENT GUIDE
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
01
LOGO RESEARCH 12 16 17 18
identity evolution current competitors future competitors visually similar logos
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LOGO DEVELOPMENT 24 27 40 61
key word and key phrases initial sketches revisiting the camps digital sketches
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FINAL LOGO 70 74 76
final logo and logotype final logo details logo anatomy
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01 LOGO RESEARCH 12 16 22 24
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identity evolution current competitors future competitors visually similar logos
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1907
1935
1960
The Kodak Logo started its journey in 1907 with a simple looking design. In those days, the logo designers inserted the letters EKC depicting the company name in a circle. But it was not a great logotype design as the letters were assembled without much thought going into the designing. Purpose of the logo seemed to show the brand name rather than making any impression on the viewers.
In 1935, the logo underwent first major designing changes. The new logo had colors introduced for the first time. The logo designers opted for a yellow background, while the letters Kodak were in red. Landscape shape of the logo gave it an impressive modern look as against a somewhat outdated classy look of the old design.
The Kodak company logo was transformed to a triangular shape from earlier landscape shape. Purpose of the new shape was to give a new and unique look to the emblem. The log retained red for the letters and yellow for the background.
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1971
1987
2006
To keep pace with the new generation of the 70s, the logo designers redesigned the logo once again. This time, Kodak logo was in a square shape also called Box Shape. The logo was designed in the shape of a small red square with broad yellow boundaries. Inside the red square, the designers carved out a yellow arrow to make the logo stylish. The letters Kodak were in serif fonts.
While earlier Kodak logo continued in the 80s in its Box shape and red and yellow colors, the company made some changes in the fonts. Instead of earlier serif font, the new logo had letters Kodak designed in sans serif fonts to express the company well established business worldwide.
The current Kodak logo got its look in 2006, when the company redesigned the Box logo. The new logo had no rectangular or square box. The existing logo features the company name in custom-made typeface. The letters Kodak are in red to express possession, love and life. The logo designers positioned the letters in yellow bars to give the logo a fresh simple look.
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DESIGN OBJECTIVE
The new logo design should be connected to the original logo, and should focus on improving the legibility and simplicity. The goal is to make it modern and should re-enforce the soul of the company.
future logo directions • Connect to the brand history. • Stick to Kodak’s soul • Keep the future design simple • Promotes Kodak’s future possibility
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CURRENT COMPETITORS imaging and camera related organizations or institures
By researching other camera and imaging agencies’ logos, I understand what features should be kept and what should be removed. The main goal is to avoid creating very similar logos but still have a connection with the underlining factors.
insights • Most of the imaging companies use a dark blue in their logos, it brings a form of trust. Therefore choosing a similar color would be a good choice. • Most of the companies’ logotype is bold and stands out, which makes a bold statement.
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FUTURE COMPETITORS fun and entertainment related organizations or institutes
As Kodak will be entering into something thats fun, it was important to research what other companies in the related field have used for their logo. Researching other related companies and organizations’ logo helped in understanding whats parts can be borrowed.
insights • Try to find better connection between the symbol and the word mark. Bright colors and bold type make a good pair. • Try not to be too specific with any picture related field, as it will project a strong impressions and will limit future possibilities.
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VISUALLY SIMILAR LOGOS other logos with memory bubble
Researching visually similar logos helped us to avoid creating analogous identities. It is also helpful to see how other companies used thought bubble (iconic symbol of memory) and logotype together.
insights • The use of negative area to create something within the thought bubble might be a good choice because it makes the logo look interesting with unique characteristics. • Bold type prevents the logo from looking too beauty centric. Therefore a bold slab serif will compliment the icon.
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02 LOGO DEVELOPMENT 12 14 20 22
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key word and key phrases initial sketches revisiting the camps digital sketches
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KEYWORD & KEY PHRASES the three camps
We began with three camps that best describe the Kodak brand, where we build our concept. The camps were seize (capturing memories), timeless (forever with you) and effortless (quick fun and simple). We later narrowed it down to one camp with the best approach, seize (capturing memories). This concept was a lot more effective in terms of concept and design.
• seize: capturing memories • timeless: forever with you • effortless: quick and simple
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01 INITIAL SKETCHES
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CAMP 1
round: 1 keyword: seize keyphrase: capturing moments
The first camp for the mark was seize. Since Kodak is a company that allows us to capture special moments and memories,one of the first ideas were using frames and focus crops. The idea of capturing memories was working but the technique of using camera crops was not helping my brand as it was looking very image centric and did not represent the values of the brand. Therefore I explored for other elements that can relate with memory.
• even though the crop marks symbolize capturing, but the symbol looks like it is for a camera or imaging company. • some of the sketches are too similar to the already existing logo, but showing the initial of the company’s name ‘k’ gives the icon a bold, strong and unique characteristic.
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keyword: seize
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keyphrase: capturing moments
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CAMP 2
round: 1 keyword: timeless keyphrase: forever with you
The second direction for the mark was timeless. Since Kodak company helps you capture memories that stays with you forever it seemed appropriate to include infinity in the mark. The idea of something staying with you for a long time worked well but seemed to be lacking something i.e. it wasn’t representing the brand to its fullest therefore I chose to combine camp 1 (seize) and camp2 (timeless) together, doing this will make the logo more meaningful.
• the keyword alone is not very strong, but combining it with another keyword might give a new perspective. • the infinity symbol to represent timeless looks too generic, therefore search other icons that represent timeless.
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keyword: timeless
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keyphrase: forever with you
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CAMP 3
round: 1 keyword: effortless keyphrase: quick, fun and simple
Kodak is a brand that makes the process of capturing/making memories simple therefore the keyword for my third camp is effortless (quick, fun and simple). Abstract and simplified icons of fast, moment, arrows were to represent the easiness in the brand. The idea of creating the initial of the brand Kodak using negative and positive space represents presence even when its actually missing. Whereas the arrows not only show going to the next moment but it also represents that one can always go back in time as the moment has been captured forever.
• the legs of k are forming interesting arrows, but they are pointing backwards, try something that takes the viewer forward. • the negative space in the icon forming the letter ‘k’ is an interesting idea. try doing the same with other icons.
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keyword: effortless
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keyphrase: quick, fun and simple
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02 REVISITING THE CAMPS
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CAMP 1
round:2 keyword: seize keyphrase: capturing memory new element: elephant The ideas and concept from camp one continued. The new element introduced in round 2 is an elephant. The reason i wanted to use an icon of an elephant is because it has a sharp memory and never forgets anything. Therefore I thought it would be a good idea to include an iconic representation of elephant in the mark. The technique of using an iconic representation of an elephant was helping my brand as it was representing the values of the brand. Therefore I explored different ways to represent an elephant in the logo.
• using an elephant symbol indicates strong memory, it indirectly indicates the spirit of the kodak. • circular and curvy shapes work better than geometric shapes as it gives the icon more humanistic feeling.
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keyword: seize
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keyphrase: capturing moments
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new element: elephant
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CAMP 1 + 2
round:2 keyword: seize + timeless keyphrase: capturing memory + forever with you new element: elephant + k As the idea of including an iconic elephant in the mark was working I tried a lot many variations. One of the sketches gave way to a new idea of combining the icon and the initial of the brand ‘k’ together. Therefore I tried different versions and ways to combine the iconic symbol (elephant) with the initial K.
• combining the two elements, elephant & k, works well as a mark • use thick and bold strokes as delicate strokes make the mark look week and does not show the spirit of the company kodak.
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keyword: seize + timeless
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keyphrase: capturing memory
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new element: elephant + k
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keyword: seize + timeless
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keyphrase: capturing memory
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new element: elephant + k
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CAMP 1 + 2 round:2 keyword: seize keyphrase: capturing memory new element: memory bubble As the direction and keyword still worked well to represent the brand values, I continued to search for elements that represents memory. The idea of a memory bubble fit well with the brand value. Therefore I explored in that area. The sketches seemed interesting specially where we try to combine K within the memory bubble.
• k within the memory bubble formed by the negative space seemed to be a viable option. • some of the sketches have a beautiful curve which visually present the flow that guided the eye towards the center.
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keyword: seize
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keyphrase: capturing memory
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new element: memory bubble
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CAMP 1 + 3 round: 3 keyword: seize + effortless keyphrase: capture memories easily new element: arrow
Arrows are strong elements, they can represent a lot of ideas. I used it to not only represent “going to the next moment” but also going back to a memory as and when desired. The marks visually looks interesting and engaging. Arrows and lines also bring a sense of movement in the logo.
• another meaning of arrow can be taking you to the next moment which connects back to kodak’s soul. • geometric lines make the mark look less feminine. •maybe stick with the idea of memory as these don’t have the emotional connection to the soul of kodak.
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keyword: seize + effortless
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keyphrase: capturing memory easily
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new element: arrow
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03 DIGITAL SKETCHES
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CAMP 1
round: 3 keyword: seize keyphrase: capturing memory new element: elephant + k The idea from the camp one continued with refinements. Colors were added. The elephant in the k seemed to be an appropriate logo for the brand but the ball in the trunk and the leg of k was making the brand look like a beauty company. Therefore I decided to take a step backwards.
• make the k + elephant less curvy and more geometric so it doesn’t look very feminine. • don’t use pastel colors, try bright and bold colors . • try to simplify the symbol and stick with the concept of memory. • the geometric shapes are too abstract for people to resonate it with elephant
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keyword: seize
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keyphrase: capturing moments
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symbol: elephant
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03 FINAL LOGO 12 14 20
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final logo and logotype final logo details logo anatomy
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FINAL LOGO & LOGOTYPE round:3 keyword: seize keyphrase: capturing memory new element: memory bubble
Thought bubble represents memory, therefore I chose thought bubble as the logo’s theme to represent the main idea of our brand that is capturing life’s moments and making it a part of our precious memory. After considering all the facts I chose a memory bubble to represent our logo. With this idea I started with my computer drafts. These are some of the development process.
• the dots direction works good but pairing it with a logotype might be a problem. therefore try different type solutions. • ball serif with a serif type makes the mark look like a beauty company’s logo. try a bold serif or slab serif to create a balance between the curvy memory bubble and the type.
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keyword: seize
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keyphrase: capturing moments
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symbol: memory bubble
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FINAL LOGO DETAILS we need to fit a slab serif letter ‘k’ within the bubble, therefore we need to adjust the width of the slab serif so the symbol looks well balanced.
need to make the connecting part of the ball serif of ‘k’ and the memory bubble more smooth
since we have connecting dots on the icon and an ‘o’ in the company’s name we need to make it look like a continuation so that the symbol and the logo type optically look aligned.
There are small details that needs to be fixed to maximize the beauty of the logo. Since we change the structure of the letter, we need to do some optical adjustments to make it look right.
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» signature
» symbol
» wordmark
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=X
16x
13x
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“Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, the things you are, the things you never want to lose.” kevin arnold, the hero of ‘the wonder years’
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» DESIGNER
» Bani Rangar
» PHOTOGRAPHY
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Henry Peach Robinson Adolphus H. Stoiber Andrew Pringle George Davison Alfred Horsley Hinton Tom Perkins Rule Maxphil Simone Tramonte
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