STYLE GUIDE
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introduction 04
voice 08
typography 12
color 14
logo 20
examples 26
PHOTOS
HELLO
It started with a group of illustrators working at Marvel becoming frustrated with the company’s work for hire policies. They felt it didn’t reward the talent that was produced. Marvel heavily merchandised their artwork and compensated them with little royalties. They all met with Marvel and informed they were leaving, gave their reasons why and warned them to heed those reasons to prevent future exoduses. So, in May of 1992, these group of illustrators (known as “X-odus” because many of them illustrated X-Men comics), Todd McFarlane, Jim Lee, Erik Larsen, Rob Liefeld, Marc Silvestri, and Jim Valentino created Image Comics. Image was and is completely independent. Each Image partner founded his own studio, each free from any central editorial control. Image would not own any creator’s work; the creator would. No Image partner would interfere with any other partner – creatively or financially.
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VOICE
INDEPENDENT
We like to let our writers and our illustrators speak for themselves. Each comic has its own story to tell and its own emotion to express. Don’t change what is being said, but emphasize the differentiation between the individual characteristics that make each comic original.
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We want our brand to be exuberant and animated in our storytelling and our illustrations. Tell a story in a way that has never been told before. Show off the artisitic talent of our illustrators and our writers. Be vivid and loud with design.
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imaginative
INNOVATIVE
We want to surprise readers with creativity in each issue that is published. Each comic published should bring something new to the Image universe. It’s important to think outside the box and to bring originality to represent our brand.
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type
HWT Artz 24 pt (at least) 75 tracking 30 pt leading
abcdefghijklmno pqrstuvwxyz 1234567890
Mr Eaves Mod OT 16 pt 5 tracking 18 pt leading
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz – book abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz – book italic abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz – bold 1234567890
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We have two typefaces that are associated with our brand: HWT Artz and Mr Eaves Mod OT. Used in conjunction, they carry across the bold and clean tone that won’t clash with the vivid colors and imagery each individual comic has.
writer
JOHN DOE writer John Doe
writer
JOHN DOE
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HWT Artz provides personality. It’s thickness brings emphasis when paired with Mr Eaves Mod OT. It should be used as the title of an article, an ad, or when giving credit to the creators. As shown to the left, this typeface puts more emphasis on the person rather than the job title. This is a representation of giving credit to the creator, something Image proudly supports.
Mr Eaves Mod OT provides the clean look and contrast between the header and body. Book is preferred, but Bold can be used if Book is too thin when it is printed, or to add emphasis in the body. When using Mr Eaves Mod OT as a title like in the example, use all lowercase.
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color
secondary
primary
PANTONE Black 6 C HEX 101820 RGB 16 24 32 CMYK 100 79 44 93
PANTONE cool gray 1 C HEX D9D9D6 RGB 217 217 214 CMYK 04 02 02 08
tertiary
PANTONE 1365 c HEX FFB549 RGB 255 181 73 CMYK 0 34 76 0
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LOGO
The Image logo is bold and thick so it will stand out when put on the illustrations found on the cover of comic, without taking too much attention from the creator’s artwork. The logo should not have multiple colors. If color is to be added, everything should be changed to the same color. If it needs to be inversed onto a solid color background, the logo and logotype should be white. Examples on the next page illustrate what this means. The color can change to any color to compliment individual comic publications. For instance, if the cover of a comic has a rich red that stands out, the logo can be changed to that rich red.
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The white space around the logo is equivelent to the letter ‘M’ taken from the logotype, flipped 90 degrees clockwise. This technique is used to keep the same ratio when the logo is scaled to a smaller size.
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1.5 in
.75 in
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Examples
The logo is most commonly found on the front cover of a comic book. Since comics are becoming more digital, the logo is also found in the Image app. Just like any other company with proper branding, the logo will also appear on advertisements, event posters, company swag, etc. For most of the logo application, the black and the white versions are used. When it comes to the company swag, color can be applied, but isn’t necessary; it’s more of a case-by-case situation.
Issue
#282 $2.50
Mcfarlane Kudranski
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Within the app, the logo should remain in the same position on every page, except when the user starts reading a comic. The logo should serve as a link to the home page.
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photos
The imagery representing Image Comics should be imagistic and minimalistic. Minimal colors should be present. These examples are very expressive and have a distinct style. Not all imagery has to be like these, but stick to simplicity with the color and content. When placing the logo, make it a part of the scene by either changing the color to match or by putting part of it behind something in the picture, like in this poster to the right. You should always be able to read the logotype and the logo should never get lost in the image.
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IMAGE COMICS, INC. 2701 NW Vaughn Street Suite 780 Portland, Oregon 97210 imagecomics.com