Graphic Design for Beginners: Logos in Adobe Illustrator

Name: Graphic Design for Beginners: Logos in Adobe Illustrator
Rating: 4.4 (14 reviews)

How to create beautiful, custom logos that will impress your clients and help you land more work as a graphic designer.

Created byDerrick Mitchell

Last updated 10/2022

English

English [Auto],

What you'll learn

Strategies to quickly brainstorm unique logo ideas
Import sketches from a notepad using the camera on your phone, or Procreate on an iPad into Adobe Illustrator
Create beautiful, custom logos that will impress your clients and help you land more work as a graphic designer.
Fonts and Typography with Adobe Illustrator
Draw vector shapes with Illustrator
Work with color in Adobe Illustrator
Quickly create design variations
Export and package your logo design files

Course content

1 section • 15 lectures • 2h 31m total length

Welcome to the Course!1:41
Follow along as you learn to create logos in Adobe Illustrator, with downloadable assets and a hands-on project to showcase your work.
Project Background and Random Name Generator3:54
Explore how to generate logo ideas with a random number generator and a spreadsheet, crafting brand names from adjectives, nouns, and types to inspire custom logos.
Brainstorming Unique Ideas10:31
Brainstorm unique logo ideas by transforming random words into concepts, exploring initials, symbols, and typography for a portfolio, while sketching in a low-tech notebook to stay focused before using illustrator.
Sketching Quick Thoughts on Paper6:40
Sketch quick thoughts on paper to brainstorm logo ideas for the mysterious energy coalition, exploring symbols, backstory, and iterative refinements, then let concepts breathe before moving to digital design.
Sketching Quick Logos on an iPad14:11
Sketch quick logos on an iPad with vector shapes and brushes, then sync to Illustrator on a desktop via the cloud, import from Procreate and Fresco for tracing in Illustrator.
Import Sketches Into Adobe Illustrator7:13
Learn to import sketches into Adobe Illustrator using Adobe Capture, create a reusable library for colors, fonts, and shapes, and sync assets across Photoshop and Illustrator.
Image Trace in Adobe Illustrator13:16
Convert photos and scans captured with Adobe Capture into editable vectors in Adobe Illustrator with Image Trace, refine with color edits and transforms, and save to cloud for cross-device work.
Get Comfortable (and FAST) With Shortcuts7:53
Master keyboard shortcuts in Illustrator to speed logo design, switch tools with the spacebar and command keys, sample colors with the Eyedropper Tool, and customize shortcuts for efficiency.
Fonts and Typography with Adobe Illustrator18:35
Learn how to find, download, install, and sync fonts in Adobe Illustrator for logo design, using Adobe Fonts and Typekit, plus practical font pairing tips.
Draw Vector Shapes in Illustrator13:21
Learn to build and manipulate logo shapes in Illustrator using rectangle and ellipse tools, Shape Builder Tool and Pathfinder, grouping, strokes and fills, and a black-and-white workflow before color.
Working with Color in Adobe Illustrator11:15
Explore color in Adobe Illustrator with Adobe Color, color harmony tools, and color guides, save palettes to libraries, and sample colors from images to craft brand logos.
Putting it all Together16:27
Put it all together by quickly drafting a black-and-white logo concept for Mysterious Energy Coalition in Illustrator, exploring shapes, fonts, and variations, then color and refine.
Create Design Variations with Artboards in Adobe Illustrator12:53
Create logo variations on art boards in Adobe Illustrator, experimenting with color, gradients, alignment, and recolor with presets to prepare assets for export.
Export Logo Files11:49
Export your logos from Illustrator by selecting artboards and exporting as JPEG or PNG with a transparent background and high resolution for on-screen or print.
Next Steps1:29
Export your logo and post it in the class so we can celebrate your work. Explore graphic design resources, live streams, and tutorials, and subscribe to my newsletter for tips.

Requirements

We will be using Adobe Illustrator on a desktop computer for the main logo design, and I'll also show you how to use Procreate, Adobe Fresco, and Adobe Illustrator on an iPad to come up with some ideas. However, you do not need an iPad to take this course - it's just another tool that you could use to produce your logo if you have one.

Description

If you're a graphic designer or wish to become a graphic designer, creating a logo is one of the number one things you get asked to do.

In this class, I'm going to show you exactly how to create beautiful, custom logos that will impress your clients and help you land more work as a graphic designer.

There are a lot of different ways you can use these skills immediately while following along with the class. We're going to do a few different things:

First, we're going to be jumping in using a notebook or a piece of paper to sketch out some ideas.
Then we're going to use an iPad for a little bit and I will show you how to create digital art using that tool. For example, you can use Procreate or Adobe Fresco, or even Illustrator on the iPad.
Perhaps you've got a Wacom tablet, which is another excellent design tool - I will show you some ways to use that for logo design as well.
Then we will use Adobe Illustrator to bring everything together into a polished, well-rounded artboard, followed by a beautifully packaged finished logo.

Maybe you're not an "artist." Maybe you're terrible at art - like I was when I first started out! If that is the case, don't worry! I'm going to show you how to use design software to create highly polished, beautiful work even if you can't sketch to save your life.

I am so excited to have you here in the class - let's make some cool logos!

Class Requirements

We will be using Adobe Illustrator on a desktop computer for the main logo design, and I'll also show you how to use Procreate, Adobe Fresco, and Adobe Illustrator on an iPad to come up with some ideas. However, you do not need an iPad to take this course - it's just another tool that you could use to produce your logo if you have one.

Who this course is for:

Intermediate graphic designers and freelancers who want to learn the logo design process
Entrepreneurs who want to learn just enough to make their own logo for their new company