Issue link: https://nbm.uberflip.com/i/1490460
2 8 G R A P H I C S P R O • F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3 G R A P H I C S - P R O. C O M S I G N A G E & P R I N T I N G Print A) e barely minimal readable font size, for a sans serif font, is 5 point. B) A comfortable reading font size for printed materials (at arm's length) is 12 point. C) Contrast of the logo design is affected by the size of the logo — pay attention to readability at a glance. Consider a light or dark background to help create the right mood and feeling for the logo design. D) Logos that are small read better when they are designed horizontally. E) Round and square logos usually require an alternate, matching elongated text logo version for better readability when rendered at only ¼" tall or smaller (pens, pointers, combs, clickers, fobs, chop sticks, etc.) F) Business cards with a secondary detail copy should not be any smaller than 6 point. Keep your clients logo text around 11 point when it's on the business card, and list their mailing or physical address in 9 point. (of course, paying attention to the font style is critical for an effective card layout) Embroidery A) e smallest font size that can be embroidered and still remain readable on a front pocket is 12 point. (In my opin- ion, some fonts can be embroidered at a smaller size and still maintain readabil- ity.) 12 point will assure you a readable embroidered logo. B) A lot of the same considerations for print and screen apply to embroidery. C) Colors cost — colors are counted one at a time with embroidery. D) Threads can help add additional shimmer (visual interest) to contrasting colors. Wraps, signage and delivery vehicle graphics A) Readability, readability, readability. Did I also mention that the logo needs to be readable at a distance — while the vehi- cle is moving? Readability is king, and if the design is crowded or busy, it must have an alternative for use within these unique applications. B) Avoid using colors in the logo that conflict with the other colors they prefer, such as with their delivery van, which is bright red — so naturally a blue logo will vibrate if placed on that red background. Limiting colors and using graphic design to make the logo stand-out on its own is the best way to create a logo that will be most easily converted to a vehicle graphic. C) Channel letter fabrication is pretty much limited to a 6" tall sans serif, cap- ital letter. Letter sizes for channel letters are calcu- lated using the size of a non-descending capital letter, such as an A, B, D, E, F, H, I, K, L, M, N, P, R, T, V, W, X, or Z. D) Many times taglines must be ren- dered as non-internally illuminated flat cut out or cast letters. Most logos have tag lines that are created without consid- eration of how it would be rendered as a channel letter sign. Letters shorter than 6" in height can't easily be made into a channel letter. E) Most logos have too much infor- mation to absorb. Minimizing and fine tuning the thought-count is always a good bet in every logo design situation. Logos should never have more than three thoughts in place. Ideally, two thoughts work best. Billboards, semi-trailers and big graphic things A) At this point, a logo with a lot of fine details is almost just as cumbersome to incorporate into outdoor advertising as it is for producing it at ¼" tall on the side of a chopstick. Envision you're driving on any state or federal highway, and you are seeing the many 100' tall pylon signs advertising the restaurants and gas stations that are acces- sible by taking the next exit. How many of those tall pylon signs have really busy messages or logos? Notice how the focus on one message for a quick two or three second read at 75 mph from 1,000 yards away or more. Remember that at extreme distances, the logo colors may be the only recognizable branding element. ink of Motel 6, McDonalds, or Texaco. Clean, contrasting logos with easy read- ability at all distances. B) Get the Gemini letter height chart for determining how big a letter needs to be for readability at 100', 300', and 1,000 feet. is chart is pretty darn accurate. In a nutshell, for every 1" of letter height, you can read that letter up to 10 feet away. A 5" tall letter is comfortably readable at 50 feet (give or take a bit for a variety of fac- tors). You can find the chart here: https:// gpro.link/heightchart. C) Remember the rule of contrast: "con- trast rules" and it is the primary consider- ation of every sign or logo design. D) e farther away from the image you get, the darker all colors will appear. Pantone 350 green will look much, much darker at a distance of 500 feet on a cloudy or overcast day. It's a fact that occurs due to the sun's varying Kelvin (color) as it rises and sets. is typically does not occur with signs viewed indoors due to the consistent over- head lighting. GP Logo Parameters Parameters to consider if the logo is going to be used for print, laser, screen, and specialty items