Studio Brief 3 - From Digital to Physical

As this layout choice is one of my options so far, I decided to print a few of the double page spreads out. As I've used this similar layout for the summer brief, I've only looked at the design digitally. So it was important to print a few of the mock ups, just to see how it looks in a physical format as once viewed physically it may change how I look at the overall image. I could notice aspects about the design that i didn't notice on the computer screen. For example the images looked a lot bigger on actually paper and most aspects were very much in your face. Therefore i may go back to the design and see how I can implement this into the layout design.

Studio Brief 3 - Printing Price Research

Looking outside my limitation of the production method of my publication. I've have so far gathered that for my publication i want to use one letter of the alphabet on one double page spread. By doing this my publication will be around 52 pages. Another aspect is that as the target audience for this publication is off a younger generation who are familiar and interested with Graphic Design or any creative industry i would want my publication to be shown in independent, arty book shops. Shops like Village Book shop, Colours May vary, Headrow house, Belgrave and universities. Also the publication could be used as a coffee table book or to be shown at art festivals.

So the obvious limitation with printing a 52 page book would be the price. For this project printing one 52 publication wouldn't be as big of an issue but if it was to be sold cheaply for book stores then the prices will become too much for a students budget.

I researched into printing companies who gave out an estimated price on A5 booklets with different binding methods. Working out the price will give me an understanding if it's possible to print a 52 page publication for a reasonable price without losing quality. Essentially a publication that can be cheaply purchased while being cheaply produced. Below are three companies with estimated prices.

Blurb.co.uk -  Prices

Bind method - Perfect Binding
Paper size - A5
Paper type - Gloss

Price - £2.99 for 20 pages.
£3.99 for Premium

Print24.com - prices
     
Bind method - Perfect Binding
Paper size - A5
Paper type - Gloss & Matt
Paper Weight - 170 gsm
Pages - 52

Price - 1x = £17.21 - 25x = £51

Bind method - Staple Bound
Paper size - A5
Paper type - Gloss & Matt
Paper Weight - 135 gsm
Pages - 52

Price - 1x = £8.68 - 25x = £12.28

Bind method - Loop Bound
Paper size - A5
Paper type - Gloss & Matt
Paper Weight - 135 gsm
Pages - 52

Price - 1x = £8.68 - 25x = £12.28

Bind method - Metal Wire spiral bound (wire o)
Paper size - A5
Paper type - Gloss & Matt
Paper Weight - 170 gsm
Pages - 52

Price - 25x = £104

Mixam.co.uk - prices

Bind method - Saddle Stitch
Paper size - A5
Paper type - Gloss & Silk
Paper Weight - 115 gsm
Pages - 52

Price - 5x = £24.10 - 25x = £44.80

Bind method - Perfect Bound
Paper size - A5
Paper type - Gloss & Matt
Paper Weight - 135 gsm
Pages - 52
Lamination - Gloss
Cover Paper - 170 coated

Price - 1x = £36.30 - 25x = £58

In Summary the prices from 3 websites are in the same price range. It's clear to see that buying in bulk is clearly the best cost efficient option then to just buy a few publication/books. It's also very obvious that perfect bound is the most expensive option with staple bound and loop bound to be the cheapest. However the only limitation is whether or not a staple bound or saddle stitch would be able to hand 52 pages as this would cause a huge problem on the cost side if i have to then go to another binding method which would mean a higher cost.

Studio brief 3 - Paper Mock up from Idea

For one of my initial sketches for the front cover (below),  I wanted to produce a paper mock up of how it would look in a tangible form. To explain the idea again. The front cover of the book would be in the similar style to how the front cover of the Nest publication works, with the strip of paper attached to the front. However this idea of the strip of paper wouldn't be a thin as the one for Nest. It would be more of a rectangle shape as I feel like this relates to the shape of the front cover due to proportions and scale.

The front cover wouldn't display any important information that the reader needs to know as it would be obscured by the rectangular flap and this wouldn't be good as you essentially want the user to understand what the book is about at first glance. However, this also could be a good aspect. If the book is designed right, a certain design aspect could enhance the visual appeal of the book by using a vivid colour or some visually appealing imagery which could interest the user to lift the rectangular flap to find out more. But as the target audience is young people, research shows that young people have an attention span of 6 seconds and also the book needs to communicate effectively amongst all the other selections of publications.

My idea for the rectangular flap would either have a description about the book or to use it for imagery. Finding the right balance between the flap and the front cover would be Paramount. Together it could create a sense of balance between type and image in a contemporary, professional manner.

Studio Brief 3 - Stock for life

When it comes to making any kind of book/publication stock is extremely important. The feel, weight and colour of stock could be the turning point of the book. Therefore I headed down to Manchester on the weekend to visit a number of art shops. Then I found the holy grail that is Fred Aldous.

As you can see from the photos I took below, they had a substantial amount of stock apart from gloss unfortunately! The main goal for the trip was to find the right stock for the front cover. I needed a stock gsm of lower then 200 in order for the paper to be thin enough to fold effectively. 

Finally i found the perfect stock weight of 135gsm and purchased that stock in a number of colours so it gives me room to experiment, with colour and technique. Through experimenting I hope to figure out what colour stock and weight is best for the functionality, readability and essentially the target audience.

Studio Brief 3 - Initial Ideas

Overall I wanted my initial sketches to represent Berlin. Berlin is the creative hot spot for Graphic Design and therefore my time in Berlin I saw a lot of visually stunning contemporary Graphic Design, from posters, books, museums, architecture to the Bauhaus museum. These factors all heavily influenced me to represent what I had seen in Berlin to create a contemporary and modern layout for my presentation.

Below are some initial ideas for how I wanted the layout of my publication to represent my target audience and also the city Berlin.

Full bleed image making up the majority of the page. Communicates a visually strong look that would attract and keep the user interested even if the information isn't as strong. The white strip on the left breaks up the strong image, given the user comfortable space to read the text. This showcases awareness and an aesthetically powerful layout with the right balance of white space and image.

Image here would again take up 3/4 of the page. A popular style amongst photography books. Half of the text would be overlaid on top of the image. This again is a popular style within Graphic Design but it also communicates a bond between text and image. The overlapping text also gives a clear tangible connection demonstrating that the text is about the image.

By far this is my favourite layout design. This design is based on the contemporary style I've seen a lot. The style is outlining objects, shapes and type with a black border/stroke. The concept here is to have one main featured image to take up 3/4 of the page and then a close up of the image on the right hand side. Having a zoomed in image of the type will put the typography in context and to allow the user to see the type up close if it wasn't already clear from the main image.

An overall clean and modern layout, making the best use of white space. All these aspects make up a contemporary style which should appeal to any creative person who has an interest in photography books or who are knowledgeable in current trends within Graphic Design.

This is how the layout would look if i wanted more then 1 letter on each page. Smaller image to allow for space to break up the page as the opposite side the image would take up the whole right hand side. This stops the whole page becoming to overcrowded, so having white space allows the users to feel comfortable reading the text without becoming overwhelmed by the visuals. Good use of white space that equalises the visually strong images.

Studio Brief 1 - Experimental Peice

As Brief 1 was coming to an end, I wanted to create my leaflet into a single sided leaflet. Everything on one side. With that in mind I came up with the below design. With everything on one side the leaflet can be more effective as a poster. With the other leaflet, if the audience wanted to use the leaflet as a poster then they had to chose what side they wanted, which could become problematic as they wouldn't be able to get the best use of the leaflet. In this version they can enjoy the visuals along with the design process information.

Once I had finished the design the next step was printing the leaflet. As you can see from the first image below. The blue is a very vivid RBG blue. I knew from the start i would come across limitations when printing. As the blue is RGB and not CMYK the blue won't be as vivid once printed. Therefore once i got into the print room, I asked James what kind of stock would be best to get as close to the RGB blue as possible. He indicated that no stock wouldn't print such a vivid blue. I suggested Matte stock as on a previous occasions I had printed a vivid RBG colour and the colour unexpectedly came out extremely vivid. 

Therefore James printed the the leaflet on Matte and unfortunately the blue came out very soft, which wasn't what i wanted. However James suggested if i was to work with RGB colours in Photoshop again then I could use the 'colour correction' setting to view on screen what the colours would look like on different stocks. Essentially this would allow me to see how the colours would print on different stocks before actually printing the design.

Before I left the printing room, I wanted to print the leaflet on a thinner gloss stock, this would allow me to fold the leaflet as the matte stock was to thick to do. James explained that this would make the colour more saturated then how it printed on the Matte paper due to the laser printer having only 4 inks and the other printers having around 11 (I think). With this in mind I decided to carry on with the stock choice and to mine and James surprise the blue became a lot more vivid then then how it printed on Matte.

*Note - Due to the lack of development for this leaflet design, this is not my final leaflet but is my favourite design out of the lot.

Study Task 1 - Yahoo! Website Redesign

Today the study task we were given a quick brief so introduce use to responsive. The task was a short brief to redesign the Yahoo! search engine. Designing it in a way in which it could essentially become more effective and a serious competitor to Google.

First off the target audience had to be decided. In the end we decided to design for the younger generation as these would be the people who would be able to change Yahoo! into the number 1 search engine. The younger audience on the Internet are very impressionable and easily influence within changing from one site to the other. Therefore if you make Yahoo! into something that this market will love, then it would be injected into their minds and their subconscious for a long time, therefore their loyalty will be with Yahoo! and not with any other search engine.

Our idea was to have everything you would need as a young person who ventures onto the Internet. After some initial research most young people are using social media as their main go to sites.

With this in mind our Yahoo! homepage will feature the users most popular sites along with the search bar and other links which will allow the user to go on other pages around the site, including news, mail and social media links. 

Once the user lands on the page they get a summary of their social media profiles. Therefore they can get a quick overlook and to even see if they have any notification. If they decide that they want to use one of their social media sites then they can just expand the section and that particular social media page they have chosen will open up into the full page version. This would mean that they can use that social media website whilst still being on the Yahoo! website page. However if they want to click on an external link they they will be taken away from the Yahoo! website.

This image shows what the news page looks like. Each section of the site would be colour coded in order for easy viewing around the sight. Once the user gets use to what colours represents, the user wouldn't need text in order to know what section they are looking at as the colours would be symbolic.

What the site looks like on the mobile site.

Studio Brief 2 - Final Logo

Below is my final logo along with some variations. So, my logo is aimed at the technology industry, mainly because I felt out of all the different audiences I could of chose, the technology industry is worth billions and billion, therefore if you design for them then the possibility of a big investment or funding would be extremely beneficial. Other then aiming the overall look at the nature side of the company, where the biggest advantages that would come from that would be a pat on the back and a good public image. And to me money is the most important aspect for a start up company.

With that in mind, tech is very modern, it's advancing and many technology companies are aesthetically modern and are pushing limits in the 21st century. You only have to look at companies like Apple, eBay, adobe, Microsoft and Hp, all companies that hold modern styles. Modern design lets your audience know that you're in the 21st century, coming up with ground back technology and leading the way for future advances, so the design is a big game changer when trying to convey a certain message.

The logo it's self represents a modern style. I took what Hardshell wanted to change about their current logo and simplified it. I had to make a huge decision to go against most of what they wanted but me as a designer, i trusted myself with the decision making. The logo is a simplified version of the current logo but with a modern spin. The current logo is to over done and complicated making it look outdated. You need a logo that will stick in your mind and be recognisable within a glance and i feel this logo does just that. Cleverly using the two main aspects of the company, the world and the tortoise, and with that simple combination you have yourself a logo that can be as effective without the use of type; due to the icon's visual semiotic of the company, it does what it says on the tin. Using a world wide community to help tortoises.

In terms of the type. Apercu translated a readable, solid and modern typeface. With the typesetting I decreased the tracking and kerning to tighten up the space between the letter. By doing this the type communicated a strong link, almost looks like a compact object expressing security and strength, which relates back to the tortoise. 'labs' at the bottom with the two lines either side have been placed in that position to give balance to the tortoise icon. Through experimentation it seemed that the tortoise made the overall positioning look a bit top heaving, so having this feature of the lines either side of 'labs' counteracts this top heavy problem.

I've also shown the colour version of the logo. Taking on board the comment from Hardshell, they didn't like how 'contrasty' the current logo was. With this criticism, I made the two colours a shade of green, mainly to represent the nature part of the company but also this allows the colour to still look different in terms of shade without becoming to garnish.

Lastly you can see how the logo would work with just the icon. Visually strong with such a simple shape that can be mocked up on any product or collateral. an overall representation of Hardshell Labs.

Studio Brief 2 - Brand Guidelines

Brand guidelines is extremely important for the brand strategy and consistency across all platforms, including print and digital. It's also important if a third party uses using the logo for any purpose. It's also an important step for the designer to ensure when he finishes up the project that he will take steps ensuring the brand will stay consistent even if it's handle by 2 or 100 designers. 

That's why the rules have been put into place to express a certain image of that company and if someone comes along and doesn't follow the guidelines then the professionalism aspect is damaged and the company's images could also be damaged.

Front cover.

On this page, I've set out the rules on how to use the final logo. I've expressed what logo can be used and the different versions, so the icon & type, icon only, colour and reversed version. I've also set size requirements. It's important to have a rule where the logo isn't shown to small as it could become un-readable. Also demonstrating the amount of margin space also allows the logo breathing room and not become over crowded with other objects.

This page sets rules on what colours to use. So the primary colour is the main colour and should always be the go to colour. The secondary colours would be used along side the primary colour.

Lastly the fonts. Sticking to a font is key, the chosen font the designer has chosen for the brand represents the brands vision and ethos, so sticking with it is extremely important. If not used properly then it could damage the brand reputation and the replacement font could even create a different feeling of the brand. Secondary fonts should only be used as a last resort but normally they should have similar characteristics and style to the primary font.

Studio Brief 2 - Design Collateral

To have an overall banding strategy, it was important to applying the new logo and branding to a number of collateral. To give an overall feel and to bring the brand to life, It's important to create a flawless aesthetic that will ensure the target audience interactivity and connection with the brand, which you're only going to get that by having a good brand strategy and a consistent user experience. 

I had to think carefully about what I wanted to apply Hardshell Labs branding & logo on. There isn't no point in applying it to things that isn't relevant to the company, for example I wouldn't apply the branding to a tote bag or onto a bottle or cup as that isn't what the company uses or advertise. 

Below are the different types of collateral I applied the Hardshell brand onto.

Website

This is the current website for Hardshell Labs. As you can see it's laughable, what user can go on this site and easily enjoy the experience that makes them return again and again. However, the user experience is non existent. Outdated design. Designed without any thought or care.

This is the new design. As you can see, I totally changed the look and feel, bringing the current site out of the 90's and into a modern and contemporary design age with an attractive and visually appealing user experience. I wanted to design a website that reflected the current target market and vision. I wanted a modern aesthetic that still Incorporated the branding and also makes good use of the logo. The target audience I'm trying to aim at is the technology side of the business, as this market could potentially bring in the most interest and investment. However I still wanted to have a link to the nature side.

Sticking to the brand guidelines, i kept with four colour limitation, black, green, grey and red. All these colours play a specific role in the design process. My thoughts behind the design was to have the user experience as paramount. Once the user hits the site they will be instantly hit by the red bar at the top. Then hopefully the red social media bar will subconsciously be in their mind throughout, which could led them onto one of the social media pages. Next step is to have a visual image of what the company is about, and that is the tortoise. On top of the tortoise is the logo, straight to the point, this is what the company is and this is what we represent. The whole website is in three section. One section for the header will be what the user immediately sees. The white section is for information and the black area is the footer section. Green is used to highlight titles and important text, red is used for highlight the call to action buttons and to grab the users attention.

Poster

For the poster, I wanted to show what it would look like if the company was promoting their Kickstarter page. Something simple but putting in effect all the consistency of branding guidelines. Appealing to the technology side of market in order to try and bring in their support and investment. I wanted to use a design that was vibrant, modern and straight to the point. Green to link back to the nature side of the company but using the remote control car to attract and appeal to the target audience. Then simply using a short paragraph of text in a contemporary fashion .

Business Card

Business card. I wanted the business card to have the look and consistence of the website and poster. Therefore i kept the modern look. I added a gradient to the front of the card to add a vibrant, attractive touch. This will allow the business card to stand out among the crowd, putting the company out there, showcasing that they want to be seen and heard and want to be in the limelight.

If I wanted to represent the nature side of the company towards then I would choose a different stock choice, maybe an organic paper that is environmentally friendly. But for this business card, gloss would be the perfect choice and having a thick stock to represent boldness and professionalism.

 Clothing

A lot of the time Hardshell Labs will be out in the field researching about the tortoises and finding out ways they can protect the tortoises. Therefore it would be beneficial to have the branding placed on clothing. Using the icon of the logo without the type, still links and relates strongly to the company. It also appears clean and modern. The colour of the t-shirt would be green to represent the wildlife, nature loving side of the company. If i was to make the actually bag then the bag would be environmentally friendly and made out of strong material, this will ensure that the companies public image will remain positive, also the strength of the bag will be a big help due to the terrain in with the desert tortoises live in.

Studio Brief 2 - Target Audience

Before I start designing, it's important to know who I'm designing for. Hardshell Labs is a complicated business, it's very hard to understand their end goal as they are still developing to this day. Hardshell Labs has a wide target audience that includes a lot of industries, which are mostly very different from each other.

For example the company protects the Desert Tortoises from becoming extinct and this is their main goal i would personally say. Therefore their target audience should be aimed at people who love animals and an audience who generally loves the outdoors/Nature/Wildlife. But then the other aspect of the company is that Hardshell Labs want to engage and connect with the gaming and technology industry. This is because Hardshell Labs wants to use remote control cars to follow and protect the tortoises from the ravens above,  as the ravens are too cautious to attack when something unknown is in the area. The amazing part is that Hardshell Labs will give control to a world wide community of gamers who will essentially control the remote control cars from their bedrooms. Opening up the target market to such a wide and contrast in different community of that of nature lovers. The tech industry will be opened due to Hardshell labs designing and creating their own remote control cars and this will spark up interest from the technology community.

So, overall I have to find a away in which i can use different techniques throughout Graphic Design in order for my overall brand identity/logo to represent the number of different target audiences. unless i design specifically towards a certain market, which could actually be a disadvantage but essentially you have to look into what target audience the product will impact the most. Initially it would be the nature community because the whole concept of the company is all about protecting the tortoise. So,  in theory the protection and welfare of the animal should always be center to the company's heart, but then again if you look at it in terms of money and funding, the tech industry would be best as the industry is worth a considerable amount compared to any other market.

Studio Brief 2 - Brand Strategy

Definition of Brand Strategy:

Long-term marketing support for a brand, based on the definition of the characteristics of the target consumers. It includes understanding of their preferences, and expectations from the brand.

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/brand-strategy.html

Brand strategy is an aspect that should be in every single designers thought process from start to finish, when designing branding. Keeping the end result of the brand strategy will help you make design decisions based on how the imagine of the brand will last after you have received the pay check.

It's all about how the imagine of the brand will connect with the target audience. How will they receive it, and will their perceptions change after 1 year or 5. It's not about designing for the here and now it's about creating a piece of timeless design that can last 10 or 20 years. Essentially the concept and approach to the strategy has to be well thought out not only by the design by also by the marketing team and they will mostly be in charge of the brands image and identity one your part of the process is over with.

At the moment Hardshell Labs brand is practically non existing. The overall brand has not been implemented. Therefore, the user can't fully take in the experience needed in return for the target users trust and loyalty. The brand has to be consistent and remain functionable.

Therefore, once I start designing the brand for Hardshell labs the mind set should be how can this brand go on further once I've finished. How can i design the logo in a certain way to create a timeless design, which is visually and conceptually strong throughout. The logo and brand has to be designed to connect to the intended user that they keep coming back and interacting with the brand. This won't stop at the logo, the consistency will have to be implemented across all platforms in all aspects like Print, digital and social media, all which has a vital role to play

Studio Brief 2 - Intrim Crit

As the brief was extremely short. There wasn't time for a interim crit with the tutors, so instead I decided to ask people what they thought of my initial ideas. This way I don't miss out on precious feedback, which can be extremely beneficial and a huge disadvantage if missed.

In the feedback session a lot people gave their advice on my designs. Overall, there were two designs they liked the best. These designs were:

They felt this one looked modern and the idea of a chiseled typeface would link well with the wildlife side of the company. However, they mentioned that I should try out the logo within a circle or some kind of shape in order to represent the characteristics of tortoise's shell, which is strong and safe.

This is the other design they liked. They were impressed with how I translated the feedback I was given from Hardshell about there current logo and tried to to implement it within this design. As one of the pieces of feedback was that they wanted the tortoise to look as if he was standing strong, a powerful stance, with this i made the tortoise raise it's front leg and climb a rock.

Overall a good feedback session. It gives me a clear understanding that I'm on the right path and the concept I'm trying to express is clear enough within my designs.

Studio Brief 2 - Final Crit

To be honest I didn't receive a lot of feedback from the final crit and hopefully that's because my idea was good enough that it had no improvements. I did notice that Simon called my logo a 'super logo', which is very encouraging to hear and it assures me that I've done an effective job with the logo and concept.

The only bit of feedback i received is whether or not the logo needed the type. The group all agreed that the icon represented the company quite effectively so perhaps the need for type isn't necessary. Also Simon suggested that the circle should be used after i was unsure if i should use the circle with the weathered look. However Simon suggested i should use the icon within the circle to represent security and protection for the tortoises.

Studio Brief 2 - Back To The Drawing Board Continued

Continuing on from the previous blog "Back to the drawing board" I started to mock that idea up digitally in illustrator to see how it turns out.  Below are the different variations of that logo idea.

This is the mock up of the tortoise. I simplified the tortoise so it would be a strong icon to use without type if i ever wanted to do so. Also it's easier to use on a range of products. As you can see the world is the focus point and is the most dominant aspect of the logo as to show a world wide community of people.

Here I've implemented the logo with type. The main thing I learnt from the previous logo that failed is that the font Bebas is the font that very much suits the look and feel I'm trying to achieve, so that's the font I'll be sticking with. Stacked logo flows a lot better. The position could also represent being at the top of the world. showcasing the importance of the company's objective.

Testing out different positioning. Isn't as strong as the stacked version. Looks lopsided.

Testing the logo out within a box to represent more of a contemporary style. Also using dotted lined at each end of 'Labs'

Using the same typeface, I modified the type with the eraser to give the type a chiseled representation. I also applied this effect with the white strip covering 'labs'. Using this effect communicates a hand crafted feel, almost like someone has hand crafted the type on wood or the typography over time has been weathered down by nature. Giving a greater link with nature and the wildlife.

I used the circle around the icon to represent strength and security, linking in with the company's true values of protecting the tortoises. I also used the same effect on the circle as i did on the text in the previous image.

Added text to see how it all works together.

So i started to apply colour to the tortoise. Obviously colour is important if the logo is going to be used on a wide variety of products. I didn't want the colour scheme to become to vivid and cliche looking so i decided to stick with soft colours. Using soft colours communicates a modern, contemporary feel to the overall aesthetics. Also from the feedback from Tim Shields (CEO of Hardshell) He mentioned that he didn't like the current logo because it felt to 'garnish' and 'contrasty' taking this on board i used complimentary colours that were different in colour but similar enough not to appear to 'contrasty' as Tim put it.

Another variation of colour.

Reversed version to show what it would look like on a different background. Looks great to me.

Overall I feel like this logo is pretty successful in communicating the company in a simplistic manner. And is the strongest so far by a long shot.

Also, while i was in the zone i mocked up a few more ideas that i wanted to test out. None of them really worked for me but they are below any how.

This needed more development but i ended up leaving this idea due to preferring the other logo.

To unprofessional looking. Tortoise didn't really mould well with the wheels.

Studio Brief 2 - Development Of Initial Ideas

Developing on from my initial ideas, I have chosen a logo in which I thought would be the most effective. But however through this process of designing the idea digitally I found many problems with the logo. The main one was making the logo to complicated to be effective enough and also getting the wildlife scene to look like a desert tortoise habitat without over complicating it with the amount of detail.

Below is the process stage i went through.

This is the habitat scene i came up with. Is quite simplistic in order for it to be seen and understood more then over complicating it with colours and shading. In the scene i used a mountain to shape the whole scene along with trees, ravens, remote control car and a tortoise. Everything that sums up what the company does in a small illustration. Also this style is more modern rather then going for something more realistic, which can translate as a bit outdated and complicated.

I then tried adding in typography to balance the whole logo out. The 'labs' with the two lines at the bottom are used to fill in the gaps and giving depth and equality to the overall aesthetics. I felt the best way to go in terms of type would be a San-serif. As the properties of a San-serif is modern and very readable, which i exactly what I'm looking for then a serious looking serif font, also i feel can relate more with the target audience. So this font is using Helvetica.

Lower case Futura. A lot better then Helvetica. Gives off a stronger, rounder feel.

Upper case Futura. Upper case seem to work better then lower case and that's because the ascender of some letters are interfering and not letting the illustration above sit comfortable in relation to the type. But the upper cases allows the illustration to fit comfortable on top.

Different position of the 'Labs'. Using the line to guide your eyes.

Trying out Garamond. However as I've already mentioned serif fonts look to formal and stiff.

Trying out Bebas Neue. So far my favourite out of the lot. Very strong looking, readable, modern and reminds me of trees due to the smaller width that makes the type appear taller. 

Once I approached a few people in class about the logo they mentioned that the illustration was too busy and over complicated, which made it hard to see from a distance. With this in mind i simplified the illustration by taking out the tree and only using the ravens, car and tortoise. 

So here is the finished mock up. I added the circle to represent protection and strength while letting the middle section come out from the circle to communicate boldness and visual attractiveness. Overall i like the logo. I feel like it does indeed represent the target audience, as the audience is pretty much a number of communities from environmentalist, gamers and the technology community. I feel this logo gives of a bit of everything to appeal to each group. Wildlife illustration will appeal to the nature lovers, modern type will appeal to both gaming and technology community. However I'm not over keen about the illustration. To me it seems a bit over done and doesn't really flow as well as i had hoped.