Do you see it? Did you realize what they did? Do you think it’s obvious. Did you know I was hinting for the letter “D”. DreamSight, a web design company has elected to use an image in place of the first letter in their name. Good idea or bad idea?
I saw it right away, but it took a second. I first read to myself, “ReamSight” which might not be so good. I quickly recognized though that the water drop was a “D”, and thought good idea. I ran it by my wife who happened to be sitting by me, and she recognized it as well. She is a litter quicker than me though, so she saw it second one. I wonder if everyone sees it that quickly though, and if they don’t, does it really matter?
What Makes a Logo
There are many aspects to making a great logo, and this post really isn’t about that. It’s about why does DreamSight’s logo work. It works because it obeys a basic logo design rule. The rule is that you must be able to easily describe the logo to another person without them looking at it. You should also be able to describe it in just a few words. “DreamSight Limited”, their logo replaces the “D” with a drop of water facing the text so that it looks like a “D”.
The reason you want it short, and easy to describe is because it makes it easy to talk about. When I say the guys in brown, do you know who I am talking about? UPS, if you didn’t guess. The brown may not be a logo, but it is certainly part of their brand which was created out of their logo. The web design company with the water drop? Now we know it’s Dreamsight. Best Web Image, well I am just a square little box with my acronym in it. Why a square? I’m a web usability analysis, if that doesn’t say square, nothing does. That logo is who you are, so don’t skimp on the time it takes to come up with it.
Did You See It?
On a final note. I mentioned that my wife and I quickly recognized the “D” in their logo. Did you? Leave a comment below!
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I saw the D in the logo right away.. its a really nice logo but I am concerned how it would look printed. If you made the logo black and white it would be impossible to tell the first letter is a D. I think it would also be easier to read if the text was solid instead of outlined.
Printing it would be an issue. Good point!
The D looks like a P to me. More important, this logo presents several potential usability issues: Is it scalable? Can it be reduced to a very small size without the outlined type and tagline fading away? For example, could it be reduced small enough to print on a match book, a ballpoint pen, a keychain or other advertising novelty item? Can it be reproduced in black and white for applications such as making dies for foil stamping and embossing? Will it work on a dark background? Here’s a good article on logo design: http://www.code-interactive.com/thinker/a112.html
Hi Suzanne,
I just read your article you included in your comment. Great post, and I would highly recommend anyone interested in creating a new logo to check it out. Here is the link again: http://www.code-interactive.com/thinker/a112.html
For all of the reasons mentioned in comments above (printing, scaling, etc.), I always suggest clients try to stay away from photorealistic images in their logo design.
Hello all,
Interesting article, i have been sent the link by Dreamsight as i am the printer producing the materials for them.
In my experience a successful logo is also defined by its ability to be reproduced in full colour and in black only, and in answer to all your questions we have successfully printed the logo in full colour and in mono (black) only.
The branding of the ‘D’ image has been used in so many ways for all their marketing materials to establish a brand and the fact that we are passing comment on it now, means that its working.
Well done Dreamsight, as a final note they are good at web design and SEO too.
I agree with Suzanne Stephens, ‘D’ is look like P, anyway that a great job of making logo,..another easy logo can also be found here http://www.logoease.com/LogoEase.aspx
especially for a beginners.
And Robert you have a great post…
I did see the “D” right away, but I didn’t really notice it was a drop of water turned sideways!
Should an image be turned?
Turned? I guess if you turned it 180 degrees counter clockwise it could be a lower case d.
luv it saw it straight away
Hi I’ve been designing logos for years first as a graphic designer now as web designer/developer and I steer away from mixing graphics and typography. The eye has trouble mixing the two together and perceiving photographed objects to be letters, but thats my opinion and not everyones eyes/brains are the same!
I saw the D instantly so it works in that aspect, however the printing would be an issue and whether it would be as clear on material or stationary.
Congratulations for the great blog dude… Btw, have you tried this for logo creation?
As a female logo designer I see this right away. However, I think the extension at the bottome makes it looks more like a “P”. Also, the rest of the text doestn’t look so good with the water drop D. Just my 2 cents.
It’s creative, but I don’t think it’s a great or memorable logo design. Using an image in the logo will create problems as you print the logo or apply it throughout other mediums, like promo items. Good logo design should be simple, avoid gradients or too many colors, and don’t require a double take.
Wow, you found an old post! You may be right about that. If you look at the site now, even they have stopped using it for the D. It’s still part of their theme, but gone now.
I saw the D right away. You are correct, logo defines your company and it should be direct to the point.
I agree with a few people above me, it looks like a “P” as much as a “D”.
John.
Nice, but you should have done lot more in it..it’s simple designing anyone can prepare thr=ese simple designs..!!!