A few months ago I created a new logo for NarniaWeb, updating their lion so it can be used across more media. The previous logo was quite a small image that worked as part of the header to their website but didn’t work so well in videos or printed on t-shirts as it always had to be used in the bottom left-hand corner.
The challenge was to keep the feel of the old lion while simplifying and updating it, and create a shape that could ‘float’ on a page. I began by sketching over the old image (above) so I was working directly from the shapes and forms in it.
In the sketch I put in quite a few details that I later scrapped. The just-visible far eye works in the sketch and photograph but muddied the vector version, so I got rid of it early on. Likewise I decided to keep the remaining eye very simple. Though the original lion as a photograph has lots of detail, the scale it was seen at meant the eye was read as one or two colours.
Though the first design worked well in terms of shape and overall appeal, a lot of adjustments were made to the colour. My initial attempt (on the left above) was too close to the colours from the photograph, rather than following NarniaWeb’s colour scheme. The colour of the face remained similar but the mane went through several iterations.
I also created a ‘corner’ version, so it can be used like the old image.
I’m really pleased with how the lion has turned out, and I’m excited to see how it will be used in the future!
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