405th Logo Update

Art Andrews · Jul 16, 2014

As with so many other things within this community, we are bringing a fresh approach to the look of the core logo.

Logo History

Now... I won't claim to know the entire history of the community's identity, but this is one of the earliest versions of the logo I could find from around August of 2007.

Which eventually appeared on the website around Oct of 2007.

I am not sure exactly when the current logo was first created (roughly ~2008) but Adam shared some of the very earliest versions of it with me:

This triskelion-styled design with three hexagons and the (Halo) ring eventually gave way to our current logo:

Updated Logo

In approaching the new logo, we hired Ever and Oak to help us. Douglas is a friend (and long time RPFer) and understands these type of communities, where a typical design company probably wouldn't truly get the nature of what we do. In talking with him I told him that I did not want a NEW logo as much as I wanted a new take on the existing logo as so many within the community identify with it. I asked him to keep the core elements of the logo:

The ring - representing Earth.
The three stars - representing the core values of our community: honor, armor and unity
The three hexagons - represent you, the building blocks of our community, who hold our values at your core
The eagle - which has long represented a fighting force, most notably in history, the Roman Legion, but more currently, the US Marine Corps
The wreath - from the UN and UEG insignia, a symbol of the peace the UNSC are striving toward

I also asked that Douglas give us a design that didn't exactly mimic any specific Halo design, but had a feel that would fit into the Halo universe. I also asked him to limit the color palette to two, subdued colors (in addition to black and white) and make the logo something that we could easily break down into more simple forms for various uses. For anyone who knows anything about design, it is much harder to recreate something than to create something from scratch and my list of needs was no small task.

With that being said, Douglas brought back to me a stunning update to our logo that addressed EVERY concern I had and did so in a fantastic way!

I hate to start on a bad note, but before you scroll further (stop scrolling... stop!), PLEASE DO NOT USE THE NEW LOGO FOR ANY IMAGERY AT THIS TIME! Over the next few days, we will be setting up new logo usage guidelines and providing high-resolution artwork for approved usage. Again, please do not use this logo in part or whole at this point!

Here is our new full logo for the 405th Division:

Here is a horizontal variation:

And very importantly, the logo can be broken down into smaller components... such as ranks:

... or it could also be used to represent the progression that so many of us make from small and simply things to complex and difficult things:

And here is just an example of me playing around in Photoshop...

No matter how you look at it, this is a strong update to the community's identity, paying homage to what has come before, while giving us something more versatile and usable for what is ahead!

Here is a chance to see the evolution of the community identity, side by side:

I know I said it before, but I want to remind you again - DON'T SKIP THIS!
While I am confident you are excited about the new logo, PLEASE DO NOT USE IT FOR ANY IMAGERY AT THIS TIME! Over the next few days, we will be setting up new logo usage guidelines and providing high-resolution artwork for approved usage. Again, please do not use this logo in part or whole at this point!

So, where do we go from here? As we continue to update the site and social media venues, we will be adding in the new logo (as well as offering swag with the new logo). We will also be setting new guidelines so you too can use the logo in support of your community!

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

OK, initial guidelines for the identity are up as well as vector art.

As promised, we have tried to simplify the rules as much as possible.

Basically the rules come down to three major things:

1) Don't change the logo (we tried to cover everything in this).

2) Don't make swag (we are working on that).

3) If you want to use the logo for promotional purposes, get approval on any of your artwork.

To read the guidelines and get the vector art, go here:

http://www.405th.com/faq.php?faq=general_faq#faq_405th_identity_guidelines

These are just an initial pass on the guidelines, so if you see discrepancies or have questions, post them here so we can make updates.

Fireryne · Jul 22, 2014

Art Andrews can you explain the rules in laymens terms, from my undertanding we can use it for our armor. we can scale it so long as it stays 1:1, or 1.5:1.5 ect ect so long as it stays "square" and that on a single color application we can use what ever color that suits our armor best. Not totaly sure that i read that right but just want to make sure that im correct

WandererTJ · Jul 22, 2014

GeekGuardianDee said:
If you need super high quality I think these guys might be the ticket (they already have some amazing shots that you might be able to get permission for);
http://blog.arduino.cc/2014/01/20/stunning-halo-3-costumes-and-energy-sword/

In response to this link, since it is Sean Bradley armor that they are wearing, I could easily message Sean on facebook and ask him if he has any extremely high res pictures we could use.

What kind of resolution does a banner need?

EDIT:
On the Didact armor, I'm looking at it, I'm guessing that they used a CNC machine to carve out the molds for the castings to be made from, right?

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

In regard to banners... here is just a quick idea of what a three banner system might look like. The characters are just placeholders. Obviously, we would want to replace those graphics with photos of OUR members. We have found this type of banner system to be very eye-catching for tables at conventions.

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

Fireryne said:
@Art Andrews can you explain the rules in laymens terms, from my undertanding we can use it for our armor. we can scale it so long as it stays 1:1, or 1.5:1.5 ect ect so long as it stays "square" and that on a single color application we can use what ever color that suits our armor best. Not totaly sure that i read that right but just want to make sure that im correct

Correct on all counts.

As you can see in the PDF we provided, there are multiple image. They basically fall into one of two categories; multi color images and single color images. We do not want you to modify the colors on the multi-color images. There is simply too great a chance of odd pairings. When possible, we have tried to supply a single color version. For any single color image, you can use whatever color suits your needs, yes... even weird colors like pink. The purpose for all of the rules is simply to maintain the integrity of the identity and to create constancy.

We also want you to be careful what you put near the logo. In fact, we would prefer you don't put anything near the logo as it should stand alone and not be misconstrued as part of a larger graphic.

Beyond that, we just don't want people monkeying with the logo by changing... well, pretty much anything except the color on the 1-color versions of the logo. Again, this is all for the sake of maintaining identity integrity.

WandererTJ · Jul 22, 2014

Art Andrews said:
OK, initial guidelines for the identity are up as well as vector art.
http://www.405th.com/faq.php?faq=general_faq#faq_405th_identity_guidelines
These are just an initial pass on the guidelines, so if you see discrepancies or have questions, post them here so we can make updates.

1) The "Elements" pages are lacking the element for the Wreath.

2) Also on the Elements pages, since you are including the circle that rests behind the Hexagons, I think you should make it so that its size is relative to the other elements.

3) I think it would be good to include the Rules/Regulations within the PDF. That way everything is in one location and people don't need to look back at the rules page if they already saved the pdf.

4) In regards to "Do not incorporate the 405th lockups into your own identity or use the lockups in conjunction with any other artwork."
I'm a bit confused.
Does that mean we can't have UNSC ID Cards with the 405th Lockup?
Example:

5) In regards to "not" making a 3d version of them emblem, does that mean we cannot create a raised surface on our armor for the emblem to sit on? ...or be cut into?
What I'm thinking of is using a piece of the 2mm craft foam, cutting out the logo, and gluing the logo on to the armor to slightly stick out as a raised boss/extrusion.

And I just have to say.....

BAKSHEESH FONT!!!!!!
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
I should have known.

That's the font that 343i used for the Spartan-IV Bio Cards. At least, that's the closest thing I found to what they used. The line spacing between letters was a bit off and the thickness was slightly off too.

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

WandererTJ said:
4) In regards to "Do not incorporate the 405th lockups into your own identity or use the lockups in conjunction with any other artwork."
I'm a bit confused.
Does that mean we can't have UNSC ID Cards with the 405th Lockup?
Example: http://i1094.photobucket.com/albums/i441/rickrtickr/th_405thcard_zps1eae5eee.jpg

No. It means you can't modify the logo to represent another entity. See below:

WandererTJ said:
5) In regards to "not" making a 3d version of them emblem, does that mean we cannot create a raised surface on our armor for the emblem to sit on? ...or be cut into?
What I'm thinking of is using a piece of the 2mm craft foam, cutting out the logo, and gluing the logo on to the armor to slightly stick out as a raised boss/extrusion.

That is fine. What we don't want is people dragging the logo into photoshop and applying bevels and embossing to it.

vshore100 · Jul 22, 2014

WandererTJ said:
On the Didact armor, I'm looking at it, I'm guessing that they used a CNC machine to carve out the molds for the castings to be made from, right?

"If" you're talking about the armor below, it was hand sculpted, then molded and cast. No CNC's were used in making it.

ColFork85 · Jul 22, 2014

Art Andrews

Would this be considered appropriate?

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

Let me pass it by the designer. My initial guess is that there would need to be a slight bit larger gap, but I think that could actually work nicely.

ColFork85 · Jul 22, 2014

I made it 5 pixels(I had to do a screen cap of the PDF and put it into PSP to make the additions, but it's 100% zoom in pdf), but it wouldn't be hard to increase the size of the gap.

If I had something with a transparent background, and maybe a tad bigger in size, it would be easier to work with.

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

The files in the PDF are full vectors. You should be able to import them directly into your program.

ColFork85 · Jul 22, 2014

If so, I'm missing how to do it. I honestly don't deal with PDFs often. when it comes to vectors, I'm used to EPS or occasionally AI files.

Zaff · Jul 22, 2014

Perhaps it's just me and my own unfamiliarity with the terms, but use of the term "lockups" was fairly confusing to me when reading the policy. Perhaps it's as simple as "lockups" being plural while logo, emblem, etc. is singular. Perhaps a segment of "legal-ese" at the beginning might help. Something along the lines of "These are the guidelines for use of the 405th logo, emblems, and individual elements (referred to collectively as "lockups" below)..." Kind of like when reading the terms of use or contest rules they will have a paragraph or sometimes just a line saying "The company, its affiliates, franchises, and all employees (collectively "us" or "we")" just to make sure there is no confusion as to what or whom the rest of the text is referring to. I, personally, had never heard the term "lockup" being used in reference to anything other than the initial grapple used in wrestling (also often referred to as a "tie-up," i.e. "Collar and elbow tie-up"), so the term threw me off for a bit. It's possible that others coming across it later might likewise stumble with initial confusion.

I am glad to see there's such a wide variety of officially released options as far as orientation and simplification goes (horizontal, vertical, with or without text, etc.). A quick question on acceptable use, would it be acceptable to use the emblem (the single color, no text variation) on a shaped background similar in style and concept to in-game emblems? For example, the logo on top of a solid color diamond, octagon, triangle, or even the in-game "fireball" backdrop? This would adorn the shoulder (Halo 3 and 4 style), collar plating (Halo Reach style) or chest plate (ODST style) of a completed build in lieu of using an in-game emblem to add a level of "immersion" to its use while keeping to the style of the game from which the build is inspired.

Dagger06 · Jul 22, 2014

Art Andrews

I also have a variety of photos if you need them, and I will be brining most of my photo equipment to SDCC if you wanted to get a specific shot of a suit. You might also try asking Adam about photos, as he often takes some.

My work:

Adam:

The late Ash Turner also took some great photos at RTX2013 and I'm sure it would be considered appropriate to use his work to represent the 405th:

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

This is EXACTLY the kind of photos we need!

And that yellow thing is VERY striking!

Zaff · Jul 22, 2014

Liltyrant's Kat build right there is always the first to pop into my head when thinking about what the 405th is capable of. Her attention to detail is amazing.

Art Andrews · Jul 22, 2014

Zaff said:
Perhaps it's just me and my own unfamiliarity with the terms, but use of the term "lockups" was fairly confusing to me when reading the policy.

A lockup is the final form of a logo with all of it's elements locked in their relative positions. For the sake of maintaining consistency in all mediums, the lockup should not be taken apart or altered in any way. A good lockup will create a sense of cohesion between the elements.

Zaff said:
I am glad to see there's such a wide variety of officially released options as far as orientation and simplification goes (horizontal, vertical, with or without text, etc.). A quick question on acceptable use, would it be acceptable to use the emblem (the single color, no text variation) on a shaped background similar in style and concept to in-game emblems? For example, the logo on top of a solid color diamond, octagon, triangle, or even the in-game "fireball" backdrop? This would adorn the shoulder (Halo 3 and 4 style), collar plating (Halo Reach style) or chest plate (ODST style) of a completed build in lieu of using an in-game emblem to add a level of "immersion" to its use while keeping to the style of the game from which the build is inspired.

If I am understanding you correctly, there shouldn't be anything wrong with that. The primary thing is that the background shouldn't compete with or create confusion in looking at the logo. It should be clear in regard to what is background and what is logo.

Dagger06 · Jul 22, 2014

Slapped it on my ODST chest plate. Wondering if you have any thoughts on weathering guidelines. I redid this a couple of times because I was concerned the weathering was making the logo too unrecognizeable.

Zaff · Jul 22, 2014

Art Andrews said:
A lockup is the final form of a logo with all of it's elements locked in their relative positions. For the sake of maintaining consistency in all mediums, the lockup should not be taken apart or altered in any way. A good lockup will create a sense of cohesion between the elements.

Ok. So possibly a term far more common and familiar within the graphics design industry but not necessarily as well known outside of it. THank you for the clarification.

Art Andrews said:
If I am understanding you correctly, there shouldn't be anything wrong with that. The primary thing is that the background shouldn't compete with or create confusion in looking at the logo. It should be clear in regard to what is background and what is logo.

Using this as a reference, for the most part the emblem backgroudns are basic geometric shapes that shouldn't detract too much from the logo itself. The more complex backgrounds, like Fotus, Structure, and Vortex could possibly cause some confusion, and for the "Ball o' fire" mentioned as an example in the previous post, the 405th logo would rest within the "orb" of the backdrop. My main concern would be whether or not the use of the background might be considered "altering" or "adding to" the logo and the possible confusion that may arise from it if people see the combined logo+background and think that they are, together, the official logo. I would hope that for the most part those who recognize Halo armor would likewise recognise the basic emblem format and see the logo itself for what it is.

If the potential for misrepresentation of the logo is just too high for the answer to be a comfortable "yes" that's perfectly understandable and anyone wanting to incorporate the logo into their armor build could stamp it elsewhere in a fashion that does not detract from its original design and intent.

Edit: Trooper0621 just provided a perfect example of what I was referring to for incorporating the official logo in lieu of an in-game emblem, as that is the positioning in-game emblems are placed in for ODST.

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