How to make a unique logo?

[Fireball]

I'm actually going to finally go full-time into photography and know how important "branding" is to a business, but how do you go about making an eye-catching logo? One you can use on everything?

Did you make your own, hire someone, go with your initials, what? Right now I'm C. Shockey Photography. With my unique first and last name, I'm afraid if I include my first name it will be too difficult to remember, kwim? But to me it's very important to include "some" part of my name because it's MY business.

Any ideas?

[J Eddington]

The biggest mistake I made was using my name. It does not say anything about my photography which is more important than a name that says ME, ME, ME.
Hire a pro to design your logo, but have an idea for them. It should look good in color or B/W. Simple design and easy to read. Classic so it will last your lifetime and not be trendy and outdated in a few years.

[ChristopherCoy]

Originally Posted by Fireball

Any ideas?

Lets just save everyone the trouble, because they'll all say the same thing. Hire a professional graphic designer.

[Ahh!]

Ahh!

[texkam]

There's a reason Graphic Design is a profession. A good Designer will take the time to learn your unique needs and will work with you to come up with a solution.

[Cajungaltx]

Charrie,
I tried, and tried, and tried... I love playing with logo's - but when it came to 'my' logo - I ran up against a brick wall and it took MONTHS before I finally hired someone to do it. And it was the best money I've spent.

Save yourself stress, time...all of it.... hire a professional.

Donna

[cooltouch]

Welp, if you don't want to, or can't hire a professional, then my recommendation is that you study the logos of successful businesses. Collect them. Google them, whatever. Many of the most effective logos incorporate a simple visual statement as to the nature of their business. This simple visual statement can take many forms, but it must be clear and iconic, and catchy enough so that people recognize it after seeing it a few times.

If you think you can handle that, then you've got half the battle won. The other half -- the hard one -- is actually producing a logo from your idea. Good luck with it.

[Fireball]

Thanks everyone. So what are we looking at as far as price?

[toverman]

I designed my own logo and it wasn't a mistake. My business is named after me and it wasn't a mistake. See a pattern here? There is no right answer (there are tons of wrong ones, but those differ by person, too).

Hiring a professional is a great idea, but that doesn't guarantee your logo will be good or that you'll like it. As in everything, including photography, there are different levels of professional acumen as well as style.

With the world smaller because of the Internet, you'll have to come up with a pretty good name for your business that isn't already taken or almost taken by someone else (this could happen using your name as well, but perhaps it's less likely). Someone searching for Fluffy Bunny Photography could come up with 10 results and not know which one is you. They also might not remember your name. If you're concerned with using both your names, just use your first or last name. You also don't want to limit your photography with a name that evokes one thing when you want to branch out to something else. There are ways to solve that, too, but it can add another level of branding and possibly naming.

So it's up to you. Hire a pro based on his/her portfolio, you might get something fantastic. Come up with a brilliant name for your business and hope it helps set you apart rather than puts you into a subgroup. Good luck!