Humans and animals have always had a close relationship.
We have feared, loved, and respected animals throughout history. Each animal holds a different significance for different people, cultures, and countries.
Many animals represent the qualities, virtues, and vices of human beings. They serve as symbols for many organizations and ideas, which is why they’re excellent options for animal logos.
If you’re struggling to identify an image for your logo, consider using an animal image to represent the heart of your brand. You’ll want to pick the perfect animal, though, so you may need to brush up on animals and the ideas that they represent.
You’ll also want to have a decent idea of how to incorporate an animal into the design.
This article will cover some of the most common animal imagery, as well as give some tips on how to craft a beautiful animal logo that gets your idea across.
Ideas For Animal Logos
You may have a specific animal in mind for your logo, and hopefully, we’ll cover that animal below. But if you’re looking to find the specific symbolic meaning of your animal, there are a number of resources online that will help you do so.
Here are a few of the most common animals used in logos.
The Lion
The lion represents strength, beauty, majesty, royalty, and perseverance. As an apex predator, there is no other animal that can compete with it in the wild. If you come across a lion in the jungle, you’d better hope that it isn’t hungry.
Using the lion in your logo makes your brand seem strong and powerful. You’ll have an air of respect and integrity.
The Tiger
The tiger is symbolically similar to the lion. The tiger, however, is more contemplative, strategic, and precise. Still strong and powerful, using a tiger image would give your company the feeling of patience and intellect.
The Jaguar/Panther/Cheetah
The animals in this category are beautiful, quick, and fearless. They connote a feeling of elegance and integrity.
If your logo is intended to represent a feeling of high class or royalty, one of these slick jungle cats may be a good option.
The Eagle
The eagle, bald or otherwise, is a symbol of majesty. Especially in the United States, a bald eagle will show patriotism and strong core values.
The Penguin
The penguin emerged as a symbol of wit and clever style sometime in the early 20th century. Maybe it’s something about the fact that they look like they’re in little suits.
In any case, the image of a penguin can be used as a clever way to represent a clever company.
There are hundreds of other animals that would serve as effective images. Do some research if any of the above don’t strike your fancy. The important thing to learn from this article, though, is how to construct the logo.
Identifying a Style
It’s surprising how important every aspect of a logo is. You need to figure out if you want text with your image, if you want a background shade, and what style you want your animal image to be in.
Logos typically have a combination of letters and images. We’ll cover 5 of the most common logo styles to give you some ideas. We’ll do them briefly, though, because not all of them can incorporate animals.
Abstract Mark
Think Pepsi or Adidas. An abstract mark is a logo that uses imagery that is not identifiable as any one thing.
These are great because they give you a unique image. In this sense, your image is your own. It’s difficult to create an abstract mark because the image needs to represent some kind of feeling or idea without actually looking like anything in particular.
Mascots
Using a mascot is an effective way to incorporate animals into your logo because you can doctor the image up, making it more human, or you can have a clear-cut image of the animal.
Mascots are a timeless tool to make a memorable logo. Think of Mr. Peanut, Colonel Sanders, or Chester the Cheetah. An advertisement hardly needs to state which company it is for if the mascot is memorable enough.
Typically in a cartoon style, a mascot may require you to have an illustrator do some work to create a perfect image for you. This is a good route if your company caters to young people, families, or sports.
Emblem
Emblems typically contain a combination of letters and imagery, surrounded by a border of some kind. Most colleges and reputable organizations have an emblem which clearly represents elegance and prominence in the field.
Even Starbucks has an emblem. If you’re considering an emblem, try to find a balance between minimalism and detail. If you have an excessive amount of elaborate detail it will be more expensive to print the image in the future.
Pictorial Mark
This is essentially a simple image that serves as an entire logo. Apple, Twitter, PBS, and Android all have pictorial marks. Twitter might be the most relevant for this article, as it uses a bird and is one of the most recognizable logos on the market.
Again, it’s important to design your logo simply and effectively.
Too much detail can get complicated when it comes to printing and simpler images. In fact, iconography has gotten simpler over time, and the simpler your image, the more modern your logo will seem.
Combination Mark
A combination mark is essentially a combination of any number of the elements listed above.
Think Burger King.
A combination is valuable because it provides the feeling and meaning of an image while giving the specificity of text.
Any of the elements listed above can be tweaked or arranged in different ways. There’s no one way to make a logo, but it can help to have a few frames of references to get your ideas flowing.
How to Create Your Logo
The first step is to brainstorm what you want your logo to convey. Think of what emotions you want to convey, what colors you want to use, what animal you want representing your brand, and what design program you want to use to create your logo.
Look at Some Logos From Other Brands
There’s no better place to get insight than the logos of the world’s most reputable brands. Something about their logos makes their brand memorable, so take note of the brands that you want to closely relate to and jot down some ideas on how to emulate their logos.
Different niches use different styles, and the industry standard logo for your niche may be wildly different from the one you were planning to use. This is something to take into consideration, but it may also be valuable to separate yourself from the pack and create something unique.
Identify How Your Logo will Relate to Your Business
If you’re a construction company, you may not want to use little ducklings as the image for your logo. That is, unless you want to come off as humorous. You should brainstorm the key elements of your business and think of ways to incorporate them into your logo.
If your business’ motto is efficiency, make your logo clean and simple. If your business breaths creativity, make sure your logo is representative of that.
Pick a Few Different Animals and Make Samples
If you’re having trouble creating a logo with one specific animal, try throwing a few different furry friends into the mix. You may be deadset on the image of an elephant, but maybe a rhino is a better way to express stern, stoic, dedicated effort.
Pick Your Colors Carefully
Colors and emotions are intricately connected. There is a lot of research out there on the effect that colors have on our emotions. This is especially true in advertising. Red expresses urgency, romance, passion, and promotes hunger.
Blue expresses trust, intellect, and calm. Yellow expresses happiness but can become a source of anxiety if it is too prominent. These are just a few examples of colors and their functions on our emotions.
Another thing to consider is your color palette, which is equally important to your logo’s message. If you are really interested in the calming image of a blue whale and want to emphasize that feeling, consider using three different shades of blue.
If you’re interested in expressing an eclectic, creative feeling, try using three colors that are evenly spaced throughout the color wheel. There’s a lot of research on color psychology which you can consult if you’re having difficulties.
Get a Comprehensive Understanding of Logos
If you’re looking to create animal logos that will serve your brand, you need to have a good idea of how they are made. This may mean that you even have to pay a graphic designer to craft the logo for you, ensuring that it’s of the highest quality.
Look into different websites that cover color theory, graphic design, and the history of logos. We have a number of articles that cover these topics, so make sure that you explore a little and get a true understanding of logos.
