Typophile

Need typo help with a logo design.

Christopher Short

I am in a predicament. My dad has a forestry consulting business he started after retiring from the US Forest Service a few years ago. I designed the logo but I've never been happy with the text. I've done a couple of versions using a couple of different typefaces but neither of them have been right.

The hardest part is the kerning. The business name is Short Forestry. I can't kern too tight or the rt pair in Short and the try in Forestry looks terrible. But I can't kern too loose or it looks like everything is falling apart. So I thought I would come to you, the wonderful people of Typophile.

I'm looking for a nice sans serif. Something humanist, although I like gothics and grotesques a lot too. I'd like something a little more compact (and less ugly) than Gill Sans. Most of all it needs to of course fit with the logo. I've posted that below for reference. Also, I don't have a big budget to work with.

So, any ideas?

HVB

I know that you've considered this, but your family name combined with the word "Forestry" could leave an instant, possibly subliminal, impression of stunted tree growth; surely not what you'd desire. To compensate, while at the same time adding a hint of verbal play to the logo, I would consider using a tall, narrow typestyle; one that itself gives the impression of stature and tall trees. Possibly warping the words to match the leaf logo, as long as it remains legible.

Your 'rt' spacing problem is eased by having the logo in all caps

- Herb

memosiono

Avenir or Gotham, maybe?
In all caps, as Herb said.

James Michaels

> [Short] could leave an ... impression of stunted tree growth

It could be a problem if this was a retail business (a tree service company, for example), but he's a consultant and I'll bet that most of his clients come from personal contacts, referrals, etc. Everyone will know his family name is Short. The double meaning might make someone chuckle, but I doubt if it'll affect his business one bit.

In fact one possible approach would be to play up the double meaning for a humorous effect.

(On the other hand, if he thinks the name might actually be a problem, adding the first name would help. So if his first name is John, make it John Short Forestry.)

Nick Shinn

Sensibility

Christopher Short

Nick, that is very much what I was looking for. Great suggestions, thanks!

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