JOSH PALMER
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Schoodic Institute
Freelance Designer
April, 2020 - May 2020
I matched with Schoodic Institute through the website CatchaFire, a site that matches volunteers with organizations that need their professional help.
​
For this project, I was tasked with coming up with a new logo for Schoodic Point Society, a fundraising option for donors to the Schoodic Institute. This organization works to provide research and preservation to Acadia National Park area in Schoodic, Maine.
​
Final deliverables were to include a logo for use in both print and digital formats. The logo was to include a grayscale version, as well as a fully colored version.
​
This project allowed me to do independent research, work with a client on feedback incorporation and design renditions. I was able to incorporate illustrative style and design techniques to provide a logo that accomplished the organization's objectives.
Research
To begin the project, I spoke with the Director of Development to get a feel for the organization, what they do, and what they are looking for in a logo. The Director forwarded me pictures such as the two shown above to display what "Schoodic Point" looked like, as this is a physical location of the research institute. Cadillac Mountain (Mount Desert Isle is the name of the island itself where most of Acadia National Park is located) is about 5 or 6 miles across Frenchman Bay from our tip of the Schoodic peninsula. The logo needed to tie in to this physical location, and be recognizable to potential donors who were familiar with the area and the organization.
Schoodic Institute does research and preservation work for Acadia National Park and the surrounding ecosystems. They specifically focus on three ecosystems (Forest, Marine, and Bird Ecology) and wanted to include a bird in the logo to represent all three ecosystems. In discussing with the Bird Ecology Director from the organization, the Black Guillemot is the most iconic bird for their coastal research campus. The organization said that this particular bird is the most prevalent sea bird, and that this autenticity would be valued by potential donors who knew the area and the institute well.
It was requested that the logo follow a similar look or feel to the logo shown on the left, which was done for a similar giving society within the region.
(Giving – Maine Seacoast Mission)
​
In particular, the simplified colors and circular shape stood out to the organization. While they were open to other ideas, I used this input in forming my design ideas shown below.
In performing research and looking up images, I found that the Black Guillemot has distinctive white highlights on it's wings, as well as bright orange legs. I noted these features for the next phase, sketching, and wanted to make this bird a prominent feature of the logo after discussing with the team from Schoodic Institute.
Sketches
Using the information and imagery provided by both the Director of Development, as well as the Bird Ecology Director, I began to sketch out logo ideas. The two sketches that began to shape the logo in my mind are shown below. Each of these is a circular shape with the potential for negative space and simplified colors, which the Director was looking for. They incorporate a landscape view of Schoodic Point, the words Schoodic Point Society, and the Black Guillemot, the iconic and recognizable bird from this area.
Early Renditions
As I transitioned the logo from sketch to digital form, I wanted to start more detailed and dial the look back until arriving at what the client was looking for.
Using feedback from the organization, as well as continual editing and revision, I progressed the logo design to the look below. This kept the logo black and white with a simple orange highlight for the bird's feet. This kept the logo more simple than the logos shown above, and still allowed for the right amount of color and movement.
Final Design
The final design included simple but sharp crack-like fissures in the foreground rock. This was done at the suggestion of the client, who provided extensive photographs and insight into the look, feel, and properties of the landscape at Schoodic Point. The design here simplified the look from the previous iteration of the logo. The trees have varying degrees of opacity to create depth to the forest clustered to the right, and Schoodic Point itself is shown across the body of water in a lighter gray color underneath the bird.
​
The guillemot in flight provides movement and provides a viewer with the "starting point" for viewing this logo. The final design is shown in both grayscale as well as color, as the client requested each version for their final deliverables. The green matches the hex code within Schoodic Institute's style guide and business branding.
Final Deliverables
Final deliverables included print and design files for use in the non-profit's annual report, as well as potential fundraising mailers, social media posts, or electronic files. Below I've shown the final logo within their annual report, as well as a mockup of the logo being used as part of a social media post for the organization.
Testimonial:
​
"Joshua really delivered an amazing folder of work, with several iterations for different printing needs. He went the extra mile for us. He is amazingly patient and willing to hone his excellent drafts into something we could imagine, but not execute without his skills. He is generous with his ideas, professional, and prompt with replies."
​
Kim K.
Director of Development
Schoodic Institute