Re-Creating the Android Logo
Practice with the tools of Illustrator by playing with the Adobe Illustrator tools. For our next tutorial demonstration, we will be re-creating the Android logo. In a previous video, you learned how to create the Microsoft logo using geometric shapes, and the eyedropper to sample colours from the image. We will now add the shape and pathfinder tools too along what we learned from the Microsoft logo tutorial too.
Step by Step Process
Let’s create a new document. Any size is excellent. If we have to, we can always resize the logo using the Free Transform Tool – Command T (Mac) or Control T (PC) to fit the logo on the artboard.
Now, we will place the Android logo on our artboard. File – Place or Command Shift (Mac) /Control Shift P (PC) – Locate the logo. It this stage, it doesn’t matter if you want to link or embed the image, as we are planning to delete this in the end.
Free Transform
If the logo is too big or too small, go ahead and do a Free Transform. Resize it to the artboard. Hold the shift key before you grab one of the corners of the image to prevent distorting an image. Resize the logo using the Free Transform Tool Command T (Mac) or Control T (PC).
Draw the Shapes
Select the geometric tool and select the rectangle tool. Drag and draw on the first coloured arm. You will notice eight (8) white hollow squares around your rectangle, which is your bounding box. The live corners are the four (4) circles in the corners. If the rectangle is selected, click on a live corner and drag it to the center to round the corners. Deselect the rectangle. If you hold the shift key and choose a live corner, you can control which corners to round out. As an example, I hold the shift key and select the two bottom live corners, only the bottom corners will be rounded.
Create the Arms and Legs
To create the right arm, I am going to hold down the option key to duplicate it to the other side and hold the shift key allows me to be on the same axis as the other arm. Once done, you can deselect at this stage. So, click off all items selected. I choose to click on my artboard that there is nothing there to select. Or, you can use the keyboard shortcut Command Shift A (Mac) or Control Shift A (PC).
To create the legs, select one of the arms and drag it to the leg. Hold the option key to duplicate it. With the other leg, hold the option shift keys to copy the leg and placed it on the same axis.
Create the Body and Head
Next up, we will draw the body and head shape with one rectangle. Draw the full length of the shapes. If the box is selected, hold the shift key and select the two bottom live corners, and drag it to the center to round the corners. Only the bottom corners will be rounded.
I am going to the same for the head portion. I will deselect it to make sure I am only selecting the top live corners only. Hold the shift key and select the two top live corners, and drag it to the center to round the corners. Only the top corners will be rounded now.
We are almost there. Use the ellipse (circle) tool to draw the two eyes. To duplicate the eye, select the circle and drag it to the right side. Hold the option shift keys to copy the left eye and placed it on the same axis for the right side of the eye.
Create the Antennas
Let’s create the antennas by using the round rectangle tools. Draw the shapes and place your cursor or mouse just outside of the corner to get the rotate tool on the fly. Rotate the shape accordingly to where you want the shape too be. We are going to use a different device to duplicate. Under the rotate tool, is the reflect tool. Select it. Double click on the reflect tool icon to get the dialogue box and select Horizontal and Copy. Use the Move selection (V) to select the antenna and move it where it should be.
Using the Shape and Pathfinder Panel
Next up, we want to separate the head and body into two parts. One of the easiest approaches is to draw another rectangle and use the shape mode to separate the shapes. Draw another box, the same height, but make sure the shape is past the body for this to work correctly. Open the Pathfinder panel. Select the newly created shape and the body rectangle, and click on the shape modes – minus front (second icon in the shape modes). Minus front will subtract the path of a selected form that is in front of (on top) the path of another selected shape that is below. It cuts a hole in the shape below. The one shape becomes two but is currently grouped. To ungroup the object to be into two separate shapes, right-click to ungroup or Object – Ungroup or Command Shift G (Mac) or Control Shift G (PC).
Compound Shapes
We created ten (10) shapes for our android logo. And we will begin to combine shapes and make them into four (4) shapes. To make a compound shape, select the body and hold shift key and select the two legs. In the Pathfinder panel, click on unite in the shape modes to combine the three (3) shapes into one. Click anywhere on the artboard to deselect. Let’s do the same for the head. Select the head, and hold the shift key and select the two antenna. In the Pathfinder panel, click on unite in the shape modes to combine the three (3) shapes into one.
With the eyes, we want to cut a hole in the head. Select the two eyes and the head. Open the Pathfinder panel. Click on the shape modes – minus front (second icon in the shape modes). Minus front will subtract the path of a selected form that is in front of (on top) the path of another selected shape that is below. It cuts a hole in the head below. So, if you placed a colour image behind the logo, you would be able to see the colour through the eyes as we created a hole where the eyes were.
Consolidate the Shapes
Please select all the shapes and group it. To consolidate the shapes, right-click to group or Object – Group or Command G (Mac) or Control G (PC).
Select the eyedropper tool or I as a keyboard shortcut. Now, with the Selection Tool (black arrow), select the newly recreated logo, hold the Shift key and click on the image to sample the colour in the logo. Your outline shapes should now be filled with the green colour from the picture box.
Move the logo off to the side to unlock all to delete the android image. Unlock objects: Object – Unlock All or Command Option 2 (Mac) or Control Option 2 (PC). Locate the Android logo image and delete it. Select the newly created logo and centred the logo on the page.
Congratulations, you have just re-created the Android logo!
Watch our video tutorial: