How to get a usable logo out of a file that has other things in it
Tell Vizard Agent which part of the file you actually need. A logo supplied for print is usually a lockup with several marks and generous padding baked into one image, so it locates each element, separates the one you want, crops tight to it, keys it onto transparency, and checks it against the background it will be composited over.
What do you type into Vizard Agent?
Name the element rather than handing over the file. "Use this logo" passes the whole lockup along unchanged; naming the specific part you want turns the request into a separation job, which is what it genuinely is underneath. Say where it will sit too, and send the largest version of the file you have.
Prompt
What does Vizard Agent actually do?
Vizard Agent spends most of the job on inspection: looking closely at what's actually in the image before deciding what to do with any of it. A certification mark or a second brand can read as part of the design at a glance, and a key checked on white can hide a halo. In the sessions behind this article it:
- Opened the supplied file, looked at what it actually contained and located each mark within the image.
- Separated the element asked for from the others, cropped tightly to it and keyed it onto transparency.
- Checked the keyed result rather than assuming it worked, and viewed it on the background it would be used against, where a white halo, grey fringing or a missing thin stroke shows up.
- Rebuilt the edge wherever it fringed or broke up.
- Prepared extra layers, such as a shadow or a keyline, separately, so the shadow can be dropped on a dark background without rebuilding the logo.
When does this not work well?
Separation needs resolution, and Vizard Agent will tell you when there isn't enough. A logo lifted from a website header is a few hundred pixels wide with its background flattened into it, and no amount of care recovers a clean edge from that. A logo on a photographic background isn't a flat key, overlapping marks may not separate cleanly, gradients key badly, and some lockups must stay together.
Common questions
Why is my logo small on screen? Because the file's padding counts as part of the image. Vizard Agent crops it away.
Does it check the transparency? Yes. Vizard Agent checks it on a real background rather than trusting the file.
Will it work from a website logo? Sometimes. Vizard Agent will tell you when the resolution is too low.