Rant: I used to cram every logo element into a single file... now I separate them out

Had a client last tuesday ask for a quick color swap on their logo for a new product line. I opened up the old file and it was a nightmare - text, icons, backgrounds all mashed into one layer. Took me 45 minutes just to pick apart what was what. Now I keep each piece on its own layer with clear names like 'logo_icon_v2' or 'company_name_final'. Makes edits so much faster, especially when handing files off to printers. Anyone else deal with messy file handoffs from past designers?

2 comments

2 Comments

blair_butler4714d ago

Honestly, that 45 minutes thing hits way too close to home. Had a similar situation last year where a printer needed me to adjust the spacing on a mark and I spent an hour untangling someone else's mess of a file. I gotta ask though, when you name your layers do you go with dates or version numbers? I've been using dates like 'logo_icon_2023_03' but sometimes I wonder if version numbers would be cleaner for tracking changes over time.

the_viola14d ago

Try version numbers with dates as comments so you don't lose track of the order.