Many times clients and even designers forget the importance of good photography. Personally, I’ve seen client’s balk at photo shoots or even stock photography because it costs money. Because of the internet, we have access to millions of stock photos ranging from one dollar to hundreds of dollars, but clients sometimes will not pay $50 for a great image. Because of Google and other search engines, people think everything on the internet is free and not copyrighted.

The image in these email from the Audubon Institute is powerful and says more than 8 words in the headline because of the beautiful picture of Menari, the baby orangutan at the zoo. What would this same email look like with a poor image or no email at all. You would probably forget you’ve ever seen the email without the image. Not very powerful without the image is it? Would you forward this email to a friend without the image? I didn’t think so.

When working on design projects such as website, brochure, tradeshow displays, and advertisements remember how you feel when you look at those same pieces from other companies. What ads captivate you, what websites do you talk about, what brochures do you keep? Think about these questions. What captures your attention, most likely, it’s the photography.

Audubon Institute includes the Zoo, Aquarium, Insectarium & Parks

Audubon Institute’s logo is one of my all-time favorite logos and I do not think the designer of the logo gets enough credit for it. (I’m not even sure who designed it.)

This logo is one of the reasons I become a graphic designer. The logo captivates the spirit of the animals and the interaction that Audubon gives to its guest. My favorite part about each park is the interaction where the animals are not behind glass or in an enclosure, but right out in front of you so you can touch them. I love seeing a volunteer walk a tortoise and the keepers walking around with owls and hawks on their left hands as part of an impromptu “rapture parade”. The logo projects the animals coming out of their enclosures and the interaction they have with visitors.

The logo also works perfectly for each park as a separate logo with the tiger as the representative for the zoo, the shark for the aquarium and the butterfly for the new insectarium. What do you think about Audubon Institute’s logo?