I wanted to get a little feedback in regards to our BA logo/identity, now that we have many more readers than we did when we introduced it. The ever changing BA logo has become a bit of an obsession for me, as my wife can attest to my upward gaze and sudden stops while traveling. Adrian and I have collected/photographed well over 250 BA found typography photos to date. Just in case anyone has missed it, the BA photo at the top of the page flips between 32 different photos at a time. We change out the 32 photos whenever we have collected another set. Here are a few questions for all of our astute readers. Please let us know what you think.

Is there anything we can do to improve the BA identity?
Do you enjoy seeing the updated BA photos or are we wasting our time?
Did you know that the photo flipped when you rolled over it?
Would it be interesting or beneficial to have a separate page with all 250 BA photos?

Our initial goal was to have as many people contribute BA photos as possible. If you take a photo that would add to the collection, please email it to us. Thank you for your help.

Comments (21)

jan said:

i think your identity idea of photographing the “b’s” and “a’s” is brilliant! an idea i wished i would’ve thought of. so of course i enjoy them. i didn’t know that the logo flipped, but that’s kind of fun. and i think a page of all your images would be so very beneficial just for the fun sake of it.

Posted on September 23, 2005

jason Clewell said:

I love the idea, however I have visited your site many times and didn’t really notice that you could roll over the logo and have it change. What if you animated the logo, had it change every couple of seconds? I really like the idea of having a page of all the photos you have ever taken with the B and the A. Almost like a wallpaper of little B & A squares…love it…interesting…would stop to look at it.

jonathan hughes said:

I really like the Bs and As, but one thing I’ve always thought was confusing is the pronunciation of the name. When I see “Be A Design Group,” I would pronounce it Bee Uh. But when I see the BA letters, I think it’s Bee Ay (which I assume is what you’re going for). I’m also not sure if Be A Design Group is just the name of the blog or a design firm (I don’t see any links to firm-related things on this site).

Jonathan

simonvx said:

I like it a lot. Everchanging B & A’s is fun & inspiring. I didn’t know, at first, that when I rolled over it would change, but once I discovered it I thought “brilliant, but hidden a bit”. There should be a clue, something like, when I reload the page, the still image changes, I don’t know.

It would definitely be a good thing to have all the photos on a separate page so we can look at them one by one.

And yes, collecting B&A’s from everybody is a good idea too. I would, for sure, send at least one to you ;-)

JonSel said:

It’s cool. Keep it.

Seeing all 250 BA’s at once might make a really nice promotional poster.

DC1974 said:

I’m a big fan of found typography. And have been photographing my favorites over time, as well as great signs in general.

I concur, though, that I had always thought your logo was just the two pieces of lead type, and didn’t even realize that I had the ability to animate it.

Perhaps if you made it like Typographica, where each time you visit the site, you see a different logo, I’m still not that fond of animated gifs or other Web Design 100 animation tricks.

Emory said:

I would like the idea of a changing logo if I knew that it actually changed. I think it would be interesting to have multiple photos at the top of the page and, as other people have suggested, have them change when the page is reloaded. I would definitely like to see all of the photos.

nate said:

Bennett, Adrian, Jonsel’s idea is worth noting. I’d love to see that.

Bennett said:

B A (ay) not (uh) is the way that we thought people would say it, but we realize that not everyone does. The most important part of the name is “group”. We just want to keep developing this online community of designers and have some great discussions. We are not a design firm even though “Be A Design Group” may make us sound like one. What you see on this site is what we are. A loose community of designers/writers and commentors focused around this blog.

Since I know very little about web design, I will see if Adrian can figure out a way for a new photo to show up each time you reload the page. I am a little torn about having the logo become a switching animation. Part of me enjoys that the rollover BA is a little bit hidden. Obviously if only a few people find it, we might need something to hint at it a little more.

I have to admit that even if everyone didn’t like the updated photos, I would have a hard time stopping myself from looking for more. It is a great exercise that keeps my eyes open. I see them everywhere. I’m not sure if it is a blessing or a sickness.

Both Drew and Tom have contributed a BA photo that we have used along the way. Tom came up with idea of using the Nintendo BA buttons and Drew submitted one of the current ones (the sign with the busted out B). I can’t wait to see what others will contribute. You can always submit a guest editorial for consideration as well.

Thanks all. Keep the feedback coming.

brandon said:

It’s great. Be-ay, be-uh, doesn’t matter. It’s clear what it means. I personally like the hidden aspect as well. Keep it up!

Adrian said:

I think that having a new BA photo load each time would be good. If someone can help me with the javascript, that would be helpful. I prefer the rollover interaction to an animated solution, too.

Since we are laying it all out, does anybody recognize the other hidden element? B = Bennett, A = Adrian. That is why we used to be all caps. The A didn’t want to get passed over as just an “uh.” What can I say, I have an ego. In the end, like Bennett said, the group is the most important part.

I love the promotional poster idea, and I will start working on the page of all the BA photos…

Michael Nielsen said:

THE WORST IDEA EVER!

i like it. ah lahk it ahlot. keep it for sure.

your friend and mine, -michael

PXLated said:

Never noticed. Now that it’s been pointed out, I think it’s totally off-base. As someone mentioned, the word “group” is the operative. If you were doing a logo for The Bank of America, you wouldn’t base it on either the word “the” or “of” would you?

So it’s more “B. A. Design” than “Be A”… would it be easier to understand if you removed the “e” after the “B”? With the initials only (and no verb “to be”), when you say it (or think it) out loud, then you’ll get it I guess. Anyway, English is my second language and I didn’t get it the first time I came here. I really thought it was some sort of company’s blog.

I love the poster Idea. Would probably look “Pearl Jam’s No Code-ish”, and that’s good ‘cause I like spending time looking at a design that can be appreciated for its whole, but also for its tiny, detailed parts. It’s like a good movie !

PXLated,

Thanks for your thoughts. That is why we asked. Here is my response.

Your right, I wouldn’t design The Bank of America logo based on the “the” or “of”. With that said we are not a bank. This is a graphic design blog. We hope to see things differently, be independent and be everything that a multinational bank isn’t (although money would be nice).

B and A aren’t exactly arbitrary either. Adrian and I (B & A) started it and keep it going. The “group” has evolved to become the most important part, but it didn’t start out that way. We didn’t set out to become one of the most visited graphic design blogs, we just wanted to share our thoughts. We started the site with a vague idea of wanting to do some collaborative projects. We then decided to form a blog. After some early success we decided to invite our good friends from around the country to start writing. The group became more of a focus and Adrian and I didn’t really bother to point out that we were B & A. If people get it, that is great. If they don’t, that is fine as well. We just want the name to be a statement more than anything else. An invitation. Be a part of our group of designers. Join in the discussion.

Posted on September 24, 2005

jyoseph said:

I didn’t know that when you hovered the photo changed. Very cool.

I agree with one of the previous commenters, I think another page with all of the photos would “B A” good idea. You could also encourage others to submit any photos if they have them. I’m checking my archives for a photo, ya never know!

Adrian. I’m not much of a web developer either (especially as for java), but as for the reloading bit. I’d look at the source code of Typographica (http://www.typographi.com/) and see if that helps.

Posted on September 27, 2005

Thanks, DC1974, and thanks Donovan for the script you sent me too. Hopefully I can get that integrated over the weekend…

Ahhhh… Bennett, didn’t realize the connection (Bennett/Adrian). Probably could have discovered that somewhere. But, without knowing that, and even though you aren’t a bank, there are still principals that apply so I stick by my post. If on the other hand the connection was more obvious, then it’s a nice twist. :-)

Posted on September 28, 2005

stephie said:

I agree that there are principles that apply to design. One of them is going beyond the obvious to come up with an idea that is unique and interesting. And that’s what Bennett and Adrian have done. A unique name that seams to have a story behind it is always more interesting and more memorable. Not to mention a topic for discussion, which is what this site is all about. It doesn’t matter how you say it, it matters that you remember it and go there. And people are. Thank you, Be a design group for keeping me guessing and always interested in what you will come up with next.

Posted on September 30, 2005

With a little help from Donovan, Adrian now has the home page BA change with every refresh. Thank you all for your input.

Stay tuned for more details on a BA photo poster.

Posted on October 5, 2005

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Comments (21)

jan said:

jason Clewell said:

jonathan hughes said:

simonvx said:

JonSel said:

DC1974 said:

Emory said:

nate said:

Bennett said:

brandon said:

Adrian said:

Michael Nielsen said:

PXLated said:

simonvx said:

Bennett said:

jyoseph said:

DC1974 said:

Adrian said:

PXLated said:

stephie said:

Bennett said:

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