Restoring an old logo when all you have is a scan or photo

It happens to long-running businesses all the time. The logo was designed decades ago, the designer retired, the computer it lived on was thrown out, and now the only copies are on old letterheads, a faded sign, a van, a business card in a drawer, or a photo on someone's phone.

Then you need new signage, uniforms or a website, and every supplier asks for "the original file." Here's how to get from what you have to a clean, modern master file.

Step 1: find every copy you can

Before scanning anything, gather every version of the logo you can find:

• printed stationery: letterheads, envelopes, business cards, invoices
• brochures, flyers and old adverts
• signs, vehicle graphics, shop windows
• embroidered or printed uniforms
• old website screenshots, social media images, emails
• documents from the original designer or printer, if they exist

Different copies preserve different details. A business card may have the sharpest lettering; a sign may show the true colours; an old brochure may include a version with the slogan.

Step 2: capture the best possible reference

The better the reference, the more accurate the restoration.

Scanning printed items:

• scan at 600 DPI (or higher for small items like business cards)
• scan in colour, even for black logos, since colour captures subtle detail
• lay the item flat and close the lid gently to avoid shadows and curves
• save as PNG or TIFF, not JPG, to avoid adding compression

Photographing signs, vehicles or uniforms:

• shoot straight on, not at an angle, so the shape isn't distorted
• use even daylight, avoiding glare, reflections and harsh shadows
• fill the frame with the logo, and take several shots
• include a ruler or known measurement if proportions matter
• send the original photo file, not a screenshot or a messaging-app copy

Step 3: understand what can be recovered

A good restoration is part detective work. From a reasonable reference, a designer can usually recover:

• the shapes, redrawn cleanly rather than traced
• the typeface, identified and matched where it's a known font, or redrawn to match where it's custom lettering
• proportions and spacing, corrected for any stretching or camera angle
• colours, matched to the most reliable copy or to colour values you provide

Things that may need decisions:

• Faded or damaged areas can be reconstructed from other copies, or by following the logo's own logic (for example, a symmetrical shape).
• Conflicting versions: if the logo drifted over the years, you'll need to choose which version is "correct."
• Very small or blurry details may be simplified slightly so they reproduce well today.

Step 4: restore, or refresh?

Restoration is also a natural moment to ask whether anything should change.

• Faithful restoration: rebuild the logo exactly as it was, just clean and sharp. Best when the logo is well known and trusted.
• Light refresh: keep the logo recognisable but fix things that never worked: tiny text that's unreadable on signs, overly thin lines, too many colours for embroidery or screen printing.

Either way, it's worth making a one-colour version too, for embroidery, engraving, stamps and single-colour printing.

Step 5: set up a master file set

Once the logo is rebuilt as vector artwork, create a small, organised set of files and keep them safe:

• SVG, PDF, EPS and AI masters
• a large transparent PNG for everyday use
• full-colour, one-colour, and reversed (white) versions
• a short note of the colour values (HEX, RGB, CMYK and Pantone if known) and the font names

Store them in more than one place, and share the folder with anyone who needs it, so this never has to happen again.

A note on ownership

Restoring a logo that belongs to your business is routine. If the logo belongs to a company you don't own or represent, you'll need permission before recreating it.

If your logo only survives on paper, a sign or a photo, send us what you have. We redraw it as clean vector artwork in SVG, AI, EPS or PDF, match the type where it can be identified, use exact brand colours if you have them, and give you one master file to standardise on. You'll see the price before you pay.