By buyable logos, I mean logo that is worth competing in a contest and actually has a chance to win. I know creating logos is about creativity, but before that you need to know how to make it the same like in your sketch. So how long does it take to master all basic aspect of Adobe Illustrator to be able to create decent logos? I'm a beginner photoshop user and when I open illustrator I literally dont know how to use it at all, even with the help of tutorials. Most people agree that Illustrator is the best software to make logo and since I have it installed in my lappy, I would like to try to learn it. This is because my exam is coming up soon and after 2 months the exam will be over and I will be graduating from school. After the exam, I have around 6 months of free time so I want to do logo designing as a part time job. Any advice from experience logo designers will be much appreciated.
Since you know photoshop some of the basic tools will be familiar to you. I find myself using the pen tool the most in Illustrator. It works the same as the pen tool in PS, just more sophisticated. Once you master that tool and understand the anchor behaviors it will start to open up to you. I had designed my first paid logo in school but looking back it sucked. There's never a time when you are "ready" just a time when you feel competent enough to put yourself on a limb. I think concept and drawing are two skills overlooked by most young artists. Look at the best examples of design you can find and see how minimalist they really are. Good luck.
Yes, Illustrator has one of the highest learning curves of any app out there, but it is worth the time. I've been using PS and Ill for many years and as a designer they are both invaluable tools. The good thing about adobe products is once you learn one, the others kind of fall into place. Become a master at PS and Illustrator will make more sense. As far as learning Illustrator to do basic logos. Easy. Stick with the Pen tool. This will enable you to create any line art you need to with solid colors. The two most basic tools to learn are the standard Pen tool and the Convert Anchor tool. The convert anchor tool will allow you to adjust the handles of paths individually. If you want to do more complex logos with gradients, etc - scan in the logos and use the Live Paint tool. It will create a vector logo out of raster artwork - VERY COOL! good luck and stick with it.