Good books, vids, for design?

[Fanaticus]

This might be better in the log design catagory, but I put it here because it's a newbie question by a newbie.........

I just read another thread about logo design. Since I know I lack in understanding the elements of good orderly design, I am curious what books or videos would be good to learn from. I apologize if this has been asked 1000 times before, I will only ask it once, I promise.

I saw that "Logo Design" by Dan Antonelli was mentioned as a good one. And a look at my sign catalog shows he has a second book on the market as well.

Are there any good books for understanding layouts and formatting that anybody can think of?

I'm also very confused when it comes to color cordination. I've looked at the color wheels I find on the internet, but just leave even more confused because I follow the directions they have and my combinations look like garbage. And the only books I can find are "how to make your house pretty".

Just looking for some general direction on where I should begin my studies....

I know I should probably just go to the local community college for a few classes, but I really prefer to self-learn. I walk away with a much better understanding of things that way.

 

[Craig Sjoquist]

I found one of the best books was Mike Stevens ..Mastering Layout .. along with Dan Antoneli books yes read these first, was taught the Mike Stevens way before he produce or wrote the book and learned even more and it all made sense when I started reading.
Look for more in the past posts plenty available.
Also Signcraft magazine is one of the best to have and read.