Looking for help with Lap’s logo/icon

[julyx10]

I’ve been feeling that Lap probably needs a better logo/icon.

I’m not a professional designer, so I’d really appreciate thoughts or ideas from people here.

Lap is a desktop photo manager built around:

• local-first workflow
• large personal photo libraries
• speed and simplicity
• native desktop experience

If you have ideas, references, sketches, or just thoughts on the direction, I’d genuinely love to see them. 🤝

Logo/icon contributions are also very welcome.

[BeeJoo123]

yes please, a white cat on white background is challenging, may be its easy to change the background ??

[Shrap243]

It would need bright colours to compete with all the other icons on my desktop.

[julyx10]

thanks!

[OPGERUIMD97]

An idea...

[julyx10]

Wow, @OPGERUIMD97, really appreciate the time and care you put into this, thank you!!!
I think the design might be a bit too complex for a logo. Ideally it should be simple enough to sit comfortably alongside other system icons while still standing out, which I know is genuinely hard to pull off.

[OPGERUIMD97]

Haha this is the most complex one and to be honest I don't like it at all - but at least we are active in the discussion part again 🤩🫣

My suggestion is keep it by the current logo! Or make at least an equivalent of it....

I don't know how but will think about it over the coming days

[BeeJoo123]

Well, I agree with "its too complex" !
When we all look at the bottom of our screen we see how easy all icons are designed. But as said already having a white cat on white background is something special and also reminds me to all those cat videos around. And what has a cat common with this app ?
But taking the idea above: what about a simplified camera on a colored background ?

[OPGERUIMD97]

[OPGERUIMD97]

@julyx10 I love the original cat concept — cats are independent, stubborn, and do things their own way. Just like Lap: local-first, no cloud, on your own terms.

Very fitting actually! 🐱

But I’m curious — what was the story behind the cat drinking from a bowl specifically? Was there a deeper meaning, or was it purely a design choice?

Understanding the ‘why’ might help us find a better direction for the icon.

[julyx10]

LAP carries two layers of meaning

• The first is what the app stands for: Local-first, AI-powered Photo manager.
• The second reflects the app's organizational hierarchy: Library → Album → Photo files.

LAP's design principles are simplicity, consistency, and elegance — and the cat-lapping logo was a natural fit. It's a playful nod to the word "lap" itself, and cats, after all, are the very embodiment of elegance. 🙂

[OPGERUIMD97]

Got that!

Honestly — I still can’t make the connection between a cat and a photo manager in my head, no matter how hard I try. 😅

The wordplay with ‘lapping’ is clever, but visually it just doesn’t click for me.

So two directions I see:

1. Keep the cat exactly as is, just add a strong background color
2. Keep the cat but add one small element that hints at photos

Which direction feels closer to what you had in mind?

[julyx10]

I don't think we need to be locked into the current layout, or feel obligated to signal "photo manager" at all.
GitHub's octocat, Obsidian's gem — neither explains what the product does, but both feel iconic and instantly recognizable. The logo's job is to carry the personality, not the feature set.
So I'd say: feel free to rethink the composition entirely.

[OPGERUIMD97]

Okay - I'll overthink it again.

And yes there is no need to have a link between the icon and what the app does - but that is how persons minds works also - again for me the cat (and see also the dock example just shared) is not pointing me in a direction of photo's at all...

But as said I'll overthink it again.

[BeeJoo123]

This how it looks on my dock actually, I would really love a kind of shutter !! that would help to get rid of two other Icons ;-)

[OPGERUIMD97]

The cat is still the main "icon item" some ideas....

1. How about this? The cat keeps its lapping pose — the wordplay stays intact. But the bowl is now a real camera lens (f/1.8, golden aperture, the works). No need to choose between the cat and photos anymore — they’re the same thing now. 🐱📷

2. And this one as an alternative — same cat, same pose, but the water in the bowl reflects tiny photo memories. Like the cat is lapping up your entire photo library. 🐱🖼️

3. And a third option — the L·A·P letters subtly reflected in the water. Very minimal, very elegant. Easy to miss, but once you see it… 🐱✨

4. And the simplest option — keep everything exactly as it is, just swap the background color. Sometimes less is more. 🐱

1 is my personal favorite...
But those are still ideas based on the current lapping cat logo

[BeeJoo123]

Bright blue ?

[julyx10]

3D version 🙂

[OPGERUIMD97]

Nice!

[BeeJoo123]

Again white in white ????

[julyx10]

actually I prefer purple background :)

[OPGERUIMD97]

Mwah....

Still a problem with the 3D-cat-on-purple icon in the dock...

but happy that I'm able to change it myself....

[OPGERUIMD97]

Maybe not @julyx10 purple's color from his idea but at least an example of the 3D-cat-on-purple-in-dock example

[julyx10]

That was awesome, keep brainstorming 😄

The purple background didn't turn out as well as I had imagined. The shutter-style logo looks pretty nice, but the problem is that on macOS, almost every app icon sits inside a rounded square, so it really needs a background color. Also, the shutter design feels very clean and sharp—maybe even a bit too masculine.

It reminded me of the best compliment I've ever received about Lap: "You've made me feel like a new woman." That’s still the feeling I want the logo to convey—warm, elegant, and gender-neutral. 😄

[OPGERUIMD97]

Okay....i'll keep thinking also and dumping ideas here as long as there no new one available.....

[akelagercrantz]

Here are a few alternatives from Gemini on the cat + photo theme

[BeeJoo123]

schöne Katzenbilder 🫣

[julyx10]

Thank you, Åke.
Looks too AI-generated, and not concise enough.

I have made a subtle tweak to the logo for v0.3.0.