Complete beginner to graphics type software (only ever used Photoshop) but got a copy of Inkscape and am slowly figuring it out.

What I'm aiming to do is create usable logos from pencil sketches I've made. I was quite happily tracing the outline using the bezier and pen tools, but a friend who uses Illustrator said that you have more control if you use a (filled?) shape rather than a stroke. I was just wondering if anyone could direct me to a useful tutorial or thread - or even just elaborate a little so I can find the right information.

I would ask her more, but she's not in the best place at the moment and I don't want to bother her, so I'm hoping someone here knows what I'm talking about and can help as Google was not my friend (perhaps I phrased my search query badly, who knows), especially since all the technical terminology is very new to me, so I may have missed a good tutorial right under my nose!

Welcome aboard!

For a wide series of tutorials, check here:
http://forum.inkscapecommunity.com/index.php

Thank you for the link. Is there one in particular that might help me figure this out - in the future I'd love to learn to use more of IS's capabilities but for now, bearing in mind there's a very specific skill I'm trying to master, is there any one tutorial which would explain stroke vs shape?

Since you`ve mentioned logos...

It would be wiser to use simple shapes for logo construction, rather than tracing pencil sketches (unless there`s some very specific and justified reason - like, complex typography). Tracing might make it look faster, but it`s not the best way nor it`s the shortcut, after all.

If you`re not clear how to differ tracing with lines/strokes and shapes - go for the simple shapes first. Rest would follow.

p.s.
Try also on YT, with tutorials about tracing in Inkscape.

Ok - that actually made a bit of sense to me (thanks!) So I'm trying to re-create using shapes instead of lines. Now I just have to figure out how to manipulate them as needed. The main reason I'm using the pencil sketches is because that's how I create the logos - I doodle around until i get something. A friend who designs websites spotted them and said they'd make good logos, but she needs them in vector format, so now I'm trying to figure out how to do that. Necessity being the mother of invention and all. Some of the drawings will be easier than others mind...
Watch out, I --may-- will be back!

More links:

http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/Paths-Creating.html#Paths-Bezier
http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/Paths-Editing.html
http://tavmjong.free.fr/INKSCAPE/MANUAL/html/Attributes-Fill-Stroke.html


The specific part about logo making in vector with inkscape is not the tools you use -the way of using them for such is generic-,
but the designing itself. Keeping a clean, consistent look, legible in different sizes, using the right font, pixel-fitted variants for screen displays, reduced colour versions for letterheads etc.

Those look great - thank you. Much appreciated.

OK, so I replicated the design using shapes and was pretty pleased with it, but now I want to apply a tapered line to them to create a calligraphic effect I guess. I've spent about three hours wandering through tutorials and whatnot, trying out ellipses, path effects etc etc but I can't find a way to apply this line tapering to the strokes of the shapes.

Am I missing something obvious? It's making me wish I'd stuck to drawing it using strokes rather than shapes. This http://design.tutsplus.com/tutorials/quick-tip-how-to-create-tapered-lines-in-inkscape--vector-23746 was a fab demo, but can't apply it to shapes as far as I can tell. Any suggestions very gratefully received.

To have filled areas, you have to draw closed paths, and add a fill to them through the fill and stroke panel.
It is a good idea to use only a fill or a stroke on one object, and place them above eachother usually -this way you can hide more path's edges with the same outline, avoiding anti-aliasing issues for example.
Once you have the original shape, by duplicating it and moving it atop (Home), it can make a good start.

Now you want it to have such shaped strokes as in that link, the path may be better be a compound path with open segments inbetween.
To change the shape"s direction, use the reverse path option on selected areas.

Another thing: with the pattern along path being used, use no path colour, but fill.
Once the effect looks quite right, you can turn it to be a path (Ctrl+Shift+C) and edit the details with the node editor tool.

... and just one more thing, which might cause some trouble - mind the orientation of the shape which you use from clipboard, since you could get different results with the triangle (i.e.) pointed up/down or left/right.

Hm, perhaps I should simplify....


*on the left side are shapes and on the right side is shown how they behave when applied on path (show as a red line)


If you copy upper triangle and use it as "From clipboard" you`ll get that streched shape.
If you copy lower triangle, it would follow the path in a desired manner.

I've recently covered some of this in my tutorials in Free Circle Magazine. You can find download links in this thread. Start at part 16 or 17, on page two of the thread, to get straight to the tracing and line thickness stuff - though the earlier parts are, of course, well worth reading too