# **Canopy Visual & Generative AI Guidelines** > Use this document when generating images, graphics, or other visual content with AI tools on behalf of Canopy. Pair it with the AI Visual Output Checklist to review what comes out the other end. ## Why This Exists The Voice & Content Guidelines help AI tools sound like Canopy. This document helps AI tools *look* like Canopy — so generated visuals feel like an extension of our brand instead of generic AI-stock-art. ## Our Color Palette **Primary** - Charcoal — \#222225 - Canopy Blue — \#2B4BFF - Cool Gray — \#F1F3F7 - Aqua — \#0BE6C7 - Pure White — \#FFFFFF **Secondary** - Aqua 2 — \#10C9CD - Blue 2 — \#217FE9 - Dark Blue — \#0E2998 - Dark Aqua — \#09A08B - Warm Gray — \#EFEFED - Medium Gray — \#797986 - True Black — \#000000 **CTA** - Button Yellow — \#D7E024 (use sparingly, for calls to action only) When prompting, describe the palette as: **charcoal and true black, Canopy blue, and aqua/mint green, on white or cool gray backgrounds** — with yellow reserved as a rare CTA accent, not a design color. Button Yellow should **only** appear in CTAs or small emphasis details (a button, an underline, a small icon accent) — never as a large fill, background, or dominant color in a composition. ## Typography **Primary typeface: Domaine Display Narrow** - Used for headlines, sub-headlines, and pull quotes - High-contrast serif — needs generous leading (line spacing) to work well - Headlines: bold, title case, with punctuation - Quotes: regular weight, sentence case - Fallback if Domaine is unavailable: Playfair - Note: Domaine Display (not Narrow) is reserved for regular weight or italic use only — don't substitute it for Domaine Display Narrow **Secondary typeface: Work Sans** - Sans serif, used for body copy, headlines, and sub-headlines — comes in multiple weights - Headlines: bold, title case, with punctuation - Subheads: bold, title case - Descriptors/labels: heavy weight, all caps, wide letter tracking - Body copy: regular weight, tight tracking When prompting for any graphic with text baked in, specify: **a high-contrast serif (Domaine Display Narrow) for bold headlines/quotes, or a clean grotesque sans (Work Sans) for supporting text/labels** — never a generic default font, script font, or handwriting-style font. ## Canopy's Visual Styles Canopy uses a few distinct visual modes depending on context. Match the style to the use case — don't blend them. ### 1\. Line-Art Icons Simple, flat, black-outlined icons with a slight sticker-like offset shadow. Fills use Canopy blue and aqua/mint as accent colors inside otherwise black-and-white line art. Consistent stroke width, minimal detail, friendly and clean — think folder icons, gears, envelopes, people, charts, document icons. A full icon pack is available for download; prefer using approved icons over generating new ones when possible. ``` Generate a flat, black-outlined line-art icon of [concept, e.g. "a handshake" or "a calendar"]. Style: minimal, consistent stroke weight, slight offset drop-shadow like a sticker. Fill key accents in Canopy blue (#2B4BFF) and mint aqua (#0BE6C7), rest in black and white. No gradients, no photorealism, no text. ``` ### 2\. Isometric & Editorial Illustrations Bold, flat vector illustrations — isometric "machines" and playful metaphor scenes (e.g., a fantastical map), whimsical but clean, black outlines with limited color fills from the brand palette, often on a dark charcoal or single-color background. Confident and a little cheeky, never cutesy or cluttered. ``` Generate a flat vector isometric illustration of [concept, e.g. "a machine that turns receipts into reports"]. Style: bold black outlines, limited color palette (Canopy blue, aqua, white), on a solid dark charcoal or single-color background. Playful but clean composition, no gradients, no photorealism. ``` ### 3\. Abstract Geometric Graphics Overlapping flat geometric shapes (circles, blocks) in blue and aqua tones, sometimes forming abstract symbols (like quotation marks). Good for backgrounds, section breaks, or decorative accents behind text. ``` Generate an abstract background graphic using overlapping flat geometric shapes (circles, blocks) in Canopy blue and aqua tones. Style: flat, modern, minimal, generous negative space. No text, no realistic objects. ``` ### 4\. Product Screenshots Real screenshots of the Canopy app, shown in-context (e.g., inside a browser frame or floating card UI) — clean SaaS interface, white cards, blue accents, on solid brand-color backgrounds. These should always come from the real product. **Do not generate fake UI or product screens with AI** — see "Do Not Generate" below. ### 5\. Photo Collage / Campaign Style Black-and-white photography (people, objects) combined with flat color blocks, halftone/dot-texture effects, and bold sans or serif headline type. High contrast, editorial, a little punk/scrapbook energy. Portraits sometimes get a mint-green glow outline. Used for campaigns, social, and bigger brand moments — more expressive than the other styles. ``` Generate a bold photo-collage style graphic combining black-and-white photography with flat color blocks in Canopy blue and aqua. Style: high contrast, editorial, halftone texture accents, bold headline text (Work Sans-style grotesque sans, all caps) integrated into the composition. No realistic color photography — keep photographic elements black and white only. ``` ## Approved Use Cases - Blog and article header images (illustration or abstract style) - Icons and simple supporting graphics (prefer the icon pack; generate only to fill gaps, matching its style) - Social and campaign graphics (collage or abstract style) - Internal presentation visuals (moodboards, concept exploration) ## Do Not Generate - The Canopy logo, wordmark, or triangle icon in any form — always use the approved files from the logo pack - Product screenshots or UI mockups — these must come from the actual product - Realistic color photography of people presented as Canopy employees, customers, or testimonials — our real photography is black-and-white/duotone by design, and AI-generated "photos" of people should be avoided entirely - Any real, identifiable person, or a competitor's likeness or branding - Charts, graphs, or data visualizations meant to represent real numbers — generate these from actual data instead ## Before You Publish Run any AI-generated visual through the AI Visual Output Checklist. If it's going out publicly and will live on (not just a one-off internal use), it still needs a Marketing thumbs up per the Guardrails section.