Although you can have an online portfolio, a graphic designer who does print work still needs a physical portfolio. The way I have produced a portfolio has changed a lot of the years and the size of my portfolio has shrunk from A1 straight out of college (which was a nightmare to carry round) to the A3 size it is now.
My earlier portfolios all contained printed work which was painstakingly spray mounted onto black mount board or card and laid out in a way to try and display my work to its full potential. Heather at http://www.heatherink.blogspot.com has a great tutorial if you are looking to create a portfolio using this method.
My next portfolios went much more digital and I would create eps my brochures (from quark) and pull them into photoshop on an A3 page. I would then take elements of the brochure that I was showing such as logos etc and use them as faded watermarks/shapes in the background in effect creating a design of the entire A3 page with the design work as the focal point.
My later portfolio pages of graphic design work including the one I have now are much simpler. I create pdfs in quark of my brochure (or other design project) pages then pull them back into A3 Quark documents with my logo at the top of the page. I put simple keylines around the work and hope that the design work speaks for itself without the need for further embellishment. I also make all the work of the same orientation to save keep turning the portfolio round when talking through the work. I put the pages in plastic sleeves and put them in an A3 black ringbinder portfolio. As the work is often reduced in size to fit on the A3 pages I tuck a few finished print examples of a few pieces of work in the pocket at the back of the portfolio.
How do you display your work in your portfolio?
For more tips on creating graphic design portfolios see:
http://www.creativelatitude.com
http://www.creativegroup.com
http://www.desktoppub.about.com
http://www.lifeclever.com
Twitter
RSS
Facebook
9 Comments
I prefer to concentrate on my online portfolio, its the first place potential clients will look. Call me sad but if anyone sends me any promotional literature I always check out their website first, so before you get yourself in front of a new client you can be sure that they will have checked you out online before hand. This is happening a lot more to me now so my physical portfolio consists only of samples of my latest print work.
Hi Graham,
I know whatyou mean about an online portfolio, however I still get asked to bring/show my hardcopy quite often at first meetings.
I am also asked to bring a printed folio too but I tend to take real print pieces so that potential clients can feel the finish and get an example of how much effort really goes in to print based design. I used to take printed A3 sheets similar to you, but found it did not display my work in the way that I wanted it. Only problem now is you have loads of loose pieces of work.
When I graduated I created a printed portfolio. I created slightly smaller versions of my projects that fold flat while they are in the box I use. When I take them out they fold into the project. These are mostly packaging and 3d objects. I didn’t want my portfolio to consist of flat sheets in a book. I wanted it to be a surprise when I started pulling these 3d objects out of a 3-4 in tall box.
I keep a printed portfolio and I have yet to update my online portfolio with real work (it’s still all stuff from school! Yikes! It’s been almost a year since I graduated…). I hate those stupid black mounting boards! My portfolio is in a large black leather portfolio binder, the kind with 20+ metal rings and plastic protector sheets. Adding/subtracting pieces from it is a snap and my work is protected from fingerprints.
As to the actual pieces in my portfolio, some are the work from the printer, some are just pages I reproduced at home and others are thumbnails (not the sketch kind) around a full size sample layout to give an overall feel for a series or book layout. I too tuck samples for people to handle in the pockets of the portfolio. I place those samples in a manila envelope so they stay nice and aren’t all loose in the back. People are very tactile and they like this addition of touching real products.
Tyler, that sounds like a pretty cool portfolio display! Almost like magic tricks
Have people had a positive reaction to it?
Well, my portfolio are in digital format. So I would send my client a CD with interactive content of my portfolio. Note that not all my works are applicable in printed media (a website, for example)
so the solution is to bring a physical and a digital portfolio.
As a web designer, I have an online one, and I always bring CD’s with me on interview…
Likewise with me, i generally bring a few examples with me to meetings, but i normally direct potential clients to the online portfolio, so that there is no sense of rush when viewing work. Sending a cd seems a little more personal though, i think its a better idea actually.
Hi
I was wondering what is the most simple way to put my portfolio online. I am a print based designer and would like some examples of my work online.