Portfolio Building
The types of portfolio
- Analogue A3 / A4 portfolio with printed images - they can be located in plastic sleeves or mounted and put into a ring bound portfolio
- Digital - Electronic presentation on an iPad and the use of Digital media.
Does an iPad look presentable?
The iPad is more modern and seems to be more popular in the sense of portraying photographs however the lack of professionalism of the way its displayed in my eyes just ruins the concept and the feeling of how the photographs should truly be portrayed.
Personally I believe that if you was to produce a range of photographic pieces that printed images would show a lot more dedication and hard work rather than copying them over onto an iPad, it also gets the viewer more involved whereas on an iPad it automatically flips through each image and doesn't engage the audience as much as physical photographic copies do.
Things to Remember!
Some of the most common mistakes people make when putting together a portfolio is they chuck a load of photographs in at once, no one wants to spend ages looking through hundreds of photographs - it needs to be quick and snappy so they can take in the fantastic work you produce however you must not add too little either otherwise you will not engage them further.
What makes an image worthy of being in a portfolio is the contextual meaning behind the photograph i.e a story, you need to be able to grasp and engage people through each image and have a relatable contributes to the photograph and not just one image, you need to leave them wanting more.
You should always keep a variety of different portfolios tailored to specific purposes that you enjoy and that you love to get paid for because when clients come to you for a specific genre of photography, they want to see what you can produce within that criteria, keeping different portfolios will make it easier for the client to see what you can truly produce and show a professional and organised side to you and the client themselves making it more likely to be accepted by them.
You ALWAYS keep your portfolio updated whether thats digitally or physically because clients will come back to either your website or to you yourself a numerous amount of time and will expect to see new work produced - if nothing new is produced then they would suspect you've had no work and making you potentially loose customers.
The importance of how the photographs should be ordered when you present them is crucial because the first image needs to be strong, its the first photograph which people see and tells them something about you - if the first photograph is strong then you've made that promise the images that follow will be just as significant - the position of the photographs makes the viewer want to see more.
Lastly the photograph that ends the whole piece, you must never put weak photographs in the back of the book, you want the clients to leave with the memories of fantastic and creative imagery - you don't want them to leave disappointed, you must start with a strong image and always end with a strong image.
Portfolio Size
The size of your portfolio is important you don't want the portfolio to be too big that carrying it around breaks your back but big enough to do your work justice however print size is also important i.e looking at well - designed photo-books you will see either a full-bleed/borderless image on a big page or a huge border around a small image so deciding which suits your work is crucial.
You will also have to be consistent with your content because the portfolio/ photo-book relate to your photographs i.e are your photographs loud or soft? gentle or brash?