Fifteen Minutes on High

In baking there is a specific order as to how the ingredients need to be mixed. If you stray from this, your cookie, cake or pie might not come out as you had hoped. In “Building Design Porfolios” the order of things in terms of portfolios is discussed. Unlike baking there is no set recipe or formula to volume, however there are things you need to keep in mind while arranging the work in your portfolio.

Sara Eisenman writes “The first thing in your portfolio or presentation box should be a strong design sample- a drum roll to get the viewer excited or, at the very least, engaged” (Page 40). The initial work in your portfolio needs to grab the attention of the viewer. The person needs to want to see more in order of the portfolio to be successful. However, this piece should not be your best work. The work you’re most proud of should certainly catch the viewer’s attention but you need to build the anticipation of the viewer. Showing your best work first could be detrimental as the viewer may forget how great the first piece was while looking at your less impressive pieces. The pieces within the portfolio should build anticipation and excitement. When the anticipation has reached its boiling point you should show the highlight of your work (Page 40).

In terms of live presentations you are in control. You are the “master of ceremonies.” During the presentation you’re running the show. With this in mind you can change the order of things, linger on certain works or move quickly over portions you’re not particularly proud of but found portfolio worthy (Page 40). You’re decisions and comments should be based on how you think the clients are responding. If you see they’re bored by apiece you thought would be a showstopper move on!

As a recent graduate most of the work your portfolio will contain will be from class projects. It is important to rework and polish these older pieces (Page 42). This is necessary in order to unify them and make them seem as if they are part of an overall theme.

One of the most important parts of your portfolio is infusing you into it. Eisenman writes, “…a good portfolio should express in some subtle way who you are and what relationship you have to the world” (Page 42). By demonstrating who you are and what you’re interests are you could potentially stand out from other designers who opt to simply show their work and not a part of them.

Graphic designers are expected to be neat and organized. That is why it is crucial to make sure that when you’re presenting your work they are easily put in and removed from your storage system. Whichever way you choose to display or transport your work should also speak to who you are. Though an expensive leather portfolio might look nice, a personalized photo box will tell the client something more about who you are. This can be a good thing depending on the client. The leather portfolio might be good for more a more corporate setting.

As I mentioned in my last blog “Building Design Portfolios” makes what was written about in “How to be a graphic designer without losing your soul” seem more like a reality. Sara Eisenman does a great job including tips about interviews, resumes and cover letters. These are tips many might already know but the reminder is definitely helpful. Some of the tips I’ll walk away with include:

Do not follow a standardized resume format at the expense of good typography- your resume should look as though a designer created it (Page 47)

Choose colors wisely. Resumes with yellow or pale gray can appear to lack confidence (Page 48)

Cover letters should be designed in the same spirit, colors, and typeface as your resume (Page 51)

Don’t include any strong opinions or mandates in your cover letter (Page 51)

Give careful though to all follow-up materials (Page 51)

Those are just some of the many tips included in the second chapter. There is a whole movement that goes into the job hunt, presentation and post presentation. Getting a job as a graphic designer isn’t like applying to work as an accountant. Applying to be a graphic designer is its own fulltime job.

Maybe you can list job-hunting as work experience on your resume? Just a thought.