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PORTFOLIO SERIES - GATHER ALL OF YOUR PORTFOLIO SAMPLES TOGETHER (article 3)
by Rachel Goldstein
owner of Allfreelancework.com - 1000s of freelance jobs


Now it is time to put it all together. So how are you going to choose which samples to place in your portfolio? Hopefully you will have a large number of samples to choose from, but don't worry about it if you don't. Your goal is to choose 10 - 20 of your best samples. Think quality, not quantity. Lay out all of your work and decide which samples are the best.

You should try to focus your portfolio for a niche market. Are you interested in working for an advertising agency, book publisher, newspaper, etc.? Different markets will expect different things from you. You might not be ready to choose a niche market yet, if this is the case you will need to rearrange your portfolio each time you interview for a job.

Once you have chosen which samples to include in your portfolio, you should look them over with great care. Make sure that there aren't any errors or typos within your sample work. If there is even one little error, leave that sample out. You are trying to position yourself as a competent, skilled, detail-oriented professional.

Each time that you apply for a position and you are called in for a portfolio review or drop-off, you should research the hiring company for more information. Normally a job ad isn't enough information to find out what the employer is really looking for in a good portfolio. At the minimum, you will need to get the phone number, company's name, and address. From this information, you can hopefully gain access to verifiable details about this business. From this information, you should do research on the Internet. If you are a web designer, You will need to find out if the business in question has a web site. What colors and style form do they use? If you are a graphic designer, does this business have sample brochures online to download or have mailed to you? Does this company have any other job listings online? Take a look at all of their job ads, you might be able to see more of what this company is about.

Once you are more aware of what the hiring company wants from you, you will be able to put together samples that you can be confident displaying to the interviewer. Remember to only choose 10 - 15 samples. You don't want to overwhelm the interviewer with too many samples.

What quality should you include in your portfolio?

** Originals - Whenever possible, you should include originals. When I say 'original pieces', I mean an actual finished product, like a brochure, catalog, self-mailer, etc.

** Tearsheets - Tearsheets are pages torn from a magazine, newspaper, or other published material. If something of yours is published in a publication, purchase many of them so you can keep them for your portfolio.

** C-Prints - Color Prints (also called c-prints) need to be produced professionally by a custom lab. Take a color negative or interneg to a custom lab and tell the rep that you want a full page C-Print. The quality of the C-print will not be so great because you are enlarging from slide size to full page size. I don't recommend using this method, but if it is your last resort, go for it.

** Printouts - Go to your local service bureau and bring your digital files there to have printed out. Printouts from a quality service bureau are very similar to printouts from a quality printing press.

** Photographs - If your original design is unable to go into your portfolio than you can take a quality photograph and place it in your portfolio. However, there is nothing more unprofessional than a shoddy photography, so you will want to do it right. We will cover photographing your work later in this series.

**Slide transparencies in plastic sheets (20 per sheet, or loaded tray ready for showing) - This is a good way to display your portfolio if you are a photographer. Otherwise, unless the interviewer says it is okay beforehand, don't assume that you can display your portfolio with slides.

**Chrome transparencies - Chrome transparencies are very expensive and probably not worth the extra expense since you don't need them. They come in sizes 4 x 5, or 8 x 10 and the clarity is amazing. Art directors seem to like Chrome Transparencies better than slides because they are easier to use.

**Laser Photocopies - Laser color photocopies have come a long way in the last few years or so. I have actually seen laser photocopies that look better than printouts from service bureaus. Check out the color quality on local laser photocopiers. I know that you can find them at Kinkos, Staples, and Officemax, amongst other similar places.

** Screenshots - It is difficult to place your website in a portfolio, but with the use of screen shots it is possible. Take a screen shot and then crop it in Photoshop. Take your files to your local service bureau to have your images printed out.

Now that you have a better idea of what quality samples you should place in your book, take time examining what pieces most define what you are capable of at your 'best'. Next week we will go over "Shopping for the Portfolio Case that is Right for You". See you then.

Any comments about portfolios - or do you want to share your knowledge with us? Please send questions and comments to allfreelance@comcast.net