PPP3: Portfolio Surgery

I have my first portfolio surgery today with Andy before I go on my studio visits. This was a good opportunity to get my portfolio looked at before I go on my studio visits so that I am taking my best work with me.

Printed Portfolio

I took both printed A3 sheets as well as my digital version of the portfolio so that Andy could see the extra sections and information pages I have in the digital versions.

Feedback from Portfolio Surgery

The feedback I got for my portfolio was mainly positive, with Andy listening as I was talking through my work and asking him questions in regards to my portfolio

Referencing my briefs, I was told that I should use a different image of my Zephyr bottles showing the back of the packaging as well as the front. I was told to add a layout to my Chester Zoo publication and if I didn't feel comfortable using it then just take it out entirely. For my National Trust brief, I have been told to swap my images around with the closed hamper as the first image, open hamper as the second image and then have a 3 image layout of the app with annotation describing the sections, functionality and structure works. Lastly, the RENEW brand needs some more time spending on it to make it stronger. The font choices on the logo need changing and I was told to make it more photographic so it has more realism.

For my text on the portfolio, I have been told to strip it down to the bare necessities by presenting it a bullet point style without actually using bullet points so that the information is split up and clearer to read.

In regards to some closing general feedback, I was told that it might be an idea to tailor my portfolio to fit in with the company that I am sending it to. It was also suggested that I take a few physical examples of my work, in particular my newspaper so that, instead of just seeing it as a picture, they get to have a look through it. Also, I was told to keep practising my layouts, maybe using a tester layout first before committing to anything digitally so that I can work it out visually and feel more confident with them.

In response to the feedback that I got, I decided to change my portfolio so that it is much more tailored to the comments that were made. I got rid of two of the briefs that I had originally out into the portfolio based on the feedback that I was given, the Chester Zoo publication and RENEW.

Text Layout Change

Text Layout Stripped Down

I was told to strip down my text to the bare necessities which would be achieved through splitting up the text information into what the brief was, the concept of the work and the target audience. This would make the information quicker to access. From this, I then stripped the information down to be as minimal as possible. I did this for each brief.

Changed Layout for National Trust 

From Andy's advice, I took the existing layout for the National Trust brief and changed it, moving the closed hamper first, the open one second and having the app laid out horizontally on a third page with some text at the bottom describing the app itself and how it works.

Changed Images for Zephyr

Again from Andy's advice, I changed some of the images for the Zephyr brief so that it includes an image of the back of the bottles as well. This just opens out the layout much more and is much more professional.

Re-Photographed Work

The final change I made was by re-photographing my Swell Brief as the previous photographs didn't look professional enough or showcase the work itself well.

Overall, I am very happy with the current new layout and presentation of my briefs as it is more condensed, over-arching and focused down. It was good that I was able to sit down with someone and go through my portfolio because it felt like a practice run for my studio visits as well as being able to get some perspective as to how I can present my work fluidly.