Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
A lot of creative energy goes into
creating comps. Generally, the
best ideas never get produced, or
at least get “watered down” to
the point that they're not as good
as the original idea. So, for me,
the website is a great place to
showcase some of my favorite
work that never got approved.
—Ken Loh
joined with related pieces from the main portfolio, can
be salted into other venues. Are you a designer, but
consider yourself a good photographer? Maybe some of
your photo work belongs on Flickr, with some commen-
tary on how you use it to develop your design ideas.
Have a good poster that you've weeded from your main
site to make room for new work? It may be perfect in a
blog with a discussion of your typographic decisions.
Doubling
Doubling—maintaining two completely different
portfolios—is not just useful, it's required if you do
more than one thing well and the two things speak to
radically different audiences. Fine artists who actively solicit commercial illustration,
designers who also photograph, or illustrators who design are often best served by
keeping these specialized skills separate.
It is possible to create distinct areas on a single website, but think twice
before you try. This tactic can work brilliantly if you are really a double- or triple-
threat, or if your secondary creative outlet illuminates some aspect of your primary
expertise. If the second element is only a tag-on, it weakens your overall presenta-
tion.
Developing
When you develop, you are planning on a radical break with your past, rather
than an expansion or transition. A small selection of older material may combine with
newly invented work—revisions of older projects or brand-new ideas—explicitly cre-
ated for one new portfolio that will take the place of all existing ones.
You use the developing strategy when you are in the process of reinventing
yourself, but still need to maintain a professional presence for current employment.
If, for example, you want to move into a new specialty within your profession—like a
photographer moving from product to editorial shots—developing may be the only
way to do it. The same is true if you have been an exhibit designer but you are now
studying interactive design or architecture.
The negative points of developing come down to two little words with big
impact: money and time. Developing from scratch is by far the hardest strategy—short
term. But it's often best to take the long view with your portfolio. Everyone has peri-
ods of feast and famine, even during good economic times. The quiet periods are ideal
for developing new material, which will hopefully help to minimize downtimes in
the future.
