Posted by Drew Fulton on September 16, 2007 at 2:53 PM
Hey NPNers,
I am in the process of putting together a portfolio that I can use to show people who may be potential clients, whether editors, gallery owners, etc, etc. I know a fair amount of you have probably done the same so I thought I would ask to see what has worked or didn't work for you guys. No sense trying to reinvent the wheel.
What I am currently thinking about is some sort of portfolio or binder that I can add or subtract pages from. That way I can customize the book for the specific client or job. I haven't looked around much for specific binders but I imagine I will spend some time on the LightImpressions website this afternoon.
I'd love to hear about ideas or experiences you all have had. Thanks!
Drew
Posted by Dan Borzynski on September 16, 2007 at 4:27 PM
Keep the portfolio small, maybe 20 image tops, and consistent.
What you don't to do is have a model headshot, a playground, a calling wolf, Shinto temple, old sailing ship, cup of coffee, etc, in the same portfolio. They may all be the greatest images ever shot, but an art director is really going to wonder about the message you are trying to send. If nothing else, they are going to wonder if you shot them all or how you are going to find time to work with them.. Neither are good impressions to make.
If you were to say, approach a gallery for a portfolio review, stop in a couple of times in prior months to see what they are carrying from other artists and try to be consistant with that. By this, I mean that some galleries tend to be trendy, others conservative, and still others could be a hodge-podge of media and styles.
For galleries, ideally you would have asked this question at the beginning of the summer to give yourself some time to research your prospects. At least here in Columbus, a lot of the exhibitors for next year are being decided in August or now. Don't take that too negatively - you have to start somewhere.
Try to keep the papers and printers consistent as well. Matte and glossy papers have a very different appearance. If you have 14 images which work well on matte paper, but #15 demands to be printed on a glossy paper, find a different #15. That last one on different will stick out in a portfolio review and if there are ANY weaknesses, it will be remembered and not for good reasons.
One thing to keep in mind is that the people you will be contacting are looking for reasons to not accept your work. They will be seeing a lot of other artists, in addition to you, and have limited opportunities to offer. You have 15-30 seconds make a good impression.
Just out of curiousity, have you done a "real" job interviews? This needs to approached the same way. Dress well, although a suit and tie may not be necessary. Don't show up in jeans and a t-shirt, even if the reviewer is a good friend. You need to show that you take yourself and your work seriously and jeans don't carry that message.
Since you are still a student, do you have any contacts in the arts department where you are? It would not hurt to start knocking on doors over there, for advice, informal portfolio reviews and possible recommendations. The worse that can happen is they say no.
How about contacts in the sciences? They might be able to loan some wall space for a semester for an informal exhibit. It is a way to constructively pad your resume and maybe get some attention.
And while it should go without saying, don't do the following. You get gallery space. You have a half a dozen or so cibachrome prints made, and price them at $500. Then you hang them on the wall by taping each corner diagonally with masking tape. You laugh... After seeing that done by another "artist", I will never deal with one local gallery.
Posted by Drew Fulton on September 16, 2007 at 5:01 PM
Don,
Thanks for the wealth of comments. I think we are on the same page as all of it rang true for me. I am just getting started in the business side of things having graduated a year ago and then spent the last year as a Watson Fellow in Australia. Now I need to work on the business side of things as I have two large bodies of work that are just sitting on my hard drives.
I have had a solo exhibition at Bowdoin College in February 2006 and have another one scheduled in 2009 so I know the basics of how those work. Basically, I am just trying to keep my options open as of now and prepare myself to best present my work to potential clients.
So I guess I should better phrase my question here. What would a portfolio look like? I was thinking 15-20 images max with a consistent focus and theme like Don suggested. How do you present those images? Are they mounted on paper and then in a binder? Are they mounted, matted, and in a portfolio case? I
Thanks!
Drew
Posted by Dan Borzynski on September 16, 2007 at 5:32 PM
I hadn't realized you already graduated - I was thinking you had one more year left. Now that you remind me, your exhibit also sounds familar.
Well, hopefully someone else will find the comments useful.
I have been using Itoya art porfolios, with unmatted prints inside. I'd be hesitant to start matting or mounting prints for showing, simply because 15 prints might get a bit unwieldy to handle. Quick, easy and small to work with, but only half full. I'd rather use a smaller binder with few pages, but I've been a bit lazy checking things out. Someplace like Blick's have a good selection of products and manufacturers.
I've also seen people using matted prints - if anyone out there has any comments on that, I'd love to hear them.
I am a bit curious what others are doing as well. I am not showing anything this year, for various personal reasons, but I need to start agan next year.
Good luck, and I'll be following this thread as well.
Posted by Buck Ward on September 16, 2007 at 7:40 PM
Hi Drew
I'll suggest a book : Photo Portfolio Success. by John Kaplan. It has a few good tips and pointers, some of which are echoed in Dan's advice.
Posted by Deb Little on September 19, 2007 at 3:22 PM
Hi Drew,
These portfolio cases are very popular right now. The frosted acrylic front makes for a beautiful presentation. And you can have as many or as little pages as you would like.
Discussion
5 repliesI am in the process of putting together a portfolio that I can use to show people who may be potential clients, whether editors, gallery owners, etc, etc. I know a fair amount of you have probably done the same so I thought I would ask to see what has worked or didn't work for you guys. No sense trying to reinvent the wheel.
What I am currently thinking about is some sort of portfolio or binder that I can add or subtract pages from. That way I can customize the book for the specific client or job. I haven't looked around much for specific binders but I imagine I will spend some time on the LightImpressions website this afternoon.
I'd love to hear about ideas or experiences you all have had. Thanks!
Drew
What you don't to do is have a model headshot, a playground, a calling wolf, Shinto temple, old sailing ship, cup of coffee, etc, in the same portfolio. They may all be the greatest images ever shot, but an art director is really going to wonder about the message you are trying to send. If nothing else, they are going to wonder if you shot them all or how you are going to find time to work with them.. Neither are good impressions to make.
If you were to say, approach a gallery for a portfolio review, stop in a couple of times in prior months to see what they are carrying from other artists and try to be consistant with that. By this, I mean that some galleries tend to be trendy, others conservative, and still others could be a hodge-podge of media and styles.
For galleries, ideally you would have asked this question at the beginning of the summer to give yourself some time to research your prospects. At least here in Columbus, a lot of the exhibitors for next year are being decided in August or now. Don't take that too negatively - you have to start somewhere.
Try to keep the papers and printers consistent as well. Matte and glossy papers have a very different appearance. If you have 14 images which work well on matte paper, but #15 demands to be printed on a glossy paper, find a different #15. That last one on different will stick out in a portfolio review and if there are ANY weaknesses, it will be remembered and not for good reasons.
One thing to keep in mind is that the people you will be contacting are looking for reasons to not accept your work. They will be seeing a lot of other artists, in addition to you, and have limited opportunities to offer. You have 15-30 seconds make a good impression.
Just out of curiousity, have you done a "real" job interviews? This needs to approached the same way. Dress well, although a suit and tie may not be necessary. Don't show up in jeans and a t-shirt, even if the reviewer is a good friend. You need to show that you take yourself and your work seriously and jeans don't carry that message.
Since you are still a student, do you have any contacts in the arts department where you are? It would not hurt to start knocking on doors over there, for advice, informal portfolio reviews and possible recommendations. The worse that can happen is they say no.
How about contacts in the sciences? They might be able to loan some wall space for a semester for an informal exhibit. It is a way to constructively pad your resume and maybe get some attention.
And while it should go without saying, don't do the following. You get gallery space. You have a half a dozen or so cibachrome prints made, and price them at $500. Then you hang them on the wall by taping each corner diagonally with masking tape. You laugh... After seeing that done by another "artist", I will never deal with one local gallery.
Thanks for the wealth of comments. I think we are on the same page as all of it rang true for me. I am just getting started in the business side of things having graduated a year ago and then spent the last year as a Watson Fellow in Australia. Now I need to work on the business side of things as I have two large bodies of work that are just sitting on my hard drives.
I have had a solo exhibition at Bowdoin College in February 2006 and have another one scheduled in 2009 so I know the basics of how those work. Basically, I am just trying to keep my options open as of now and prepare myself to best present my work to potential clients.
So I guess I should better phrase my question here. What would a portfolio look like? I was thinking 15-20 images max with a consistent focus and theme like Don suggested. How do you present those images? Are they mounted on paper and then in a binder? Are they mounted, matted, and in a portfolio case? I
Thanks!
Drew
Well, hopefully someone else will find the comments useful.
I have been using Itoya art porfolios, with unmatted prints inside. I'd be hesitant to start matting or mounting prints for showing, simply because 15 prints might get a bit unwieldy to handle. Quick, easy and small to work with, but only half full. I'd rather use a smaller binder with few pages, but I've been a bit lazy checking things out. Someplace like Blick's have a good selection of products and manufacturers.
I've also seen people using matted prints - if anyone out there has any comments on that, I'd love to hear them.
I am a bit curious what others are doing as well. I am not showing anything this year, for various personal reasons, but I need to start agan next year.
Good luck, and I'll be following this thread as well.
I'll suggest a book : Photo Portfolio Success. by John Kaplan. It has a few good tips and pointers, some of which are echoed in Dan's advice.
These portfolio cases are very popular right now. The frosted acrylic front makes for a beautiful presentation. And you can have as many or as little pages as you would like.
http://www.portfolios-and-art-cases.com/pina-zangaro-screwpost.html