Portfolio and Case Studies Thoughts

Here are some random thoughts about portfolios and case studies. 

Melanie Kaye of Melanie Ink

A portfolio shouldn’t have more than a dozen pieces. The interviewer is busy. They don’t have time to look at a lot of mediocre stuff.

• Variety = good
• Things you love = great
• Things you don’t care for = don’t do it

Ability to solve communication problems including identifying the problem. Research. Be more curious.

Analysis – did it work? Why or why not? Solution generating. Prototyping. Can you comp up a little book? Can you make a sketch? Prototyping, user evaluation, and outcome evaluating.


Jeff Tyler of VMWare and Monkey Chicken Design

Content: show a breadth of work. Show a range. Show that you can do anything.

Prioritize the work. Your actual work for a client should not say who you are – you should be a chameleon.

Why? The customer has their own brand and style, and you will be expected to adhere to it. So your breadth of stuff must say that you are flexible and can convey the message while adhering to their own guidelines.

Case study = the story for that project.

You must be able to answer questions about why you did it that way. So become adept at bullshit. Answer the questions with all the buzzwords like spacing and hierarchy.

Don’t just throw stuff in because your portfolio is light. Everything in your portfolio must be fantastic. If the portfolio is light, make more fantastic pieces instead of padding it with substandard pieces.

If you don’t feel it’s your best work, don’t put it in your portfolio at all. Don’t dilute your work. Skew the portfolio toward what they are looking for. Put what they are looking for in the front. 3–5 great solid pieces is good enough for a start. Anything that’s not your best work will bring your best work down.


Fabian Espinosa of Duarte Design

When they see your design, they want to know your though process.

• You must be able to explain why you chose the color red.
• Why did you use illustration instead of photography?
• Why did you choose a condensed font instead of a wide font?
• Why did you use a texture instead of clean?
• They want to know that this work is your own. If you were part of a team, let them know. Make sure they know your role in a design project.

Obsess about the details. The difference between designers is that the senior person sees the details that the junior person does not see. See the smallest details. Maybe the colors are too saturated. Maybe they don’t fit the tone or message the client is trying to convey.

In most cases, you should not have a wide range or work in your portfolio. Instead, you should have a portfolio that is targeted toward the company you are interviewing for. So sometimes you need to come up with your own personal projects instead of the projects you’ve worked on for other companies previously, because those past projects may not be what the new company is working for.

It’s not about your technical ability. It’s about your concepts. The client doesn’t care how long it takes you to create your design. They want to know you can figure out a way to communicate their message.


The Importance of Case Studies in a Design Portfolio

https://webdesignledger.com/case-studies-for-web-portfolios/

When styling a case study it’s a good idea to frame it from an educational perspective. Most portfolio entries include some photos with extra details about the project. This is fine and most definitely encouraged – but case studies are meant to explain the stages and hurdles of a project.

Aside from actual mockups or completed designs you might also include some preliminary photos. Basic prototypes, sketches, or even rejected design ideas. All of these things demonstrate knowledge to prospective clients or job recruiters.

Design interesting case studies to help others understand your creative process. This is not an easy task at first because you probably won’t have much experience describing each project in detail. But with practice it gets a lot easier and really fun.

Demonstrate your process in a true-to-life manner. Take photographs of sketches on your desk or scan your sketchbook for a digital shot. Take apart your designs and create little diagrams with tooltips going into detail about each part.

An Expert's Guide to Creating Graphic Design Case Studies

https://www.shutterstock.com/blog/how-to-graphic-design-case-study

• Targeting: Focus on a past client that represents your ideal future client.
• Perspective: Write in the client’s perspective so potential clients can easily relate.
• Narrative: Don’t be dry – tell a story about the client’s needs and your design process.
• Data: Show the success of your work through cold hard facts and numbers.

Take your potential client on a journey from start to finish. Begin with who the original client was, what they do, and why they contacted you. Take the reader through your process: how you identified ways to help, how you met with the client, and what changes you implemented. Then reveal what the work looked like when it was done, how the client felt, and the end results.