Portfolio Presentation

[janeqb]

Hi all,

Since no one responded to my question in another forum, I thought maybe it's more appropriate to ask here. I'm in the process of making a portfolio. I already have my old 11X14 book with clear pages. I've decided to print the photos closest to 9X12s with black borders on 11X14 paper. I'm curious to know if this is a good choice. I'd love to hear from professionals with portfolios or from those who review them in their workplace to get a better sense of what stands out and works well.

Some of my images would look better with white borders. Right now, I need to add a thin white border on the darker images so that they don't fade into the black. Is it common to mix black and white or should I keep it all one color? I can always plan to mount them on boards in the future but for now, I'm doing it this way because of a time crunch. I understand that it all comes down to personal preference, I'm just wondering if mine sounds appealing.

Thanks for any help and advice!! You have no idea how much I'd appreciate it!

jane

[OsmosisStudios]

My small format portfolio is 8.5x11, but all the images fit into a 6x9 sized invisible box. The background is black, and each image is assigned a title and the medium (film or digital).

Dark images are not given a border to separate them from the BG.

DON'T mix black and white backgrounds for the pages.

[nickbedford]

If they're digital photos, you may find you'll get a really great presentation by having a photo book printed through someone like AdoramaPix.

[janeqb]

Thank you! I didn't know that you shouldn't mix the border colors. As you can see, this is my first attempt in creating a truly professional portfolio and it's been very frustrating with no one to help guide me through. I can only do so many google searches, if you know what I mean!

I'm curious though, two of my images have complete black backgrounds and will look small with lots of black surrounding them. That's really okay? So happy for your response. Thanks again!

[janeqb]

Originally Posted by nickbedford

If they're digital photos, you may find you'll get a really great presentation by having a photo book printed through someone like AdoramaPix.

Yes, I've seen the results and they're very impressive. Maybe one day (sigh). I will keep that in mind. Thanks.

[nickbedford]

Originally Posted by janeqb

Yes, I've seen the results and they're very impressive. Maybe one day (sigh). I will keep that in mind. Thanks.

They're not very expensive actually. You'd be able to smash together a pretty slick portfolio book for $40.

[janeqb]

Really! Well, I'll definitely keep that in mind for the future! Much cheaper!

[OsmosisStudios]

Originally Posted by janeqb

I'm curious though, two of my images have complete black backgrounds and will look small with lots of black surrounding them. That's really okay? So happy for your response. Thanks again!

Depends on the images. Your best bet is to do it, and just make sure that there are images with defined borders before and after.

[janeqb]

Originally Posted by OsmosisStudios

Depends on the images. Your best bet is to do it, and just make sure that there are images with defined borders before and after.

You mean, just leave out the little white borders that I created (all black) and put the lighter photos before and after? Sorry, not sure I understand correctly.

[OsmosisStudios]

None of your images have borders.
Page 1 would be an image whose edges are clearly defined on the black background
Page 2 would be an image whose edges are not clearly defined
Page 3 would again be an image whose edges are clearly defined.