In recent times, institutions have begun the trend of screening photography portfolios as a method of selecting students to attend a photography university or college, or to secure a photography job.
What is a photography portfolio?
A photography portfolio is a compilation of a photographer’s most professional and appealing photos. A photography portfolio is created to showcase and promote your best work to people.
Guide to making a photography portfolio
The process of creating a student photography portfolio isn’t as difficult as most students presume it to be. The major problem most individuals face is not knowing where to start. This article discusses the steps that you can follow to make the whole process easier.
- Plan your portfolio carefully
- Select, organize, and present your best work
- Include additional complementary information
- Review your work
#1 Plan your portfolio carefully
Just as in every other aspect of life, planning is also the most important part of putting a student photography portfolio together. This step requires you to carefully assemble your range of recent images that can demonstrate your photographic intelligence and experiences to the institution you plan on applying.
Your range of recent images must be able to reflect your intense passion, strong interest, and quality experience in photography; this makes your craft more sellable.
When making a high-quality student photography portfolio for a university, there are some important components and details that must be carefully considered starting from the images chosen to the way you present them. You can look at recent student photography portfolio examples to know how to go about making yours.
You need to be able to express your craftsmanship through your photography to inform your employer or future school of your capabilities.
#2 Select, organize, and present your best work
This is another important aspect of creating a student photography portfolio which involves you getting down to the work itself. This aspect has a direct impact on your portfolio’s success and this is because a good layout communicates with your audience in a professional approach and shows your dedication and commitment.
Your portfolio’s first impression counts because the admission board might scan through your portfolio in less than 5 minutes. This is why you need to select, arrange, and present the top best of your work logically and pleasingly.
You should make sure your student photography portfolio leaves a positive & unforgettable experience for your potential college or employers.
Your student photography portfolio can be presented in multiple printing formats either printed or online depending on the institution’s requirements. If you are to submit a hard copy format, you need to make sure your images are printed in high-quality and standard sizes.
In addition, the images selected should be able to showcase your originality, creativity, skill, and passion because these are the qualities colleges, universities, and potential employers are searching for. The top best images should be your first and final images on the portfolio as they give the audience an insight into the artistic skill to expect in your portfolio and leave a good lasting impression on the audience respectively.
#3 Include additional complementary information
Since the importance of your photography portfolio is to pass a message to your university or potential employers, including additional complementary information in your portfolio with each image can show your photography experience, deep passion, and strong interest.
You can include information like the place each image was taken, the idea behind each image, and the camera settings used. Providing this information shows that you not only know how to capture good images, but you also understand why you used different settings for specific concepts and this automatically increases your chances of securing that desired slot.
However, it isn’t mandatory to include additional information but they have a great impact on portfolios when included
#4 Review your work
After completing the above steps, the next thing is to seek feedback and improve on your work. Most students make the mistake of not leaving enough time to go over their work and it makes their work less perfect.
You can either review your work yourself or ask your close friends to help you out. Reviewing your portfolio helps you rule out errors.
Amidst this portfolio-making, you might have academic tasks to complete and there isn’t enough time or resources, it is advisable to hire the services of the best essay writing firm to assist you in the completion of your academic tasks. You will most probably need this essay writing service when you finally get to attend your future school since their team of experienced, proficient, & expert writers deliver unique, plagiarism-free papers that can help you boost your grades. They also follow a strict confidentiality policy to keep their users’ personal information and identity hidden.
Final Thoughts
Since we are in a digital era where images are everywhere, your photos must be top-notch and creative to create a spectacular long-lasting impression on your audience.