Before I look at my own portfolio I thought it would be good to look at existing portfolios and weigh up what they do well and what they maybe misstep on.
Dan Moran:
This is the portfolio for Dan Moran, a professional colourist based in London. It is a really impactful site. The images leap off the page and grab your attention. I like the layout and structure but the main thing that I like is the clearness of everything. The design is a little too modern and complex for my taste. I like more traditional clean styling. But how clear the site is to navigate is a great success.
This is my problem with modern web design though is it's flashy design, for flashy designs sake. The modern way of designing the look for a website has made most well-designed sites look the same. Big blocky and fullscreen. I don't like that look and I think it's unnecessary. An example of that is this menu system from Dan's site:
I think it's just flashy for the sake of being flashy. There is very little design ethos that went into that decision. I think it really detracts from the success of this design. And that's my problem with modern design. Animations and full-screen effects look great but only when done to an exceptional standard are they worth including. When they encourage play and engagement then they are successful when they are just there they do the opposite and become a faff.
David Wright:
This is the portfolio for David Wright, a Director of Photography based in London. Now whilst this site isn't quite a visually stimulating or flashy as other sites on the internet I really prefer it's styling. It's simple, concise and clear. There are no flashy animations or outright effects it is straight to the point and clear.
At the end of the day your portfolio site is for potential clients and for use in securing job prospects. In that regard the site itself is just a means to showcase your skill set and work. A simple site that doesn't get in the way of that task is really important in my point of view.
A site that moves around and is hugely over-designed comes across in the same way to me as a site that is over-compensating for something. Dan Moran's site is not a real showcase of that mentality mind you. I actually like it's clarity and the design is appealing with only a few effects. I am talking more about the overall mindset that seems to be engraved in modern web design. For me simplicity and classic design principles are all that matters.
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