When it comes to creating your photo portfolio, you’re bound to go through lots and lots of frustrations. So what’s the secret to creating one that wows everyone?
It starts with you not thinking about yourself: your photo portfolio is designed to be viewed by lots of folks and is supposed to entertain and captivate someone else. It isn’t designed just for you. And with that, you need to start thinking a bit out of the box.
Here are 20 questions to ask yourself when creating your photography portfolio.
– What genre am I trying to market myself as? Remember that I can only pick one or two and they have to be in some way related.
– What genre am I actually strongest at producing images for?
– What genre is my passion?
– Does this image elicit an emotion or feeling out of someone else besides me?
– Why would it elicit a feeling?
– What specifically about this image’s content makes it so good?
– Is this a recent image of mine?
– Does this image show what I’m truly capable of doing as a photographer?
– If it doesn’t show off my fullest potential, how can I use it to gain more business for myself?
– What images are in this portfolio that are older and still viable?
– Why are these images still viable and worth being amongst my newer and better pieces of work
– What type of people will want to license this image or want to hire me to produce similar work?
– Does this image do enough to attract someone to hire me for a gig?
– What other images can I use to complement the ones that I’m using to get new work?
– What marketing platforms will these images look best on?
– What specifically does this image say about what I’m capable of doing?
– Can I imagine this image making for a jaw droppingly gorgeous print on someone’s wall?
– I need to go network. If I show this image off, will someone be impressed by it and stare at it for a while or will they just go quickly to the next one?
– What can I do to make someone stare at my image for a longer period of time and become captivated by it? Is it a crop? Is it a tweak in the way it looks?
– In any way, shape or form can I become self-conscious about this image? Or can I defend it to the end while taking constructive criticism?
– Do I see this image possibly lasting for a very long time in my portfolio?