iPads and other tablets have become standard issue among creatives and are often the easiest way to prepare and deliver a portfolio presentation. However, this convenience comes at a price. Whether you are a student preparing for portfolio reviews and job interviews, a freelancer trying to land a design gig, or an agency preparing a presentation for a client, you need to consider the benefits of a well prepared and packaged physical portfolio. Here are some of the top reasons why you will want to make the extra effort to prepare a physical portfolio for showing your work:
- Physical portfolios never run out of battery
- In some lighting situations, glare on the tablet screen can make it hard to see photos and layouts, especially darker areas on images.
- For many types of work, physical samples are essential so the interviewer can see your work in the medium it was designed for.
- Your work may lose its impact when shown on a 9.7” iPad screen. Imagine how much more impact you work will have if printed on 11”x14” or 11”x17” paper and viewed full size.
- An interviewer may want to page through your portfolio at his or her own pace, and it would feel awkward to take over your iPad and swipe through your images.
- The look and material of a physical portfolio book can complement the style of your work in a way an iPad cannot.
- A presentation that appeals to all of the viewer’s senses will have more impact than a more two dimensional presentation. Tactile sensations are important and are missing from a digital display.
- Your iPad’s color rendition may not portray your work as accurately as print from a properly calibrated printer.
- You can present originals of hand drawn or painted work in a physical portfolio which will have more impact than showing a photo of your work on a tablet.
- The money you save by not printing your materials or buying an appropriate presentation book for it will pale in comparison to the income you may lose by not getting the job.
- In many cases, the interviewer has already vetted you by viewing images of your work online. Showing it again on a screen does not add value the way presenting a physical portfolio does.
- Your interviewer, like most people, looks at screens all day. Don’t come with just another screen to stare at. A thoughtfully prepared portfolio in a beautiful presentation book will be sight for sore eyes that can help you stand out and get the job.
Once the decision has been made to prepare a physical portfolio, you next steps are to decide what work to include, what format (size and orientation) to use and what kind of portfolio book or presentation case. Our most popular items for portfolio reviews and job interviews are the Pina Zangaro Screwpost Portfolio Books, which fit nicely in our X-Port Expandable Portfolios.
