Transportation Design portfolio
Hi friends, at the end of my summer vacation in Italy I met a young ex student from a british car design school who wanted to show me his portfolio for some tips before looking for a job. As usual I told him that I was happy to do it and so we did. He came with his portable PC and showed me a sort of Power Point presentation with all the selected projects, at the end he also had his CV. I asked him to show the presentation again, at the end of the second round I started to give him my constructive critic.
Car Design school
Usually a good design school has some courses about how to put together design portfolios, (Art Center in Pasadena US and IAAD in Italy IT do) this was not the case. The british school has a life of about 5 years which means that it is very young in the design education business and is no guarantee for a good training. The transportation design teacher was basically formatting all students on how he would do a portfolio and his taste did not have anything to do with an automotive design book. Students (this is from his story about the school) could not be creative and alternative because the (famous) teacher woul get upset.
Here the problems
Bad Design school choice: I was sorry to let him understand this, but it is true. The few teachers have not an automotive design background, but rather an Industrial Design one specialized on boat design too far from car design culture and automotive design industry. The power point presentation had a bad order about his projects and the selection was not cars oriented (a lot of boats and accessories). The editorial graphics of every page was 90's style too old fashion and competing against the sketches and renderings. The overall result was confused. At the end a book to re-do before applying for a job position.
The good thing
The good thing is tha talent of this italian guy, his determination and strong will to make it as a designer, ready to put himself in discussion to improve and progress. We talked for about 2 hours, I explained to him that a professional portfolio is mainly a personal presentation of ourselves and for this reason we must personalize it. Our teacher should only help us not to make evident mistakes that might penalize our effort. With his book he will sell himself, he will convince someone to hire him. Your portfolio may include graduation thesis projects and projects conducted during your formal training and/or professional experience. Candidates for the Masters in the management area may submit a detailed report of their personal academic and/or professional careers instead of the portfolio.
The key element not to forget
Content is the key
Good sketches history on each project and nice color work for final presentation
Check out the order of your book, it has to provoke emotions so what is the best order to do so?
We must dose the number of projects because we give a message, so car design? More car projects. Industrial design? More ID projects, at so on.
Do not forget that we (professional designers) remember portfolios thanks to the mistakes we find in them! So make sure that your book is perfect!
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Design Portfolio Tips
A strong portfolio opens doors, a weak portfolio closes them. Your portfolio is often the only thing a person sees before deciding whether or not to contact you, and in many cases you may not be present to explain it (particularly on-line portfolios). There are fundamental qualities that all outstanding portfolios share, and a variety of principles and techniques that can help take your portfolio from average to excellent. If at all possible, your portfolio should be appropriate to the situation and reviewer, and all portfolios should show creativity, skills, range, thought, and ambition. It is the overall combination of these, plus that "special something," that makes one designer stand above the others.
The Right Type
There is no single "right" way to prepare a portfolio. A different presentation is appropriate for each person, each situation and each interview. You need to understand what kind of portfolio you are creating. Is it to get into school, to get an internship, to get a first job, a second job? Each of these will require a different selection of projects. Also consider what type of presentation are you preparing. Is it an on-line portfolio, a leave-behind book, a one-on-one interview, a cold call, or something else? Each of these scenarios calls for a different type of media, so you should spend some time thinking about what you will show in each of these cases and prepare accordingly.
There is no single "right" way to prepare a portfolio. A different presentation is appropriate for each person, each situation and each interview. You need to understand what kind of portfolio you are creating. Is it to get into school, to get an internship, to get a first job, a second job? Each of these will require a different selection of projects. Also consider what type of presentation are you preparing. Is it an on-line portfolio, a leave-behind book, a one-on-one interview, a cold call, or something else? Each of these scenarios calls for a different type of media, so you should spend some time thinking about what you will show in each of these cases and prepare accordingly.
Skills
The level of presentation in your portfolio must be excellent. Indeed, if your book is full of beautiful photos, renderings, sketches, and finished projects, you have only met the minimum requirements for designers these days. The pages in your book must demonstrate that you can quickly and effectively communicate complex ideas in a professional manner. Excellent, interesting and varied compositions are expected. Dramatic use of scale, focus and color will make your work stand out. Make an effort to communicate your level of skill with a wide variety of tools typical for your chosen field. This may include any and/or all of the following; a plethora of software packages, drawing skills, color, composition, model making, production techniques, manufacturing/fabrication, CAD, 3D modeling, and an understanding of basic engineering.
The level of presentation in your portfolio must be excellent. Indeed, if your book is full of beautiful photos, renderings, sketches, and finished projects, you have only met the minimum requirements for designers these days. The pages in your book must demonstrate that you can quickly and effectively communicate complex ideas in a professional manner. Excellent, interesting and varied compositions are expected. Dramatic use of scale, focus and color will make your work stand out. Make an effort to communicate your level of skill with a wide variety of tools typical for your chosen field. This may include any and/or all of the following; a plethora of software packages, drawing skills, color, composition, model making, production techniques, manufacturing/fabrication, CAD, 3D modeling, and an understanding of basic engineering.
Range
Your portfolio should celebrate your ability to work on different types of projects. This lets the reviewer know that you are flexible and can work in a variety of situations. If possible use examples from different product categories, demonstrate your familiarity with a variety of media, or indicate experience with a range of technologies. Integration of varied disciplines is always interesting and shows a willingness to collaborate with a variety of people, another important skill. Make an effort to show your contributions to a project from concept through production. This demonstrates a holistic design sense that is invaluable to most employers. Also make sure to show a full range of abilities, including sketching, rendering, model making, finished products, photography, 3D modeling, etc.
Your portfolio should celebrate your ability to work on different types of projects. This lets the reviewer know that you are flexible and can work in a variety of situations. If possible use examples from different product categories, demonstrate your familiarity with a variety of media, or indicate experience with a range of technologies. Integration of varied disciplines is always interesting and shows a willingness to collaborate with a variety of people, another important skill. Make an effort to show your contributions to a project from concept through production. This demonstrates a holistic design sense that is invaluable to most employers. Also make sure to show a full range of abilities, including sketching, rendering, model making, finished products, photography, 3D modeling, etc.
Ambition
A designer who can take initiative, resolve a wide range of problems, and manage projects from beginning-to-end is a valuable addition to every team. Your portfolio, combined with a written resume, should illustrate these traits. Self-driven projects are great examples of this. If possible, show measurable contributions conceived and implemented by you, repeatedly, on a wide variety of projects. Indicate that you can work with limited supervision. Show that you can generate ideas--no one is looking for a designer that needs someone else to think for them. Make an effort to fill gaps in your employment history with an interesting variety of projects and activities.
A designer who can take initiative, resolve a wide range of problems, and manage projects from beginning-to-end is a valuable addition to every team. Your portfolio, combined with a written resume, should illustrate these traits. Self-driven projects are great examples of this. If possible, show measurable contributions conceived and implemented by you, repeatedly, on a wide variety of projects. Indicate that you can work with limited supervision. Show that you can generate ideas--no one is looking for a designer that needs someone else to think for them. Make an effort to fill gaps in your employment history with an interesting variety of projects and activities.
That Special Something
If your portfolio has excellent examples of everything listed above, congratulations--you are free to compete with thousands of other hungry designers. To rise above the rest and truly stand out in an extremely competitive field, your work needs to go the extra mile. Your projects should show insightful, conceptual foundations, indicating that you think about your work on many levels. Layers of meaning in your work allow people to explore and enjoy your projects repeatedly. Beautiful compositions that show a variety of techniques, colors and scale make your work stand out. If you are particularly strong in one area--typography for example--make sure every entry in your book celebrates this fact, but without throwing it in the reader's face. The quality of your work and your presentations is much more important than a fancy, unique, or tricky presentation. Keep it simple, and let the work stand for itself.
If your portfolio has excellent examples of everything listed above, congratulations--you are free to compete with thousands of other hungry designers. To rise above the rest and truly stand out in an extremely competitive field, your work needs to go the extra mile. Your projects should show insightful, conceptual foundations, indicating that you think about your work on many levels. Layers of meaning in your work allow people to explore and enjoy your projects repeatedly. Beautiful compositions that show a variety of techniques, colors and scale make your work stand out. If you are particularly strong in one area--typography for example--make sure every entry in your book celebrates this fact, but without throwing it in the reader's face. The quality of your work and your presentations is much more important than a fancy, unique, or tricky presentation. Keep it simple, and let the work stand for itself.
This may sound like a daunting task, but it is the reality of the design world in the 21st century. If you take the time to review and select your work, and put together a well thought out book, you'll be rewarded many times over throughout your career.
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