Top 5 Tips for....Portfolio Building

As I am in the process of reorganising my portfolio I thought now would be a good time to write some posts on the topic. It can be a real mine field so to get the ball rolling here are 5 simple rules I have learnt to follow when arranging my images...

1. Aim for quality not quantity. Edit ruthlessly! Don’t be tempted to pad out your book with mediocre shots as you book will look much stronger with several images that show you at your best and blow the client away.
2. Start and finish on a good note. You need to get the clients attention right from the start. Grab them with your best work on the first few pages but be sure to save a show stopper to end on so as to leave a good impression.
3. Position shots facing the gutter. If you have images where the models are looking left or right place them so they are looking toward the middle of the book.
4. Never ever make the client spin your book to see your work. If you have a landscape shot that you want to use either print with a boarder at the top and bottom or print so it fills 2 pages and cut down the middle which is called double-trucking.
5. Best shots to the right.Your eye is naturaly drawn to the right page first so if you can always try to feature your strongest work in the right hand pages of your book.

Feel free to jump in and tell me what rules you try to stick to when organising your portfolio and leave a comment below.

I would also love to hear from those of you that have recently shown your book to an agent, so join in and and share your experience with us all.