organization of portfolio

Hello!

I read some posts about portfolios, and I found good tips...but what I would like to know is how are you

organizing your portfolio? For example, you have nice shoots of people, landscapes, travel.....would you put

everything in one portfolio?!

Or would you have (if you are ready, of course), one with just portraits and people, one with landscapes.....

Is is bad if you have everything in one? In what is common size of the prints?! 6X8?!

tHANK you!!

What are you going to use the portfolio for? If just for showing friends, then I might organize it by category, such as landscape, portraits, etc.

If you are using the portfolio to get work, then I would make a specific portfolio for each presentation you do. And tailor the presentation to the market. For example, I have separate portfolios for my commercial photography (small products and stringed instruments) and for my landscape work. I don't want to show my landscapes to potential clients, and don't need to show pictures of metal parts to my friends.

<Chas>

I separate mine in to wedding and portraits but i take both when talking to a client it never hurts to have other photos to show if they ask i dont do product or landscapes but i would keep those separate too and as far as size i do 8x10

Amber

I organized my portfolio with one of my professors who has been in the business since the '60s. For a general-use portfolio, here are the tips he gave me:

1. Group your photos. Put all of your portraits together, all of your landscapes together, etc. Don't jump around.

2. You want your photos to be at least 8x10, but ideally 11x14 or larger. This will show that your photos are of a high enough quality and sharpness to enlarge.

3. Have someone else look at the photos to determine their "interestingness" before you put them in. Photographers tend to have an sentimental attachment to their photos, sometimes regardless of quality. You dont want this to get in the way of your judgment.

4. Try to have a good range of photos. Once again, ideally you would want to have something like 2 portraits, 2 news pictures, 2 fashion photos, 2 pictorials, 2 features, etc.

5. Don't have more than 20 pictures in there at once, but have more than 12. Make sure you have some very recent work.

6. Most importantly: a portfolio is like a play. It must have an exceptionally strong beginning, middle and end, otherwise the audience will get bored and leave.