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I need your help on my final assignment for my Diploma of Graphic Design course. I'm creating three portfolios to present my work - printed portfolio, online portfolio (website based) and an interactive PDF Portfolio. I just want to gauge your thoughts on what design works best for each each portfolio. If you could let me know why, that would be great. You literally just need to pick one of three choices from each of the below.

Printed Portfolio:

  • A4 letter style ( one design laid out per page with short explanation);
  • Magazine format (think Frankie Magazine); and
  • A5 fold out brochure.

Website portfolio:

  • Adobe portfolio (click on individual works);
  • Wordpress site; and
  • Grid style site to showcase work.

Interactive PDF:

  • Simple Adobe interactive PDF with clickable buttons and bookmarks;
  • Magazine format and using the online publication platform, ISSUU; and
  • PDF grid which allows you to click on various objects, which then takes you to the respective page.
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    This is similar to asking "what clothes should I wear to a job interview?" --- There's often a general consensus of the overall appearance. However, everyone may have a different opinion and ultimately only you can decide what impression you wish to make.
    – Scott
    Commented Nov 7, 2020 at 11:26
  • If this question were focused on one particular application of the portfolio I'd leave it open. But asking focused on multiple like I'd say is too broad for SE Commented Nov 7, 2020 at 17:46

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The work is your portfolio, not the format of the portfolio.

In my experience, people looking to hire designers will not pay attention to overly complicated portfolios, where you have to click around alot to browse the work. They don't want it interactive, if that means 50% more clicks for them.

The simpler the navigation, the easier you make it for these people to view your work. I have hired people myself and never truly looked at their website specifically, but instead focused on the work they've made for their own clients.

So, to advise on the above, go with the first choice of each:

  • A4 landscape PDF, one piece per page with short description.
  • Adobe portfolio, which is great, because it can also be used to forward to your own custom domain without making another website. A custom website (Wordpress or whatever) will take up much more time (and possibly, money) for you to build in a bug free manner.
  • I don't think you need an interactive PDF, but if you really do, make it simple. You don't need a big red button to go to the next page in a PDF.

Whatever you do, make sure it is bug free. If it stops working for some reason, they will likely close the page and move on to the next candidate.

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