Hello, World!
Portfolio
Thirteen reference cards on building a portfolio that earns interviews. The technical cards are prescriptive — follow the guidance directly. The design and expression cards are more open-ended — use them as a framework for developing your own point of view. Both matter.
How to use these cards: Start with Card 01 before opening InDesign. Read Cards 02–06 before you design a single spread. Return to Cards 07–08 when you're evaluating graphics. Cards 09–10 address the portfolio as a complete document. Cards 11–13 are about who you are as a designer — read them last, but think about them first.
02Layout Fundamentals
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Layout I — Grid and Spatial Planning
Layout is a design problem. Treat it like one.
Layout II — Visual Hierarchy and Reading Order
Someone is about to look at your page. Where do their eyes go first?
Layout III — Organizing Mechanisms
Find the one idea that holds the spread together.
Layout IV — Color and Atmosphere
Color connects. Background serves. Neither should compete.
Layout V — Typography
Type sets the tone before anyone reads a word.
03Your Graphics
04The Complete Portfolio
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Portfolio Sequencing and Narrative
Lead with your strongest. End with intention. Everything else follows.
Cover Page, TOC, and Portfolio Structure
The cover is the first impression. It has one job.
Personal Style — Keeping It in Its Place
The portfolio exists to show the work. Not the layout.
Mood, Emotion, and Graphic Expression
Every image makes a feeling before it makes a point.