Building a portfolio is the reason many of us are photographers. Putting together images that we have captured into a collection we can share with friends, associates, or in some cases, to show potential employers.
The same rules of building a portfolio apply no matter the final use you envision for your images. As always, the reason you have rules is to break them.
Building a Portfolio Tips:
- Keep a portfolio of between nine and twelve images. If you cant, sell your talent with nine to twelve images, you aren’t going to sell your talent with fifteen, twenty, or twenty-five images.
- Are your friends and family still interested in your images after twelve?- a sure test!
- I have a pool of images I can quickly draw from to trade out portfolio images. An image I am willing to include on Monday may by Friday be out of favor.
- Each of the twelve images should be strong enough to stand on its own.
- Keep the verbiage to a minimum – event, driver, and car. The image will tell everything else.
- Include all information in PhotoShop – File information- Basic – Use both Description and Key Words.
- Be sure the Copyright Info is filled out for each image: both Copyright Status and Copyright Notice.
- Going left to right and right to left images, head-on images, detailed images, driver portraits should all be included.
- Spend some time getting the images to flow.
- Include a short bio including contact information. I have a bio compiled by another writer. I found he could say things about me that I was uncomfortable saying, even if true.
- From the above sentence, you will see I have a dry sense of humor. Consider leaving your sense of humor out of the Bio or other verbiage. Many clients do not share a sense of humor and often miss my humorous verbiage.
- This weekend I open my 2021 season with coverage of the HMSA Laguna Seca Spring Event. I’ll be shooting to capture three or four images to add to my Portfolio’s Pool of images. You will be able to see the results shortly here at Sports Car Digest.
Please leave any comments in the comments box below. Any questions can be sent to me at [email protected]
Dear Mr. Gray,
I would like to do an oil from one of your photos. Do I email you a request or state on the back of painting that this is a painting from a Dennis Gray photo?
Please send an email with your phone number.
I noticed the subject car in many of your images, especially 3/4 shots, are not all in focus. Is this intentional or just victim of the depth of field?
All the images I have posted were designed. That’s not to say all my images are designed.
For the most part these 3/4 images display sharpness towards the front or nose and sharpness around the driver. The blur is not lack of focus but movement of the subject. Panning a 3/4 front subject allows you to pick one area to hold with areas forward or behind your target area blurred from speed motion.
I meant to say the images have focus either on the nose or the driver. I explained in the series about panning and following the point of focus with the curser. Sharpness comes from your panning.
Great series of articles Dennis along with great photos as usual. Very informative, Thanks
Great series Dennis, thank you!
Cavallino Rampante crest on a 1954 Lancia D50A?
Yup…look it up.
Was the Lancia F-1 in red the Peter Gidding’s car? He always used the number 31 on his cars. Did he own it a sold to you after his death?
Interesting series Dennis; I do the same sort of thing in the UK and it is interesting to see how your techniques differ from mine. I think the biggest single difference is the weather! I have to seal with everything from Arctic winds, and Monsoon rain to hot and dry – and that’s only in Summer!
Some stunning images, thanks.
Great articles from a Master Photographer.