August 20, 2008 at 22:42How to get an order if there is no portfolio?
In the comments to the previous article , a perfectly reasonable question was asked that worries every designer or programmer at the very beginning of his career: “How to get a job if you don’t have your own portfolio?” I will try to answer it based on my experience.
What was the main problem when I wanted to draw a design, but did not know where to get orders from? Of course, lack of experience. No customer in their right mind will give the project to the student, even if he is gifted and gives hope at computer science competitions. Indeed, the performer appreciates reliability, experience and professionalism. But I was confident in my abilities, so I was looking for ways to receive orders. So what can a novice designer do without a portfolio to get a job?
The competition involves free and voluntary participation. Consequently, the lack of responsibility. You do not take the responsibility to complete the project, but only make an attempt and offer your work for evaluation. In this case, the customer is not entitled to submit any claims to quality, which means that you can choose the project that you like more and not be afraid to fail it. Therefore, on the well-known sites free-lance.ru and weblancer.net, the relevant sections are in demand among novice designers, copywriters and programmers. The second positive point is the opportunity to get money for work. According to the terms of the competition, the customer pays the order to the contractor whose work he will like the most. And this is a real order. The vast majority of experienced freelancers do not participate in contests, so there are usually no obvious favorites,
Of course, putting desktop wallpaper in a portfolio is not a good idea. The customer is usually interested in work similar to what should happen after the completion of his project. And I still do not remember orders to draw wallpaper. What to do? If you have confidence in your abilities, then you can make several projects for non-existent customers. We can come up with a project, we ourselves can implement and accept it. It will take a lot of time, but as a result we get quite tangible work. Having a dozen of such works, one can compose a portfolio from them and it is not necessary to advertise their origin.
Do not be afraid of a bad result. Indeed, even if after nine setbacks the 10th logo is good, then the efforts will not be in vain. Again, this is a great experience.
Actually not just for friends. You can make a website for your school, a poster for a familiar rock band or a print on a T-shirt for your girlfriend. This is an experience and at the same time very real work. The first serious work for me was the site of my lyceum. Of course, now you can look at the work of seven years ago with a grin, but at that time I had to spend many days and nights studying Photoshop, reading articles on usability and faq on typesetting.
I am inclined to consider this option as one of the best for getting the first experience. Most studios need people who are willing to do routine work for a small fee. Such as drawing simple banners, buttons, processing photos, design satellites or drawing templates. I remember that these people were once called "Mexicans" (maybe someone else knows the names?). So the work of the Mexican is constantly associated with design: a person communicates with colleagues, gaining experience in technology, can ask questions and just watch the work of neighbors. This is the foundation on the basis of which it is possible to develop further and apply for promotion. Including thinking about a freelancer career. After a couple of years of such work, you can make a list of projects that will be the first portfolio.
I would like to note: most of the above is based only on personal experience and is not a panacea, but can only help to start thinking in the right direction.
And remember - first of all, the work should be like. And if there is no craving for design, then maybe it is better to find another occupation?
Source - Dedushka.org
What was the main problem when I wanted to draw a design, but did not know where to get orders from? Of course, lack of experience. No customer in their right mind will give the project to the student, even if he is gifted and gives hope at computer science competitions. Indeed, the performer appreciates reliability, experience and professionalism. But I was confident in my abilities, so I was looking for ways to receive orders. So what can a novice designer do without a portfolio to get a job?
Take part in competitions
The competition involves free and voluntary participation. Consequently, the lack of responsibility. You do not take the responsibility to complete the project, but only make an attempt and offer your work for evaluation. In this case, the customer is not entitled to submit any claims to quality, which means that you can choose the project that you like more and not be afraid to fail it. Therefore, on the well-known sites free-lance.ru and weblancer.net, the relevant sections are in demand among novice designers, copywriters and programmers. The second positive point is the opportunity to get money for work. According to the terms of the competition, the customer pays the order to the contractor whose work he will like the most. And this is a real order. The vast majority of experienced freelancers do not participate in contests, so there are usually no obvious favorites,
Do work for yourself
Of course, putting desktop wallpaper in a portfolio is not a good idea. The customer is usually interested in work similar to what should happen after the completion of his project. And I still do not remember orders to draw wallpaper. What to do? If you have confidence in your abilities, then you can make several projects for non-existent customers. We can come up with a project, we ourselves can implement and accept it. It will take a lot of time, but as a result we get quite tangible work. Having a dozen of such works, one can compose a portfolio from them and it is not necessary to advertise their origin.
Do not be afraid of a bad result. Indeed, even if after nine setbacks the 10th logo is good, then the efforts will not be in vain. Again, this is a great experience.
Doing work for friends
Actually not just for friends. You can make a website for your school, a poster for a familiar rock band or a print on a T-shirt for your girlfriend. This is an experience and at the same time very real work. The first serious work for me was the site of my lyceum. Of course, now you can look at the work of seven years ago with a grin, but at that time I had to spend many days and nights studying Photoshop, reading articles on usability and faq on typesetting.
Get into a design studio
I am inclined to consider this option as one of the best for getting the first experience. Most studios need people who are willing to do routine work for a small fee. Such as drawing simple banners, buttons, processing photos, design satellites or drawing templates. I remember that these people were once called "Mexicans" (maybe someone else knows the names?). So the work of the Mexican is constantly associated with design: a person communicates with colleagues, gaining experience in technology, can ask questions and just watch the work of neighbors. This is the foundation on the basis of which it is possible to develop further and apply for promotion. Including thinking about a freelancer career. After a couple of years of such work, you can make a list of projects that will be the first portfolio.
I would like to note: most of the above is based only on personal experience and is not a panacea, but can only help to start thinking in the right direction.
And remember - first of all, the work should be like. And if there is no craving for design, then maybe it is better to find another occupation?
Source - Dedushka.org