03-23-25
I came across a portfolio site recently that perfectly illustrates something I've been trying to hammer home in our portfolio reviews...
Your work should do the talking.
The 90/10 Rule of Portfolio Design
Here's the truth: People hiring designers want to see your designs, not your writing skills. The best portfolios follow what I call the 90/10 rule: 90% visuals, 10% text.
Take Fionn Breen's portfolio for example. What immediately struck me was how the work takes center stage.
Fig. 1
Each project is presented with:
No endless scrolling through process documentation. No walls of text explaining every decision. No pictures of how many sticky notes you used in the planning. Just powerful design work that speaks for itself.
Fig. 2
Three Rules for a Killer Portfolio
After reviewing hundreds of portfolios, here's what actually matters:
Remember This
Your portfolio isn't meant to be a comprehensive archive of everything you've ever designed. It's your highlight reel—the greatest hits that will make someone want to hire you.
Think of it this way...
The people looking at your portfolio aren't hiring you to write essays or document processes. They're hiring you to design. Show them you can do exactly that.
Spend the majority of your time making the actual images of your work in your portfolio the best they can possibly be.
Keep pushing,
MDS
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