Problem
My initial portfolio design lacked the necessary usability to effectively showcase my skills and projects to potential employers and collaborators. The navigation was clunky, the visual hierarchy was unclear, and project descriptions were insufficiently detailed, making it difficult for users to understand the scope and impact of my work.
Solution
To address these issues, I embarked on a comprehensive redesign process that involved multiple iterations, user testing, and feedback integration. Key enhancements included refining the visual hierarchy, improving navigation, adding detailed project descriptions, and incorporating interactive elements. The final design reflects a sophisticated understanding of user needs, resulting in a polished, professional portfolio that effectively showcases my capabilities and growth as a designer.
Problem
My initial portfolio design lacked the necessary usability to effectively showcase my skills and projects to potential employers and collaborators. The navigation was clunky, the visual hierarchy was unclear, and project descriptions were insufficiently detailed, making it difficult for users to understand the scope and impact of my work.
Solution
To address these issues, I embarked on a comprehensive redesign process that involved multiple iterations, user testing, and feedback integration. Key enhancements included refining the visual hierarchy, improving navigation, adding detailed project descriptions, and incorporating interactive elements. The final design reflects a sophisticated understanding of user needs, resulting in a polished, professional portfolio that effectively showcases my capabilities and growth as a designer.
Problem
My initial portfolio design lacked the necessary usability to effectively showcase my skills and projects to potential employers and collaborators. The navigation was clunky, the visual hierarchy was unclear, and project descriptions were insufficiently detailed, making it difficult for users to understand the scope and impact of my work.
Solution
To address these issues, I embarked on a comprehensive redesign process that involved multiple iterations, user testing, and feedback integration. Key enhancements included refining the visual hierarchy, improving navigation, adding detailed project descriptions, and incorporating interactive elements. The final design reflects a sophisticated understanding of user needs, resulting in a polished, professional portfolio that effectively showcases my capabilities and growth as a designer.
V1: Design Approach
With the initial version of my portfolio, I completely misplaced the needs of my user. At the time, I was surrounded by a lot more creative, self-expression-driven designers, so a portfolio was advertised more as a self-portrait to show off projects with little emphasis on usability, and with this in mind, I was more focused on creating a highly unique and memorable presentation, believing that this approach would help me land the opportunities I was after. Without conducting any preliminary research on the industry standards, I went all out with all the graphics, GIFs, and gimmicks I could, to make it as unique and memorable as possible.
V1: Portfolio Designs
V1: User Testing and Feedback
Upon completion, I sought feedback from other UX designers and my peers from school, and as expected, the feedback highlighted several key issues:
Based on this feedback, I proceeded to develop the second version.
V1: Design Approach
With the initial version of my portfolio, I completely misplaced the needs of my user. At the time, I was surrounded by a lot more creative, self-expression-driven designers, so a portfolio was advertised more as a self-portrait to show off projects with little emphasis on usability, and with this in mind, I was more focused on creating a highly unique and memorable presentation, believing that this approach would help me land the opportunities I was after. Without conducting any preliminary research on the industry standards, I went all out with all the graphics, GIFs, and gimmicks I could, to make it as unique and memorable as possible.
V1: Portfolio Designs
V1: User Testing and Feedback
Upon completion, I sought feedback from other UX designers and my peers from school, and as expected, the feedback highlighted several key issues:
Based on this feedback, I proceeded to develop the second version.
V1: Design Approach
With the initial version of my portfolio, I completely misplaced the needs of my user. At the time, I was surrounded by a lot more creative, self-expression-driven designers, so a portfolio was advertised more as a self-portrait to show off projects with little emphasis on usability, and with this in mind, I was more focused on creating a highly unique and memorable presentation, believing that this approach would help me land the opportunities I was after. Without conducting any preliminary research on the industry standards, I went all out with all the graphics, GIFs, and gimmicks I could, to make it as unique and memorable as possible.
V1: Portfolio Designs
V1: User Testing and Feedback
Upon completion, I sought feedback from other UX designers and my peers from school, and as expected, the feedback highlighted several key issues:
Based on this feedback, I proceeded to develop the second version.
V2: Design Approach
In the second iteration, I aimed to balance uniqueness with user-friendliness. I reduced the number of graphics and animations while striving to maintain visual appeal. Text chunks were shortened, fonts were edited, graphics were used in project descriptions, and only UI/UX design projects were highlighted.
V2: Portfolio Designs
V2: User Testing and Feedback
I again sought feedback from UX designers and peers. The feedback included:
V2: Design Approach
In the second iteration, I aimed to balance uniqueness with user-friendliness. I reduced the number of graphics and animations while striving to maintain visual appeal. Text chunks were shortened, fonts were edited, graphics were used in project descriptions, and only UI/UX design projects were highlighted.
V2: Portfolio Designs
V2: User Testing and Feedback
I again sought feedback from UX designers and peers. The feedback included:
V2: Design Approach
In the second iteration, I aimed to balance uniqueness with user-friendliness. I reduced the number of graphics and animations while striving to maintain visual appeal. Text chunks were shortened, fonts were edited, graphics were used in project descriptions, and only UI/UX design projects were highlighted.
V2: Portfolio Designs
V2: User Testing and Feedback
I again sought feedback from UX designers and peers. The feedback included:
V3: Design Approach
For the current version, I began by researching industry standards for UX portfolios. This included not only the portfolio itself but also the types of projects and the communication of these projects. After conducting this research, I recognized the need to update my portfolio to showcase my more recent skills and to target the right audiences. I took some time off to reflect on this and then proceeded to read numerous UX articles and guidelines to ensure my approach was informed by best practices.
Common features in successful UX portfolios that I incorporated included:
V3: Portfolio Designs
You're looking at it!
What do you think?
V3: Design Approach
For the current version, I began by researching industry standards for UX portfolios. This included not only the portfolio itself but also the types of projects and the communication of these projects. After conducting this research, I recognized the need to update my portfolio to showcase my more recent skills and to target the right audiences. I took some time off to reflect on this and then proceeded to read numerous UX articles and guidelines to ensure my approach was informed by best practices.
Common features in successful UX portfolios that I incorporated included:
V3: Portfolio Designs
You're looking at it!
What do you think?
V3: Design Approach
For the current version, I began by researching industry standards for UX portfolios. This included not only the portfolio itself but also the types of projects and the communication of these projects. After conducting this research, I recognized the need to update my portfolio to showcase my more recent skills and to target the right audiences. I took some time off to reflect on this and then proceeded to read numerous UX articles and guidelines to ensure my approach was informed by best practices.
Common features in successful UX portfolios that I incorporated included:
V3: Portfolio Designs
You're looking at it!
What do you think?
Final Thoughts
The journey of redesigning my portfolio has been a learning experience, emphasizing the importance of user-centered design, continuous feedback, and iterative improvement. Each version of the portfolio addressed feedback and demonstrated growth in my design approach, culminating in this current version that effectively showcases my skills and aligns with industry standards. This process has not only enhanced my portfolio but also deepened my understanding of creating impactful and user-friendly designs.