It's a good question. Unfortunately, I haven't put a printed design portfolio together in over 7 years.

I did put together an illustration portfolio for an agency a few years ago though. We had that gold foiled with logo on the cover and the inside pages were printed and matt laminated for something extra.

As long as your work is put together well, it will be fine. Things become classic and traditional because they work well.

If you want to have a portfolio presentation other talk about to their peers though, you might want to try something different. But just keep in mind that if it's different, it still has to work.

Do you have a website that shows your work as well?
The case type portfolio will probably work fine if you are applying to in-house positions but if you are freelancing, you absolutely need an online presence of some kind.

Thing of the past I would think...but definitely not a strike against you if you brought one into an interview. I personally like seeing the final products in physical form.

But in today's age, a digital portfolio is keeping par with the rest of the industry. Last 3 jobs didn't require a physical portfolio. My current position...I beat out 5 other senior level applicants due to them simply not having an online portfolio (as I was told later). HR skipped everyone who didn't have one.

The old mounted on double-black boards is a bit outdated, and I am very much an old-schooler. I don't think your question is about whether to have a print version of your portfolio but rather what materials that print portfolio is crafted from.

However, nowadays having an online portfolio is absolutely necessary. If you are not web savvy use a portfolio hosting site to put your portfolio online.

For the printed portfolio, look into bound portfolio cases with acetate sleeves or the like. Some are ring or pin bound "covers" (like a binder) so you can add/remove sleeves as you see fit. Some are a set number of pages (like a bound book). Be aware of the overall weight of the physical book and case.

I prefer to see one or two actual printed samples, especially if a flat representation of the piece does not do it justice. If you are including printed samples, show me the intricate fold, the specialty finish or the pop-up, don't waste the potential wow-factor-moment on a blah little postcard.

Hope this helps

For print, I think you really need both a digital and a physical portfolio. If I had someone come in for a print design position and they didn't bring a print portfolio I would be less inclined to hire them. Personally, I like tangible samples over books with photos of projects –it gives me a better idea on how much a designer values each piece of their portfolio, plus it's hard to hide errors when you have the complete piece in your hands.

I guess it depends who is interviewing you and for what. I don't think a physical portfolio is never going to HURT your chances (unless it sucks).

Last 3 jobs...no portfolio when applying...2 of those were at marketing firms and had equal print and webwork. Over the years things get damaged, outdated etc.

But it's different everywhere...and as I mentioned it's not going to hurt you.

I have a question for those advocating the use of actual printed materials... I layout a magazine at work and would like to include actual copies in my portfolio, but my case doesn't have pockets to store loose items and I'm not sure of the best way to display them. Anybody have any thoughts?

You could show a few spectacular spreads; I like to see actual sample spreads cut from the magazine but since you are also including actual magazine sample(s), printouts/high-end proofs will suffice.

If you want to protect/mount them, there are vinyl envelopes like these you can get. Cut one down, and attach it (1/4 inch thin double-sided tape) to the outside of a page/sleeve. Ta-da! You've made a pocket for your magazine.

You could also insert them into their own sleeve (I find this method a tad clunky).

PS: Hey look at that, they have self-adhesive ones now. Nice.

Note: I have no experience with the company in the links, I'm just trying to show you the type of vinyl envelopes that I'm talking about.

What I was getting at is not having a physical portfolio can hurt you.

What kind of case are we talking here? maybe it's time to find one that works to your current needs.

Thanks for the thoughts Pan, that maybe what I end up doing.

It's a Pina Zangaro 11x17 case (portrait layout) I bought it a few years ago, just after I got my current job, so it's basically brand new. I never had need for pockets previously, but I got tossed under the bus at my current job and ended up having to take over layout of a magazine. And now I need to find a new job, as our entire creative dept was let go and therefore need to get my portfolio in order.

So it's really a book then, try finding an attache or European man bag that your pina will fit into. Then keep them separate, show some spreads in the pina and pull out the magazine when you get to them.

I definitely think this is a plus and a must. Having something tangible will help demonstrate your skills and understanding of print. You can use it as a tool to show how your idea can be experienced rather than just seen.

Paper mills produce literally thousands of different selections of paper, each one engineered to deliver different print results.

I think great designers don't just design good graphics, but also design an interactive experience.

Good luck!