You seem like you are genuinely interested in getting better and you’re pursuing an education, so I am happy to offer some comments.
Christmas Tree – Decent but basic AI work. The design portion could use some work. I don’t care for the way each layer of the tree has three points at the bottom. Mix that up some. Have have a layer that has two points or four points. Right now, it’s a little static looking. The type at the top needs more work. Seems weird to have “how to decorate” left justified and “a Christmas tree” right justified. The illustration at the very bottom with the circle around it, you have three mounds of snow. The points of the Christmas tree line up or almost line up with these. This is not good illustration, you should have a little air between the branch and the snow or make them overlap so the points don’t line up with the mound of snow.
Patterns – I think the tea and sundries and sweet like honey are nice. There are some awkward gaps in the chamomile lemon. I’d cut that one.
That’s So Groovy – I’m not really digging this, sorry. Maybe I’d feel differently if I saw the whole face developed and some words typeset in the font. That said, font design is its own beast. Being a good graphic designer does not necessarily equal type designer. Point being, I think you can get by without a font design in your portfolio.
Nature’s Anti-Hero – The overall layout isn’t bad, but there is a lot you can do to improve the typesetting. A few things I’m seeing. Never ever hyphenate a word in a headline or subhead (e.g rattle- snake in the subhead). A much wiser man than I once said “a man that would letterspace lower case type would steal sheep.” That’s my paraphrase, anyway. Point being, lower case type spaced out rarely looks good. Learn about kerning and then look at your headline. You have several paragraphs with one word on the last line. This is something I avoid like the plague unless there is no way around it. Study up on hanging punctuation. Study up on line breaks. Just because InDesign breaks a line one way, it doesn’t mean that’s the best way.
Wildwood – This is one of the better pieces. I wonder what it would look like if the pine tree was a little funky to match the type better. Also, I’d look at the kerning on this. It’s worth improving and keeping in your portfolio.
The Anatomy of Typography – This is okay, but it could be improved. The visual weight and hierarchy are off. The circle callouts are too close to each other. Make those smaller and put some air between them.Maybe put the terms outside the circle. Learn about kerning and then take another look at your headline. I’m not crazy about mixing the very nice, formal, serif face you’ve chosen with the script font. This combo isn’t working in my opinion. Improve this piece and keep it.
Sweet Sammy’s – I think you can improve this. Look at other bakeries for inspiration. I think you’ll see that what you’ve done here feels a little flat. The black type looks like death and decay next to the colorful images. Gotta change that type color pronto. Again, don’t rely on InDesign to make the best line breaks, and watch out for bad hyphenation. Improve this and keep it in your portfolio. Side note: consider adding one more two-page spread. That way, this could conceivable print as an 8-page piece.
Pup Cakes – I’ll give you credit for creative thinking in making the tongue the U. I think you’ll need to push this more and improve it if you’re going to keep it in your portfolio.
Peace, Joe, and AJ – Honestly, this is pretty amateurish looking, which makes sense since you’re a student, but this has got to go. Too much wrong with it to ge into, but I’ll cut you some slack since you said you did this before you started your coursework.
Bottom line time. I’ve seen better student portfolios, but I’ve seen weaker student portfolios, too. Way weaker. My overall impression, and I could be way off with this, is that the work feels rushed. Like you come up with a concept and rush to finish it without really thinking through the details or considering alternate concepts. If I am off base, I apologize. If I’m not off base, the way to improve is fairly obvious: slow down, develop multiple concepts, figure out which one is best, and refine, refine, refine. If you’re in your third year, you have half a year, the summer, and then all of next year. You should be eating, sleeping, living, and breathing good design.
