3 Important Aspects of Web Page

I think that the three most important aspects of a Web page include bold and catchy headings, visuals, and solid content.

I think that when people are "surfing" the Web, the first thing that would catch their eye and lead them to remain on a page would be a large bold heading. This heading must have (in a few short words) the key meaning of the site within it. Doing this will catch the readers' attention, and draw readers interested in that topic to the site.

Once a reader is on a site, I think that visuals such as photographs and graphics, are what will help to keep them there. Many people reading material on the Web find it difficult to focus on just text. Therefore, if there are images to help reinterate the ideas being presented in the text, the idea is much more likely to come across to the reader and to remain in their head.

Finally, I think that solid content is key in a Web site. Even if a site is bold and flashy in catch lines and graphics, if there is weak content the reader will not remain at the site and will not take the site seriously. The text must be written professionally, have a personality behind it that will attract people to reading it, and also be free from gramatical errors (which will cause readers to disregard it almost immediately).

Attention as Currency of Internet

I think that by saying "attention is the currency of the Internet" the writers of Hot Text were referring to the fact that, in much the same way that money is needed to create successful businesses etc., attention grabbers are needed to create successful Web sites. Since so many people just briefly scan Internet sites, it is of the utmost importance that important information on the page jumps out to grab readers' attention. Only in this way will readers be curious enough to continue looking at the site, thus making the site successful.

In order to draw attention to my online portfolio, I plan to include a headshot of myself at the top of the page. This adds a face to the print, which I think will attract people's interest. I also plan on bolding or changing the font color of important parts of my resume, so that the reader's attention is drawn to them. I also think that the resume in and of itself will keep readers at the site, because it is personal information and, according to Hot Text, people are interested in reading about other people.

By fleshing out the details of the bolded parts of my resume, as well as including photos of work I have done and further information on myself, I hope to keep readers at my portfolio site. Hopefully the initial attention grabbers will lead them to become interested in reading more detail about me.

Brainstorming

My major is: Performance Theatre

When I leave Niagara, I want to: Work professionally in theatre as a performer for some time and continue to work as a theatre educator

To work in my chosen field, I will need to: Market my talent, and continue to fine tune my performance skills. I also need to keep updated as to what is going on in the theatre community so that I am aware of auditions and other casting calls.

Ways in which I’ve already demonstrated my professional skills include: My work in performances both at the university and in the community as both a performer and a stage manager. Also, my teaching of theatre to elementary children over this past summer which culminated in a production given by the children. Finally, my training both in my classes at Niagara and privately in voice, dance and acting.

Activities that I feel contribute to my professional life include: My participation in school and community productions, dance classes, private voice lessons, public speaking skills, leadership positions (Players board, Vincention Scholars)

I have written a resume.

Samples of my writing and/or art or other creative endeavors include: headshots, and also photos from shows that I have performed in. There are also video tapes of auditions monologues, dances, songs and performances, but they are on VHS

I am most proud of: All of my performance accomplishments, specifically my performance as Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls and Ruth in No Shoulder. Also of my teaching accomplishments over the summer.

Colors that I feel represent me include: Navy blue and dark purple

Types of images that I feel represent me include: the comedy-tragedy masks, dance shoes, smiley faces (although those aren't as professional)

Theatre Actor Portfolios

The portfolios in the field of performance theatre are different from the ones in other fields that I've looked at in that the focus is solely on the person whose portfolio it is. Instead of artwork, or writing samples the site contains video and audio clips of audition songs and monologues as well as various head shots of the performer.

Similarly, however, the portfolios still contain a resume of the performer. The resume lists all past training and experience, as most resumes do. In another difference, theatre resumes also list voice part, hair and eye color, and height and weight.

The specifics within the resume, as well as the headshots are fairly specific to the theatre profession. It is also different that the "product" being sold is the performer herself, not something that he or she creates on paper.

As far as creating a portfolio in my field goes, I think that it is important that one chooses flattering headshots to use, as this is the face that casting agents and directors are going to remember when they see your name. The photos should be as updated as possible. I also think that it is important to keep the resume updated -- new shows and new training must be added on a regular basis in order to keep the resume as up-to-date as possible. Finally, I think the most important thing is that the portfolio sells the performer in whatever ways possible. In theatre, you are looking for the things that make you unique and cause you to stand out from a crowd. It is these traits that need to be highlighted in the portfolio.

comparing portfolios

Both of the portfolios that I compared included the artist's name and the genre of art that they produced at the top of the page. Both also included samples of the artist's work (images and descriptions). They also both included an "artist's statement" which explained the artist's background and where they currently work, as well as any other information the writer found relevent.

The portfolios differ in that one provides the artist's contact information right on the front page, and the other requests that you view the full profile in order to get this information.

Textually, both of the portfolios are very similar. The writing is fairly formal, and markets the artist featured in the portfolio. The writing is very short and to the point for the most part, allowing the examples of the artist's work to speak for itself. The only part of the portfolio which takes on more of a personal voice is the artist's statement. In on portfolio, the artist discloses her family background, where her parents are from, and how that's affected her work. In the other one, the focus of this segment is mainly on her artistic background.

I think that the audience for both of these portfolios is people looking to purchase art, or maybe to hire an artist to paint something customized for them. The sites play to this audience by using many visual images of the artwork, appealing to the shopper's taste for art, and also by listing the prices and such with each picture making it simple for shoppers to purchase the art directly from the portfolio site.

As mentioned before, both of these portfolios are very visual which plays to the audience of art buyers. Even the text is very colorful, catching the eye of whomever is looking at the site and holding their interest.

I think that the genre of online portfolios is, for the most part, a means for artists and other professionals to market themselves to the incredibly large audience that is available online. They feature the things that the person featured in the portfolio does best, and try to sell the positive points of that person.

Web pages

http://www.portfolios.com/profile.html?MyUrl=SimonGlickman
http://hollywoodauditions.com/Portfolios/portfolio_actor1.htm
http://hometown.aol.com/swampbud/myhomepage/index.html
http://www.jenniferrussell.com/

I think that the key difference between personal presentations (as found at http://hometown.aol.com/swampbud/myhomepage/index.html) and professional presentations (as found at the other three links) is that professional presentations are much more focused on selling a person's talent or ability. Personal Web sites become more of a forum for personal commentary, interactive quizzes, etc. Professional sites, on the other hand, are very much based in fact and only that fact which pertains to the goal of the site.

As far as set ups go, it seems that professional sites are more organized than personal ones. This may be just because more professional web-builders are creating them. Regardless, professional sites highlight the positives of the business or person which they market immediately, typically using pictures and bold fonts. The links and smaller fonts then lead readers to the pages which detail the abilities of the person or business.

I think the key difference in how people present themselves on professional sites is that they accentuate the postive as much as possible. While personal sites may not focus so much on the "sellable" accents of a person, professional ones need to in order to accomplish their goal of marketing the person or product. Professional Web-sites are fairly impersonal, yet in the colors used, photos chosen, and even the language used the personality of the writer does tend to show through to the audience.