Hello all, I'm just starting out as a graphic designer and would love to get some feedback on my website: https://helentong.com. Thank you!
I'd also love to connect with fellow designers and creatives out there to learn more about your experiences within the industry and any tips and tricks on how to approach getting your first design role.
Replies24
- @Adam Zygadlo Thanks so much for all your detailed feedback below and taking the time to look through, Adam! They're all super helpful points and will note them down on my to-do list. In terms of the Portfolio page and having different categories, I was worried that as I've just started out I don't have many other projects to put out there and the page could end up looking really sparse if a filter/category was chosen. I'll definitely have that in mind though when I have some more pieces to show!
- @Michael Ferns Thank you Michael for your kind words, they really mean a lot! :)
- @Isaac Coppin Thanks Isaac, yeah it does, but weirdly on laptop it's showing as the homepage to be centre. I've checked on the developer tools for the reponsive view too, but still can't seem to get that same view. I'll keep trying to figure this out, but thank you for raising this though!
- Greeting Helen,Hope you are well and keeping yourself safe from the current climate.Here's my thoughts on all pages.>>> Homepage: (I love the animated images by the way...)--- I would add your name and job title on top of the page (Just undernearth the nav bar.--- Then add one or two lines of bodycopy of text above your images like "Hello! I’m Helen, a graphic designer based in London who loves experimenting with bold graphics and typography in my designs to create a sense of playfulness and fun."--- Then add a button or link on the end like "Click to find out more." This will take the user to "About" page.--- Maybe place your contact details in the footage area on all pages.>>> About page:--- I would add one image of yourself or another example of work, if you feel uncomfortable to use your face on your site. Maybe a drawing of yourself? This would make it more personal and adds more to the page.Could you highlight using bold, underline or another colour any of the information like "Playfulness", "Fun", "Passionate", etc.--- Great use of linking to the "get in touch".>>> Contact page:--- I would add one image of work as a cover page on top of "Get in Touch".--- Could you add your mobile number on the page?>>> More Suggestions:Could you add a "Portfolio" page to the site as well as nav sysytem, that lists all your work? Maybe use a filter system to breakdown each project into different catalogues like design, animation, etc.?
- Your work is fantastic! The quality is so high that I would not believe you were starting out as a Graphic Designer. Well done! :)
- @Helen Tong Just my laptop, does your site provider have a feature that shows you how it looks on phones and other screen sizes? If not, then I'm sure there's a browser extension avilable. Window Resizer for Chrome is good.
- @Agata Walas Thank you for taking some time to look through and feedback to me Agata! The points you made are really helpful, and it's great to have an understanding of how people coming to the site can think the work's a little hidden so I'll definitely make a change to the cover images, and also rework the 'Up Next' bit too so that's a bit clearer. Thank you again :)
- @Iain Cooper Thanks so much for your helpful feedback and advice Iain! I'll definitely try and branch out a bit more to expand my breadth of work, these projects were set as briefs during Shillington and they did say that we probably won't get such glamorous work when we start out!
- @helen capewell Thanks so much for your feedback Helen and for the Rummikub recommendation too! :P I've never played it so will definitely give it a go. My favourite has been The Exit escape room board games, just make sure you have a few hours after to do nothing — you'll need the recovery!
- @Sayari Banerjee Thanks so much for your feedback Sayari! That's a really great point about the process images, I was sort of umming and ahhing before but I think adding them in will let people see my process flow a bit more!
- @Nayari Cepeda Thanks for your feedback Nayari!
- @Beatriz Gómez Thanks so much Beatriz!
- @Nick Haill Thanks so much for feedback and your kind words Nick, I really appreciate it! :) Haha, I'm sure you would have felt differently about sitting next to me if you saw me frantically trying to meet that end of the day deadline!
- @Isaac Coppin Thanks so much Isaac! :) I'll try and make the homepage more centred, would you be able to let me know what device you're viewing it on, it's just on my laptop it looks to be centred but I may have to see if I can view the site on a bigger screen!
- @Maria w Thanks for your feedback Maria, I was worried it's a little too minimal so will try and inject some personality in it!
- Hi Hellen!Great work, but it feels like you're hiding it. When I land on your web page I see tiles of patterns, I'd love to see the best image from the project as the cover image. For example, the film festival has a very nicely designed ticket, collective - a wall of posters, etc. I'd love to see more photos of every project. 'Up next' could use some little tweaks so it doesn't feel like it's merging with the project, perhaps smaller images or different colour background or a line divider. Other than that I think it's good work, good luck!
- Hi Helen. Excellent work. My only comment is about breadth of work. Music, movies and premium foodstuff are easy targets for designers. All very cool. I'd try moving out of that comfort zone and tacklng less glamorous tasks/projects! After all, they often make up a huge chunk of your paid work!
- Nice work Helen! Clean design style, I like it. I'd love to see more!PS Rummikub is my go to game!
- Hey Helen,Great work.My input is : may be you can try adding your 'process work' images along with final mock ups. Also, people love to see sketches. Include them in the future! All the best :D
- Hi Helen, I think your work looks great. Nicely put together.
- I really like your work!;)
- I think it looks great! As a graduate of Shillington myself, I would have hated sitting next to you. But for you entering the industry I think it should stand you in great stead. Certainly a lot more attractive than many websites I've seen from seasoned designers. Obviously you probably won't get as many fun projects as you did at Shillington!
- I really like your animations and how you present your work!Only thing I would suggest is that it might be a good idea making the homepage more centered.
- It looks good, clearly laid out, easy to navigate. I personally think it is a little bit too miminal( I'd like to see abit more of your personally in the design)
You must sign up or log in before you
add a comment.