Behind the Start of RC Design and Art

A Glimpse to My Graphic Design & Photography Portfolio by Robert Carnal

Introduction

1. What inspired you to finally create your own website?

I felt it was long overdue to be quite honest but my biggest issue was self confidence and constantly comparing myself. You open up your social feeds and almost instantly you start making comparisons. That must've been my biggest mistake. One thing about me is I'm my worst critic. I expect a lot from myself. That could be a good and bad thing. Good because you hold yourself to a standard but it could be bad when you don't give yourself enough credit due to your constant critique of your work. I had already accumulated a body of work. One day I flirted with the idea of finally creating a site. I looked at my portfolio and realized that I had all the tools and creative mindset to be successful. But I had to start somewhere and that was by finally building a site that would display all my skill-sets.

2. How long have you been considering making a portfolio website?

I went back to school to finish my degree in Advertising and Graphic Design from Grand Canyon University a couple of years ago. Because I was so busy with my regular day job, school, and family, I told myself I would focus on building a website once I was done. I graduated from my degree in 2024. During that time I would take on freelance projects and portrait photography. Now I have a nice body of work that demonstrates all my capabilities as a graphic designer and photographer.

3. What held you back before, and what changed your mind?

I've always been tempted to challenge myself and enter the freelance world. I felt I needed to build my portfolio and make it strong enough to not only be compelling but also be professional as well. I feel my work speaks for itself and I can have a positive impact with my overall experience.

Planning & Goals

4. What were your main goals for the website?

My main goal is to help people transform their ideas into a print or digital space. Not necessarily to only create professional work but create content or material that'll make an impact in their respective industry. Aside from that goal, I want to showcase my work and hopefully display different styles to demonstrate my diversity. Some of my long term goals is to eventually provide "How-To" videos and sell vector graphics along with photography Lightroom presets.

5. Did you research different platforms before choosing one? Why did you pick your current platform?

I had Wix and WordPress on my radar. I had some experience with WordPress. I loved how clean and organized it was. Definitely made for blogging. It had a slight learning curve but once you familiarize yourself with the dashboard it's pretty easy to navigate. Wix, I felt, was on a come up. They offered different layouts, masking options, animations, multiple forms to track, and SEO (search engine optimization) functionality. If you're into web, you know that layout and having graphics is half the battle. SEO to me was just as important because at the end of the day, if you don't have an SEO strategy in place, it'll be tough to be indexed by Google and eventually get organically ranked. I took a good risk with Wix where I feel I can utilize my graphic design skills and incorporate that with Wix's interactive functionality.

6. What was your vision for the website’s design and layout?

I wanted to keep it simple and sleek. I didn't want to overburden my pages with heavy animations and busy graphics. I'm having a good time experimenting with Wix's countless features to be able to improve presentation and interactions. I'll definitely be experimenting as my site evolves. So far, it is a pretty good start!

The Process

7. How did you approach designing your website? Did you use a template or build it from scratch?

Not knowing Wix, I opted to use a template to familiarize myself with the platform. Soon, thereafter, I completely started creating my own design elements and layouts. It's fairly simple with their drag and drop features. You simply have to let your creativity flow and not hold your ideas back. You'd be surprised with it's many capabilities and widgets.

8. Were there any challenges or surprises along the way?

Not every platform is built the same. So there's going to be some areas that'll have its share of frustrating moments. Key thing here is patience and not quitting. Once I found my way around Wix's dashboard and design features, it became easier to manage my work flow. Another challenge was optimizing my content and building organized structure. File optimization is extremely important. If anything it was more tedious than challenging. It gets bypassed for those that don't know. But if you know web design and good SEO practices, you want to make sure your images, graphics, and video content are optimized to help with download speeds, best resolution, and optimal presentation.

9. What aspects of the website are you most proud of?

I'm proud of the compilation of work that I put together. I believe it has a nice balance between graphic design and photography. As I tap more into web services and web design, I feel it will only help me stand out to potential clients. I can say that I'm proud of the work I've put together and is a reflection of my attention to detail and professionalism.

Content & Features

10. How did you decide which projects to feature in your portfolio?

I wanted to be meticulous in my selection. I wanted to have a solid assortment of projects that showed layouts, composition, typography, and a strong understanding of design fundamentals. It was important for me to pick projects that I could continue to develop and improve.

11. Do you plan to update your portfolio regularly?

Absolutely. I don't want to leave my portfolio in idle mode. It's tedious work, but the more I get to update the better chances I get to attract new work. My portfolio will continue to be a work in progress as I pursue new ventures in my professional career.

12. What sections did you include besides the portfolio?

I'm really wanting to dive into my blog where I can freely write and express myself. If people follow it, they'll get a better idea of my personality and the topics that interest me the most. I love design but I appreciate all forms of art. This includes traditional art, illustration, painting, and photography. Outside of that, I enjoy spending time making an Italian or Mexican dish. I'm wanting to be able to blog about multiple topics that make me who I am. Who knows, those ideas can develop into different niches or new possibilities so why not talk about them!

Lessons & Reflections

13. What did you learn from building your website?

I realized that I love to learn how things work. I think to be successful you have to enjoy the process and be able to navigate through challenges. I've certainly faced them while building this site.

14. Do you have any tips for other designers and photographers who want to create their own site?

Research, research, and research. Really narrow down what your goals are by having a strategy in place. This will definitely help out tremendously when creating your own site. Being able to plan, write important details down, targeting your audience, and having structure will pay dividends and maximize your time when building your site.

15. How does it feel to finally have your own online space?

It feels good to join the online space and share my talents. It'll be great once my site creates traction and I can get some leads. But I understand that it takes patience. Just because you publish doesn't necessarily equate to people rushing to your site. So, in the meantime I'll remain building my portfolio, connect with fellow professionals, and like minded creators.

Future Plans

16. How do you plan to market your website and attract visitors?

I plan on expanding my reach via social media, related blogs, and letting people know about my various services. I expect referrals to be just as important and build professional relationships with people.

17. What type of content can readers expect from your blog?

A little bit of everything to be honest. Graphic design, advertising, marketing, how-to tutorials, and personal topics that I enjoy talking about. I feel I can go in many directions with this blog that people will either find useful or helpful.

18. Do you plan to offer services or products through your website in the future?

In time I want to offer products such as print templates or photography presets. Again, my mentality is finding ways to help others. I would like to help or offer a different perspective to established creators or help that student that needs an extra hand. Either way, I want to build services that others can certainly benefit from.