Why do people keep putting process shots in design portfolios that don't show anything?

I was looking at portfolios on the Dribbble showcase last night and kept seeing these mockups of notebooks with messy sketches. But here's the thing nobody talks about, do these process shots actually help or do they just take up space? I saw one where a graphic designer posted 8 photos of scrap paper with arrows but no final work to compare it to. It felt like filler. On the other hand, I get that showing rough ideas can prove you thought through a problem. I'm torn on this. What do you all think, do process shots matter if they don't include the final output?

2 comments

2 Comments

brown.susan7d ago

Oh man, you know what, I keep seeing this too and it drives me a little nuts honestly. People are putting up these photos of their desk with a coffee cup and a sticky note and calling it "process" and I'm like, okay, so what did you actually learn from that squiggle? It's like they heard somewhere that showing process is good but nobody told them the process has to actually mean something. I mean sure, if you sketched out ten options and then picked the best one, that's interesting. But eight photos of scrap paper with arrows and no final piece to compare? That's just padding, not proof of thinking. It's like putting a picture of your grocery list and calling it a recipe, right?

john_hunt27d ago

Hang on though, you're being a little too generous with the "ten options" thing. Most of these posts don't even show that much. It's usually one scribbled on a napkin and a photo of a messy desk with a half-empty coffee mug. They call it "process" but really it's just proof they own a pen and a phone. It's like showing a picture of your oven and saying you're a chef. The coffee cup isn't doing the thinking, you know (I mean, unless it's a really smart cup).