Please review my portfolio

[dtm32236]

I'm most concerned with cross-browser testing (I can only test on a PC) and load time. But I'd definitely like opinions on the overall design. Thank you!

http://www.danmathisen.com/

[Inga.]

Hi, Dan. On first glance just from a design perspective, I'd suggest moving the 'dan mathisen web design / branding / marketing' bit up off of the edge of the colour. Having the letters press up that close to the edge is typically a no-no in graphic design because of the way it looks, not to mention the truncating 'g' in a few of the words. Maybe try bumping the spacing up a bit more and I think it will look much better.

Also, I'd think about that technical skills and what I can do for you areas. They take up a ton of space and just add to the linear block feel of the page. I can see them presented differently with less space and more interest. I get that you want the wordpress, etc. stuff on the front page, but I think you can be more elegant on presentation.

Lastly, there is a large amount of space between your rotating picture app thingie and the footer. I think you could tighten that up a lot and it will improve the look.

Generally, the first impression was a lot of white space in a semi-colourless, linear and blocky environment.

I quite like your work on the landscaper printed marketing material. I think you can apply some of that design concept to your own site and have a very nice result. :D

[dtm32236]

Thanks a lot, Inga.

Regarding the header, I played around with it a lot and I quite like how close the text is to the header's baseline. Do you think the truncated 'g' is that bad? I thought it was 'unique', but I'm also very new to design, so I could be wrong. I'm a big fan of the thin black line under "Dan Mathisen".

I couldn't agree more with the "technical skills", "what i can do for you" areas. I've played around with that and displayed it 100 different ways when I was building the site. I could never come up with something perfect. I definitely do want that info on the front page, but I don't know how to make it look nice.

I tried to make it simple and minimal, but I think I made it too simple. Do you think it's too boring? It probably is. I need to play around with more color or non-blocky sections.

Thanks for your input, I appreciate it. Please don't hesitate with any suggestions.

[criterion9]

You definitely need more negative space around the text. Especially when you use white on black. Otherwise people who do not have absolutely perfect vision won't be able to clearly read the text. Additionally, someone who is just scanning the page (which is what users do when browsing sites) won't easily and clearly be able to read your header.

I usually maintain a line-height of 1.25-1.5ems or at a minimum use .25-.75ems of padding around text when the background colors also make a drastic change (as in light background to dark background or visa versa). This gives the text a little breathing room and makes it easier to see the text clearly (even with slightly smaller fonts).