A talk by Lester Picker
–https://lesterpickerphoto.com
–https://instagram.com/lespicker
I watched Lester Picker’s talk like I watch a scene on the street: listening for the one line that changes everything.
For me, that line was basically this: a portfolio isn’t a trophy. It’s a decision. A decision to stop treating your work like an endless camera roll and start treating it like a body of work that deserves to be seen—by editors, by gallerists, by the kind of people who can say “yes” to a group show or a book.
I’m 57. I’ve been taking pictures since I was 8. I’ve shot film, digital, small-format, and medium-format. I understand exposure. I can compose. I can work a scene. I can capture the elusive decisive moment.
What I haven’t built (yet) is the portfolio discipline that turns “I take good photos” into “I have a coherent series that belongs on a gallery wall.”
Lester’s talk was a blueprint for that shift.
The big idea (my translation)
- A portfolio is not “my best 20 photos.”
- A portfolio is a concise, cohesive story told with prints—sequenced, edited, and presented like you mean it.
It’s also a marker. A timestamp. Proof that you can finish something.
That hits close to home because I’m already obsessed with consistency: one field of view, one city, one long, slow two-year project of learning to see. But seeing isn’t the same as editing, and editing isn’t the same as presenting.
This is about all three.
What a portfolio actually is (and why it matters)
Lester defines portfolio in a way that’s almost aggressively practical.
Concise
Not 50 images. Not 40. Often under 25.
Purpose-driven
A portfolio exists for something: gallery meetings, editorial assignments, book proposals, clients (if you shoot commercially), or simply to mark where you are right now.
A seriousness signal
When someone opens a well-made portfolio, they immediately know you’re not dabbling.
This connects directly to something I’ve been circling in my own writing: the website is the home base, everything else is a flyer. A portfolio is the physical version of that idea. It’s the home base you can place in someone’s hands.
Study Notes (what I’m keeping, what I’m adopting)
1) “Elevate and celebrate” isn’t a slogan — it’s a standard
Lester repeats the studio motto: elevate your work and celebrate it.
- That’s not motivational fluff. That’s a bar.
- If the portfolio doesn’t elevate the work, it’s just storage.
- If it doesn’t celebrate the work, it’s not worth asking a gallerist to spend time with it.
2) Self-editing is the real workshop (and it’s the hardest skill)
This was the most helpful part of the talk.
- You can teach exposure.
- You can teach composition.
- You can’t easily teach self-editing.
And that’s the skill I need if I want to get in a gallery show.
Because galleries don’t hang “pretty good.” They hang intent.
Takeaway: the portfolio isn’t what’s in the portfolio box. The portfolio is the editorial process that puts the images into the box.
This ties neatly into my own obsession with the decisive moment. The decisive moment isn’t only when you press the shutter. Sometimes it’s when you say: this photo stays, that photo goes.
3) The “best shots I’ve ever taken” portfolio usually fails
This is a trap I’ve seen in camera clubs for years: the highlight reel portfolio.
Lester’s point is blunt.
- “Best shots” scattered across genres usually don’t work for galleries.
- Cohesion wins.
- Story wins.
- Focus wins.
The only time the “variety pack” makes sense is if you’re targeting editorial clients who want proof you can handle multiple assignments and genres.
For gallery work: depth beats range.
4) Cohesion is a sales strategy (and an art strategy)
Lester’s wildlife example is perfect.
- “African wildlife” is too broad.
- “Elephants in the Serengeti—family, grief, protection, behavior” becomes a story.
That’s the lesson for me.
“Toronto street photography” is too broad.
But something like:
- Faces of Toronto (intimate portraits, one city, one human thread)
- Walking the city (sequence as a physical walk: corners, pauses, thresholds, light, weather)
- Friday Night Lights (bands, closeness, sweat, motion, the edge of control)
Those are portfolio-shaped ideas.
5) Build it with 3–4 people, not alone
This is the controversial claim Lester makes—and I believe it.
People who build portfolios alone rarely build the best portfolio they’re capable of.
The reasons are obvious once you accept them.
- You’re emotionally attached.
- You’re blind to repetition.
- You confuse “I love it” with “it fits.”
His suggestion:
- 3–4 people, no more.
- Include one non-photographer (painter, writer, designer—someone who reads story differently).
- Share the vision, then listen without defending.
This is basically group editing the same way magazines work—exactly the kind of mindset I’ve been studying in my photojournalism and storytelling posts.
6) The cull is brutal, but it’s the work
If an image doesn’t fit: cut it or save it for a future portfolio.
That’s it.
No compromise. No “but I really love that one.”
This reminded me of how I wrote about working a scene and committing to what matters in the frame. Portfolio editing is the same commitment—just slower, and with more ego involved.
7) Sequencing is storytelling, not decoration
Lester’s process is tactile.
- Print small thumbnails (multiple per page and cut them down).
- Spread them out on a table.
- Move them around for weeks if necessary.
- Let it rest.
- Come back with fresh eyes.
Sequencing isn’t just nice flow. Sequencing is meaning.
It’s how you take 20 still images and turn them into a sentence, then a paragraph, then a narrative.
8) Don’t force the viewer to rotate prints
This is practical and underrated.
- If most images are horizontal, keep the viewing experience horizontal.
- If you include verticals, consider pairing two vertical images on a horizontal page.
- Don’t make the viewer turn the work.
It’s not about rules. It’s about respect: don’t break immersion.
9) Print is the point (for galleries)
Digital has a place: online publications, quick editorial review, speed-based clients.
But for galleries:
- They want to see what they can sell.
- They want to see paper choice, print quality, craft.
- They want to talk sizes, mounting, framing, editions.
And here’s the part that landed hardest.
- Phone viewing time is shrinking.
- Portfolios slow people down.
That’s the real luxury now: getting people’s attention.
10) Presentation is part of the art (box, paper, statement)
Lester shows multiple presentation levels.
- Simple book-style portfolio (fine for clubs/friends)
- Screw-post portfolios (affordable, clean)
- The “serious” portfolio box with prints and protective interleaving
- Handcrafted bookbinding as an elevated art object
My takeaway isn’t “buy the expensive box.”
My takeaway is: match the presentation to the ambition.
If I want to be taken seriously by a gallery, I need to present my work like I take it seriously.
Also: the portfolio statement is not a bio.
It’s a short explanation of what the portfolio represents—just enough context to open the door.
How this fits my problem (getting to a gallery show/book deal)
I don’t think my barrier is talent. I think it’s finish.
A portfolio forces a finish.
- It turns walking into a project.
- It turns shooting into a series.
- It turns a series into a story.
- It turns the story into a pitchable object.
And that’s precisely what a group show or book proposal needs: a coherent body of work with a point of view.
Which loops back to the themes I’ve already been writing about.
- Developing voice and niche
- Discipline of presence (showing up, walking, seeing)
- Photo-essay thinking (beginning/middle/end)
- Decisive moments (selection, not just capture)
A portfolio is where all of that becomes visible.
A practical plan (the “do this, not someday” version)
Step 1: Pick ONE portfolio idea (single sentence)
Examples tailored to my world.
- A walking-based portrait of Toronto built from recurring light, corners, and human presence
- Faces of Toronto: intimate street portraits with a consistent field of view and distance
- Friday Night Lights: the emotional geometry of live music in small rooms
If I can’t say it in one sentence, it’s too big.
Step 2: Collect 50 candidates (fast, no preciousness)
No “perfect.” Just contenders.
Step 3: Build a critique group (3–4 people)
One non-photographer.
Meet twice: round 1 at about 50 images, round 2 at about 30 images.
Rules:
- I don’t defend.
- I ask, “What doesn’t fit and why?”
- I take notes.
- I decide after the meeting, not during.
Step 4: Cull to 20–25
Tight. Coherent. No strays.
Step 5: Thumbnail sequencing on a table
Play. Move. Rest. Return.
Step 6: Print small proofs, then final prints
Then decide the presentation format based on the goal.
- Gallery meetings: print-first, serious presentation
- Editorial pitch: digital version plus a print portfolio when possible
Step 7: Write the portfolio statement (not a biography)
What it is. What it’s about. What you want the viewer to feel or understand.
Closing thought
A portfolio is a commitment to being edited.
And if I’m serious about getting into a group show—if I want the kind of “yes” that changes the next decade of my photography—then I need to stop thinking like someone who takes pictures and start thinking like someone who is building a body of work.
- Not necessarily more photos.
- Better decisions.
- A finished object.
- A story someone can hold.