What makes a good portfolio image or set?

I do a lot of set reviews for people, and I often see similar issues across portfolios that still need a bit of finessing. Here are some of the biggest issues I see. My comments below will be tailored mostly to Hello Storyteller, but they work for almost any portfolio you might be working on.

1. Skintone issues. This is a really hard skill to nail, but you have to show that you have a handle on skintones. Skin should be consistent throughout. If you are using a variety of purchased presets, you will have (often major) discrepancies throughout your set. Using presets is not a bad thing; they can really speed up your workflow. But make sure you are using them deliberately to have your work look consistent througout your set. 
2. Overall white balance issues. This goes hand in hand with skintones. Can you have a cooler toned image if you are shooting at blue hour? Absolutely! Can you have a warmer tones image if you are shooting at golden hour? Sure! Can you purposely choose to have an overall warm or cool tone to your entire set as a purposeful editing/style choice? You betcha!  But make sure your images are stylistically the same. Have the color tell the story of your image, not BE the story because it’s wrong.
3. Set flow/storytelling. At Hello Storyteller, sets are scored with a specific category of Portfolio Consistency. Specifically: “The portfolio needs to flow well from the beginning to end, told like a story. The portfolio should be thoughtfully put together in a manner that allows the reviewer to easily move from one image to the next with a logical and clear organization.” Your set needs to tell a story. Each image should flow seamlessly from one to another. I like to order my personal sets by color, but that isn’t always the best way to make a set flow, even for my own work. An image should relate to the one before and after it. If it doesn’t, move it elsewhere. You could have two similarly toned images, but one formal and one whimsical, and most likely they won’t feel right next to each other, even if the colors flow. 
4. Lensbaby/Freelensing images. I love seeing purposely blurred images. I include them in many of my own sets, and I used to be a Lensbaby Ambassador. But your blur must make sense. Unless the image is clearly and specifically defocused (out of focus altogether), make sure the area of focus in your image makes sense. Otherwise the whole image is ruined in terms of being a portfolio piece. It can have oodles of sentimental value, it may perform well on Instagram, but if focus is not clear and adding to the story, don’t include it to a portfolio that is going to be scored. 

I love reviewing sets and leaving comments. I often go into a fair amount of detail, and it is true that many who ask for my opinion are taken aback by the depth that I offer. Please know that if you ask for my feedback, I am never, ever, being mean; the more comments I give, the more potential I see, and I truly want every photographer to succeed and have a portfolio accepted.