Building a Professional Portfolio with Next.js 16

As a full-stack developer, having a professional portfolio is essential for showcasing your skills and projects. In this post, I'll share how I built my portfolio using modern technologies.

The Tech Stack

Here's what I used to build this portfolio:

- Next.js 16 - The latest React framework with App Router
- TypeScript - For type safety and better development experience
- Tailwind CSS - For beautiful, responsive styling
- Prisma - Database ORM for PostgreSQL
- NextAuth.js - Secure authentication
- Vercel - Deployment and hosting

Key Features

1. Admin Dashboard

I built a complete admin dashboard to manage:
- Projects
- Skills
- Blog posts
- Certificates
- Messages from visitors

2. SEO Optimization

To ensure my portfolio appears in search engines:
- Sitemap and robots.txt
- JSON-LD structured data
- Optimized meta tags
- Open Graph images

3. Modern Design

The UI features:
- Dark theme with gradient accents
- Smooth animations
- Responsive layout
- Glass morphism effects

Lessons Learned

1. Start simple - Don't overcomplicate things initially
2. Focus on content - Great design means nothing without good content
3. SEO matters - Optimize from day one
4. Keep iterating - Your portfolio should evolve with your career

Conclusion

Building a portfolio is an ongoing journey. The key is to start, ship, and improve over time. I hope this gives you inspiration for your own portfolio!

Feel free to reach out if you have questions!