How to keep a portfolio website updated without a yearly overhaul
Portfolios go stale in a predictable way: the best recent work never makes it on, because adding it feels like a project of its own. The answer is a small habit with two rhythms. Add each finished project within a fortnight, while the photos and details are at hand, and once a quarter take out what no longer represents you.
Set up projects as entries, not pages
If every project is hand-placed on a page, adding one means rearranging the page. Keep projects in a CMS collection instead, and let the site list them. In Anticode's dashboard, create a collection called projects with these fields:
- Title (text): the project's name, which becomes the entry's title
- Client or context (text): who it was for, or "self-initiated"
- Year (number)
- Summary (text): one sentence on the brief and the result
- Story (rich text): the problem, what you did, what changed
- Lead image (image), plus a second and third image field if your projects need them
- Order (number): a simple way to note which projects you want first when you ask for the list to be arranged
Each entry gets its own page at /projects/<slug>, with the full list at /projects/. Ask for a home page section that shows the latest projects from the collection, and publish.
When a project ships: the two-week routine
- Ask for permission in writing. Many client contracts limit what you can show, and some clients want to approve the wording. A one-line email is enough: "May I add this to my portfolio, with your name and these images?"
- Gather the material while it's fresh: final files, photos of the work in use, one or two numbers the client is happy to share, and a line from them if they offer one. Don't invent quotes.
- Write the entry in the dashboard: summary first, then the story in three short paragraphs. Put each image's hosted address in the entry's image field.
- Let the client see it, if they asked to. Share the published project page, or, if it's on the home page section, a client review link to the preview.
- Save, then publish if the home page section should include the new project. The project's own page shows it as soon as it's saved.
The quarterly edit
Set an hour aside every three months. Read the portfolio as a stranger who'd hire you for the work you want next year, not the work you did three years ago. For each project, decide: keep, move down, or retire.
| Signal | Decision |
|---|---|
| Represents the work you want more of | Keep, and feature it |
| Good but off-direction | Keep in the full list, take off the home page |
| Clearly weaker than newer work | Retire: delete the entry, after saving its text and images in your own archive |
| The client has since rebranded or closed | Check the images still make sense with a note of the date |
Fewer, stronger pieces almost always beat a long scroll. Eight to twelve projects is a common range for a freelancer; a studio with distinct services might show a few per service.
Photos that do the work justice
Your own images reach these pages through the entry's image field, which holds the https address of a photo you host; files uploaded to Anticode are used only by app builds. Show the work in context (the shopfront with the sign, the app on a phone in someone's hand) as well as clean shots. Video doesn't play on these pages, so put showreels on YouTube or Vimeo and link to them. Keep file sizes sensible so the page stays quick on phones.
What goes wrong
- A client asks for a project to come down. Delete the entry the same day and publish again if it was on the home page. Keep the written permission emails for every project you show.
- Work under NDA goes up by mistake. The permission step prevents it.
- Projects pile up unwritten. Write the summary line the day the project ships, even if the full story waits.
How you know it's working
The newest project is from the last few months. Prospects mention a specific recent project on calls. The quarterly edit takes an hour, not a weekend.
Limits
No password-protected or private project pages: anything published is public, so confidential work stays off. No file uploads by clients, no comments on projects and no scheduled posting. See the visual artist website builder and CMS collections, and for written case studies, publishing a client case study.
Questions people ask
How do I add new work to a portfolio without redesigning it?
Add the project as a new entry in the collection. Its page appears at once; publish again to update any home page section.
Can I show some projects only to selected clients?
No. Published sites have no password-protected pages. Send private work as a PDF or through your file-sharing tool.
Do I need permission to show client work?
Check your contract. Even when it isn't required, asking avoids awkward requests later and often gets you a usable quote.