Context

In my free time I enjoy visual arts, particularly drawing and photography. For many years I hosted my work on a platform called Koken. At the time it was a very innovative and well designed photography portfolio system.

However, more than a decade has passed since then and the platform has not evolved. The site increasingly started to look outdated and parts of the experience felt broken.

It was time to move to something more modern.

Problem

Most modern portfolio and gallery services operate on a subscription model.

While the cost itself is relatively small, around 6 euros per month in many cases, the model assumes continuous use. For a hobby project that might sit untouched for long periods of time, committing to a recurring platform fee felt unnecessary.

At the same time, moving to a typical website builder would create another type of lock in, tying the site to a specific service indefinitely.

The goal was to create a simple, modern portfolio that I fully control, without recurring platform costs.

Approach

Instead of adopting another portfolio service, I decided to build my own platform using vibe coding with Lovable.

This became my first larger project using Lovable, allowing me to experiment with building a real working product rather than a prototype.

The focus was to keep the system simple, while making sure it solved the main needs of a photography portfolio.

Solution

The result is a lightweight portfolio platform designed specifically for showcasing visual work.

Key features include:

• A clean, mobile friendly image gallery

• A custom admin panel for managing images and collections

• Drag and drop interaction within the admin interface

• Google authentication for secure access

• A structure designed specifically for photography portfolios

The admin interface allows me to manage the portfolio without relying on any external platform or subscription service.

Outcome

The project replaced my previous portfolio system with a modern, self controlled alternative.

It demonstrates how vibe coding can be used not only for prototypes but also for small real products, especially when the goal is to solve a very specific personal need.

Building the platform also served as an early hands on experiment with Lovable and helped shape my later projects built with AI assisted development.