You do not need complicated SEO to improve a portfolio. Start with descriptive page titles, useful meta descriptions, semantic headings, internal links, and content that is actually worth reading.
Search engines need clear signals about what each page is about. That is why separate project pages and separate blog pages help more than one long homepage with everything packed into it.
Once the site is published, submit your sitemap, keep your metadata consistent, and add new content steadily. Fresh, original writing usually matters more than cosmetic optimization tricks.