Laravel for PHP developers

As a PHP developer with several years of experience, my workflow has often been heavily reliant on procedural coding and custom-built solutions. For a long time, the idea of working with a framework seemed unnecessary. Like many developers who have grown accustomed to writing everything from scratch, I was hesitant to jump on another framework that seemed to be gaining traction. But, I decided it was time to explore Laravel.

Laravel is an open-source PHP framework praised for its elegance and simplicity. As a developer used to the more “raw” approach of writing PHP code directly without much abstraction. But as more and more projects demanded faster turnarounds and cleaner code, I decided it was time to dive into Laravel.

The first thing that struck me about Laravel was that it wasn’t just about providing structure; it aimed to make development an enjoyable and fulfilling experience. Laravel’s documentation is presented in a way that speaks directly to developers who were used to dealing with the intricacies of PHP. It felt like a framework built for PHP’s capabilities, while also pushing developers to write code that was cleaner, more maintainable and scalable.

OLaravel is PHP at its core, and its syntax and conventions remain firmly rooted in a language I’m comfortable with. What it does offer, though, is a host of tools and features that simplify common tasks. In the past, setting up routing, database queries, and user authentication would require extensive coding. With Laravel, these tasks were simplified through a series of commands and built-in functionalities.

Laravel’s routing system was one of the first features I encountered that helped me realise the potential of using a framework. Instead of handling every route manually, Laravel allows for the definition of routes in a clear and simple manner. The routes/web.php file became my new playground, where I could map URLs to controllers with ease. It was both intuitive and flexible, giving me the freedom to define clean and readable routes.

Another standout feature was Laravel’s templating engine. Traditionally, I had worked with PHP directly embedded within HTML, often resulting in messy and hard-to-maintain templates. Blade provided a much cleaner alternative, allowing for separation of logic and presentation. Its syntax was easy to grasp, and before long, I was building dynamic views without the clutter that had once plagued my HTML templates.

Laravel also introduced me to the concept of artisan commands. At first, I was unsure how much I would use the command-line interface, but it quickly became one of my favourite tools. Whether I needed to create controllers, models, or migrations, Artisan allowed me to generate much of the boilerplate code automatically. This significantly sped up my development process, reducing the amount of repetitive coding I had been so accustomed to. Running migrations, which used to involve manually creating database tables, became as simple as writing out the schema in Laravel’s migration files and running a single Artisan command.

Of course, as with any new tool, there was a learning curve. The switch to using Laravel wasn’t immediate, and there were times when I felt frustrated by my unfamiliarity with the framework. However, what Laravel did well was minimise the friction. Its clear documentation, logical structure, and the extensive array of learning materials meant that I could progress quickly without feeling overwhelmed. In fact, many of the problems I had previously solved with lengthy, custom PHP code could now be handled with a few lines in Laravel. The framework took care of many of the tedious tasks, freeing me to focus on building features and delivering value.

By the time I had completed my first full project with Laravel, I was convinced that this was the future of my PHP development journey. Laravel didn’t just change the way I wrote code; it changed the way I thought about development. Concepts like dependency injection, middleware, and service providers, which I had previously overlooked or considered unnecessary, became indispensable parts of my workflow. These were things I had never explored deeply in my previous PHP experience, but Laravel made them accessible and easy to implement.

Reflecting on my first encounter with Laravel, I realise that it wasn’t just about adopting a framework. It was about embracing a new way of thinking about PHP development—one that prioritised clarity, structure, and efficiency. Laravel didn’t diminish my skills as a PHP developer; it enhanced them. It provided me with tools that allowed me to build more robust applications, faster, and with far less effort.