shyon, it's a good beginning. when i first started with html authoring, i had to use templates to learn, being slow & all.
another interesting link, should u be able to find time is
www.lynda.com that covers almost anything web, especially graphics & web-interactivity.
best thing to do for your portfolio is to build webpages complete with stuff, & it doesn't have to be about real companies. maybe the upcoming riftrunner fansite kit will be useful as a tool for u to use & improve to whatever u have in mind.
just make sure u put them in servers that can be accessed anywhere in the world.
have fun.