CSS image-rendering Property

Posted in CSS Tutorial

Updated on Oct 03, 2024

By Mari Selvan

👁️ 10 - Views

⏳ 4 mins

💬 1 Comment

Photo Credit to CodeToFun

🙋 Introduction

The image-rendering property in CSS allows developers to control the rendering algorithm used for scaling images.

This property can be particularly useful for optimizing the display of images, especially when they are scaled up or down, to ensure they maintain the desired visual quality. It is commonly used in scenarios involving pixel art, where preserving the sharpness of the image is crucial.

💡 Syntax

The syntax for the image-rendering property is straightforward. It can be applied to any image element, including img, canvas, or elements with a background image.

Syntax

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element {
  image-rendering: value;
}

🎛️ Default Value

The default value of the image-rendering property is auto, which allows the browser to use its default scaling algorithm.

🏠 Property Values

Value	Description
auto	Default value. The browser selects an appropriate algorithm to smooth the image.
smooth	The image is scaled using a high-quality algorithm.
high-quality	Equivalent to smooth. The image is scaled with a high-quality algorithm.
crisp-edges	The image is scaled with an algorithm that preserves contrast and edges, typically used for pixel art.
pixelated	The image is scaled with nearest-neighbor interpolation, which preserves the image's pixels and creates a pixelated effect.

📄 Example

In this example, we'll apply different image-rendering values to demonstrate their effects on an image.

index.html

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<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8">
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
  <title>CSS image-rendering Example</title>
  <style>
    .auto {
      image-rendering: auto;
    }
    .smooth {
      image-rendering: smooth;
    }
    .crisp-edges {
      image-rendering: crisp-edges;
    }
    .pixelated {
      image-rendering: pixelated;
    }
    img {
      width: 200px;
      height: 200px;
      margin: 10px;
    }
  </style>
</head>
<body>
  <h1>Image Rendering Property Example</h1>
  <div>
    <h2>auto (default)</h2>
    <img src="example.png" class="auto" alt="Image with auto rendering">
  </div>
  <div>
    <h2>smooth</h2>
    <img src="example.png" class="smooth" alt="Image with smooth rendering">
  </div>
  <div>
    <h2>crisp-edges</h2>
    <img src="example.png" class="crisp-edges" alt="Image with crisp-edges rendering">
  </div>
  <div>
    <h2>pixelated</h2>
    <img src="example.png" class="pixelated" alt="Image with pixelated rendering">
  </div>
</body>
</html>

🖥️ Browser Compatibility

The image-rendering property is supported in most modern browsers, including the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge, and Opera. However, it is always a good practice to test your website across different browsers to ensure compatibility.

🎉 Conclusion

The image-rendering property is a valuable tool for web developers aiming to control the visual quality of scaled images.

Whether you need high-quality smoothing for detailed images or pixelated rendering for retro-style graphics, this property offers the flexibility to achieve the desired effect. Experiment with different values to see how they can enhance the appearance of images on your website.