Image Gallery

Learn more about image galleries

An image gallery or image grid provides an organized way to view a collection of images together and then expand them for viewing individually at a larger size. This makes image galleries particularly suitable for portfolios and product showcases, or in any other scenario where images need to be presented as collections organized around a common theme.

Although many different types of image gallery design are possible, probably the most common forms are the thumbnail grid, mosaic-style layout, and the masonry gallery; this latter design is so called for its resemblance to regular brickwork or tiling. Other more advanced image galleries may also permit the viewing of images as a slideshow, scrolling collection, or carousel, before returning the user to the main grid.

A standard app or website image gallery displays all the images at the same size. Likewise, when clicked to expand, every image in the grid will transition into the Detail View in the same way. 

In Detail View, users are able to display a variety of information about their images. Including the title, date it was taken or saved, and any other metadata they may wish - such as location, aperture, shutter speed, or ISO, if displaying photography.

Why use image galleries?

One of the main advantages of image galleries in grid form (whether CSS image gallery or HTML5 image galleries) is the fact that visual content can be viewed both individually and together as a group. This latter aspect will be especially important for artists and designers who may wish for their images to be seen as a coherent collection just as much as separate works in isolation.

Another important thing to note about grid image galleries is that when the person viewing the portfolio leaves the Detail View of a given image, the view will automatically return to the main screen. This leaves the user free to continue browsing the gallery right where they left off.

Finally, using an image grid can be a great way to handle images so that they are fully responsive. For example, with images displayed in a grid you can add breakpoints to ensure that your images are always viewed properly on any size of screen or type of device.

Grid image gallery vs. sliding image gallery

Say you want to display images on your app or website, but you don’t know which format to choose. Do you want to put in a grid image gallery? Or would a slider be a better choice?

Image grids provide access to responsive images in a straightforward gallery, with users being able to look at each of them at a glance. But there are downsides -- grids can be large and take up a lot of real estate, which is often at a premium for web and app designs.

Image sliders, on the other hand, might prove a viable alternative. Sliders can showcase larger images on your app or website, as the slider scrolls through one image after another (either automatically or via slider controls clicked on by the user). You can also use pagination features on the bottom to show the user where they’re at in the scrollable photo gallery.

Whichever option you take, just think about the user experience and which option works best for your prospective audience. Do you want your users to be able to flip between different images at once, focusing on one at a time? Or do you want them to see them all in a row and view the images in aggregate?

How to design a responsive image grid in Framer

Making an image gallery in Framer is very simple and straightforward. This example focuses on how to create the transition when going from your main screen, containing the image grid, to the Detail View.

First, create a frame to hold all your images in a grid formation. Let’s start with four images, which means four more frames for each Detail View.

Following this, connect each image from the grid to each Detail View and set the transition to Magic Motion. By using Magic Motion here, your layers will transition smoothly and it will show the image is expanding fluidly into the Detail View.

Finally, set a back transition for every image in the Detail View so that users will return to the image gallery once they have finished looking at an image in Detail View.