For quite a while, the ability to add realistic light and shade to an illustration or animation seemed like the holy grail. The technology wasn’t always there. Thus, developers had to find workarounds to approximate the effect.

Thankfully, the power of CSS and various JavaScript libraries have ushered in a new age. It’s now possible to add lighting and shading effects that are nearly on par with what we see in video games.

Today, we’ll share some CSS and JavaScript code snippets that bring these effects to life. Enjoy!

Creativity Now✨

Text seems like a natural place to add lighting and shading. But this example takes it to a whole other level. The creative makeup of each letter and cursor-following animation makes this a true work of art. It’s akin to a 3D mobile hanging from your ceiling. Even better: click on the presentation to create an entirely new look.

See the Pen Creativity Now✨(click anywhere) by Anna the Scavenger

Photo Tear

Place your cursor on one of the upper corners of a photo, then click-and-drag downwards. You’ll notice the image ripping apart. By itself, that’s a pretty cool effect. But what really sells it is the shading as the perspective shifts. The entire process feels very much authentic.

See the Pen Photo Tear by Steve Gardner

Platonics

This 3D animation has a stunning liquid effect. A piece of metal twists and morphs its way into various objects. Realistic reflections make it all the more compelling to watch, thanks to WebGL.

See the Pen Platonics by Liam Egan

Beat Burger

Nothing like performing a huge drum solo in the spotlight. What? You’ve never been in a famous band? Maybe the next best thing is to play this virtual drumkit, made from a hamburger. You get the sounds, the spotlight and even the shadows. Just don’t get any grease on your new clothes.

See the Pen Beat Burger by Steve Gardner

Monochromatic Yoyo – Pure CSS

Here we have a slinky-like array of pure CSS squares. Their chain-reaction animation is further enhanced by the use of, you guessed it, lighting and shading. Gradients add the illusion of depth, while drop shadow moves along with each layer of the animation.

See the Pen Monochromatic Yoyo – Pure CSS by Josetxu

Art Gallery

This virtual art installation is certainly abstract. It features a colorful blob that morphs as your cursor moves across the screen. Rays of light add a touch of realism. However, click on the “Light OFF” button and the entire presentation transforms into a particle explosion.

See the Pen Art Gallery by isladjan

SVG lighting shader

With clever implementation, the flashlight effect can be simply amazing. Here it’s used to illuminate a rocky surface. Thanks to SVG, the image looks ultra-realistic. Both the light and perspective shift along with your cursor. It also has the benefit of being safer than walking around in the woods after dark.

See the Pen SVG lighting shader by Artem Lvov

Pacman Concept

This PAC-MAN inspired snippet brings the beloved video game into the 3D age. Ghosts travel through an illuminated cube, with sharp rays of light bursting through the maze. Once again, the cursor plays a role, as you can change the scene’s perspective by moving around.

See the Pen Pacman Concept by Ivan Juarez N.

Finishing Touches That Stand Out

It used to be that you needed high-end software to create convincing lighting and shading effects. But, thanks to the advancements in web technologies, similar enhancements can be achieved through code.

The ability to leverage hardware acceleration also plays a key role. Without the power of the graphics processing unit (GPU), these advanced scenes couldn’t run with such fluid motion.

Put together, the results can be stunning. And the examples above might only be scratching the surface of this potential.

The post 8 CSS & JavaScript Snippets for Lighting & Shading Effects appeared first on Speckyboy Design Magazine.

This collection aims to offer a comprehensive array of resources – a CSS animation toolbox for web designers. Whether new to CSS animations or looking to expand your skills, you’ll find valuable libraries, snippets, web-based tools, cheatsheets, and tutorials to help you create incredible animated web experiences.

You may also like these toolboxes: CSS Flexbox, SVG Workflow Tools, Styleguide Tools, or Tools for Formatting CSS.

The post CSS Animation Toolbox – Libraries, Tools, Snippets & Tutorials appeared first on Speckyboy Design Magazine.

One area where hover effects can be especially powerful is when they’re applied to images. Whether it’s as part of a small card layout or a massive hero image, the right effect can make a huge impact.

Today, we’ll show you some creative ways that designers are integrating hover effects into images. They’ll demonstrate how we can spice up our own projects in a dramatic fashion.

Photo Effects on Hover

This clever use of CSS and JS duplicates the image and layers them on top of each other. From there, CSS filters are separately added to each image. This technique results in cinematic-quality effects that would be otherwise difficult to achieve.

See the Pen Photo effects on hover using JS and CSS3 by Alvaro Montoro

Fast and Powerful Image Effects

What’s great about this collection of hover effects is that they provide instant gratification. But that speed doesn’t take away their potency. Of particular note here are the CSS3 filter effects, as they bring sepia and grayscale images to full color upon hovering.

See the Pen Image Hover Effects by kw7oe

Image Hover with Slide Out Title

This combination of skewed caption containers, sharp typography, and quick animation is powerful. It’s also reminiscent of the opening credits to a TV show. Amazingly, the vast majority of the work is done by CSS alone.

See the Pen #1104 – Image hover with slide out title by LittleSnippets.net

Show Your Cards Image Effects

Here’s a snippet that brings to mind someone unfolding a hand of playing cards for all to see. But in this case, it seems like it would be a perfect hover effect to implement for photo galleries. It not only looks cool, but it also provides some context for users.

See the Pen Image Hover Effect – CSS3 by Bruno Rodrigues

Shifting Reality Image Hover Effects

Go ahead, play around with this example and see if you can keep your vision straight. As you hover over various parts of this building, blocks shift and scroll based on your cursor direction. It’s highly detailed, confusing, and mind-blowing all at once. Can we do it again?

See the Pen Image Hover Effect by Dimitra Vasilopoulou

Split Image Hover Effects

Want more mind-blowing fun? Here’s another example from Dimitra Vasilopoulou, who also created the reality-shifter above. Here, the photograph appears to be split up within a grid layout. Hovering quickly puts it all back together. While it’s not quite as psychedelic, it’s no less impressive.

See the Pen Split Image | Hover Effect by Dimitra Vasilopoulou

Pure Class Image Effect with Pure CSS

This collection of hover effects proves that you don’t need to be over-the-top to make a strong impression. There are various style options here, but each brings the reveal text content and filters upon hovering. And, not a single line of JavaScript was used.

See the Pen Awesome Image Hover in Pure CSS by MAHESH AMBURE

Key(frames) to the Wild

We’ve come to the intersection of drama and beauty with this incredible CSS “shutter” effect. Hovering over these sepia-toned animal illustrations creates an ultra-smooth transition to full-color. It was accomplished via CSS filters, keyframes, pseudo-elements, and opacity changes.

See the Pen Animation @keyframes in Image Hovers by Vail Joy

The Bigger Picture Image Hover Gallery

Photo galleries are so widespread, yet you don’t see many that are truly unique. Here is a stunning exception. Hover over a thumbnail image in the grid, and a full-sized version takes over the entire container. But that’s only half of the story. The real cool factor comes from the image “splitting” itself and being put back together as it loads in.

See the Pen Splitting:Image Hover Gallery by Shaw

Split Image Reveal Effect

Here we have a fun technique for revealing text behind an image. This snippet shows various ways to “split” an image into strips, thus clearing the way for a secret message. Since it’s a bit complicated, it may not be something you’d want to use repeatedly on a page. But, with the right implementation, you’ll add a creative flair to your project.

See the Pen Fancy Image Splitting (SplittingJS) by Mark Mead

We Have the Drama

Adding dramatic hover effects to your site is a great way to grab a user’s attention. What the examples above show is that we can achieve the desired results without going overboard. You don’t need something loud and obnoxious in the least. Rather, it’s all about smooth transitions and compelling special effects.

Let these examples inspire you. Then, experiment with ways to add some drama to your own images.

The post 10 CSS & JavaScript Snippets for Advanced Image Hover Effects appeared first on Speckyboy Design Magazine.

Animated logos, whether created using CSS & SVG, After Effects, or as an animated GIF, have the power to draw attention to your brand and make it highly memorable.

While not yet widely used, we’ve compiled a small collection of subtly animated logos that we hope will inspire you to create your own. By adding a touch of animation to your logo design, you can make it stand out and create a lasting impression on your audience.

So, if you’re looking to add some extra flair to your brand, consider experimenting with subtle animations in your logo design. With the right approach and execution, it can take your brand to a whole new level. Of course, we’ll start with the fantastic Fubiz logo first.