Web Design
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Is It Okay To Use Background Images Behind Text?

Description: We all have different ideas about what makes a good web page. But some things are usually not advisable to do. Is using images behind text one of them? Read on to find out.

You'll no doubt have noticed that most of the time when you visit a website, the images displayed on that site will be entirely separate to the text. If an image has a caption it is usually displayed underneath it rather than on top of the image itself.

So does that mean it's not okay to use background images behind text?

In actual fact you can do it - but it should be used sparingly. This is because an image is generally made up from lots of different colors and shades. Think of a photo for example. If you want to have text on top of a photo you will more often than not run across the problem of not being able to read all of the text, because it disappears into its matching color in certain portions of the photo.

One way around this is to use a semi translucent mask to make sure the text is readable without blocking out the whole background. While this works, it's not a solution for instances where you have a lot of text laid over the top of a photo.

That's why it's advisable to have as little text as possible to read with an image of any kind behind it. People are used to the norm of seeing black text on a white background, and forcing them to read prolonged sections of anything other than this will cause problems and maybe even lose you visitors.

In short if it's done carefully and sparingly then it can work well - but if you are in any doubt keep the text and the images completely separate.