How to Add Image Hover Effects in WordPress
April 24. 2021
In order to catch the attention of your audience, you need to have an engaging website. This requires creating interesting content and making your website intuitive to use. You also need to design your website carefully and ensure that it has a district aesthetic. But, unfortunately, even achieving all of this won’t guarantee that your visitors will feel engaging. More often than not, you will have to utilize some tricks in order to keep your viewers attention. And one of those tricks is adding hover effects to your images. So, in this article, we will explore how to add image hover effects in WordPress and when doing so is a good idea.
Understanding image hover effects
Image hover effects are the easiest way to add a bit of interactivity to your otherwise static website elements, images. For instance, you can have them flip over in order to reveal extra information regarding the image. Or they zoom in, zoom out, popup, or various other animations. When inserted properly, hover effects bring a refreshing feel to a website, as they are often underutilized. At the end of the day, people expect images to be static. Therefore, any extra animation is bound to at least spark some interest. Be warned though that it can be surprisingly easy to overdo hover effects and turn your images from engaging you annoying. But, let’s put that aside for now, and let’s explore how to add hover effects to images in WP.
Add image hover effects in WordPress
As it is with most alterations regarding WordPress, using plugins is the easiest way to add hover effects. Luckily, there are numerous plugins that help you in this endeavor. So, if one doesn’t work for you, you can always try a different one. But, before you do, would advise you is to optimize your images for WordPress. And, make a backup of your website before installing any new plugin. Even simple plugins can cause a lot of issues, some of which are not easy to fix. So, to avoid future headaches, create a backup. That way you can revert back to it if something goes amiss.
In this article, we will explore four of the most popular plugins for adding hover effects in WordPress. Depending on what kind of effects you are looking to add, you might try different plugins. So, without further ado, let’s jump in.
Add flip box effects to images
The flip box effect is when the image flips around once your mouse cursor hovers over it. The “other side” of the image can either be a different image, or some text related to the image. This effect is mostly used by image-heavy websites where a bit of context is necessary for each image. To add flip box effects we suggest that you use Flipbox – Awesomeness Flip Boxes Image Overlay. This is a simple WordPress plugin, precisely designed for flip box effects. Installing it is fairly straightforward and self-explanatory. Therefore, we won’t go into detail here. Once you install and activate it you will be able to customize various aspects of your flip effect. There are numerous pre-made templates to choose from, as well as customization options for pretty much any flip box effect you can think of.
Add image zoom and magnify effects to images
Does your website include images with a high resolution and a lot of details? Then, if you want people to appreciate those details, you need to use the image zoom and magnify effects. These effects will essentially add a magnifying glass to the user, therefore allowing them to appreciate all the details that you painstakingly included. The best plugin to use here is the WP Image Zoom. With it, you can choose the shape of the zoom, the intensity, and many other features. You can even choose between adding the magnifying effect upon click if hover doesn’t suit your website.
Add image animation effects
When it comes to image hover animations, there are literary dozens of options you can choose from. So, if you are unsure of which to choose, we recommend that you install the Image Hover Effects Ultimate plugin. This plugin is easy to use, lightweight and powerful. So, you should have little trouble finding your way through its intuitive customization options. And your website won’t slow down once you install it. There are tons of different layouts, templates, and premade animations for you to choose from. So, you should feel free to experiment and see what works for you. We would just like to remind you to make a backup of your website before you do so.
What to keep in mind about website animations
While the plugins we’ve listed can help you add image hover effects in WordPress you shouldn’t do so without prior planning. As we mentioned, people often make the mistake of adding too many animations. Once they find out how easy it is, they start to have fun with it. And seeing that there are thousands of free images to choose from, there is a ton of fun to be had. While there is nothing wrong with having fun while designing your website, know that you can easily go overboard. Animations are just another part of your website. And, as a part, they need to have a specific role. Relying on them too much defeated their purpose of making your website to engaging. Similarly to adding too much content or pushing too hard with CTAs.
If the animations feel natural, thought through and well-integrated, they will do wonders. A lot of good websites recognize how difficult it is to do so, which is why they avoid it altogether. But, this makes good websites with good image hover effects stand out even more. All that we are trying to say is that you should do your research and think carefully before you decide to implement any effects.