HTML <picture> Element
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The HTML <picture> element allows you to display different pictures for
different devices or screen sizes.
The HTML <picture> Element
The HTML <picture> element gives web developers more flexibility in
specifying image resources.
The <picture> element contains one or more <source> elements, each
referring to different images through the srcset attribute. This way the browser
can choose the image that best fits the current view and/or device.
Each <source> element has a media attribute that defines when the image is
the most suitable.
Example
Show different images for different screen sizes:
<picture>
<source media="(min-width: 650px)" srcset="img_food.jpg">
<source media="(min-width: 465px)" srcset="img_car.jpg">
<img src="img_girl.jpg">
</picture>
Try it Yourself »
Note: Always specify an <img> element as the last child element of
the <picture> element. The <img> element is used by browsers that do not
support the <picture> element, or if none of the <source> tags match.
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When to use the Picture Element
There are two main purposes for the <picture> element:
1. Bandwidth
If you have a small screen or device, it is not necessary to load a large image
file. The browser will use the first <source> element with matching attribute
values, and ignore any of the following elements.
2. Format Support
Some browsers or devices may not support all image formats. By using
the <picture> element, you can add images of all formats, and the browser will
use the first format it recognizes, and ignore any of the following elements.
Example
The browser will use the first image format it recognizes:
<picture>
<source srcset="img_avatar.png">
<source srcset="img_girl.jpg">
<img src="img_beatles.gif" alt="Beatles" style="width:auto;">
</picture>
Try it Yourself »
Note: The browser will use the first <source> element with matching attribute
values, and ignore any following <source> elements.
Exercise?
One of these elements is NOT a legal HTML element, which one?
The <image> element
The <picture> element
The <source> element
Submit Answer »
HTML Image Tags
Tag Description
<img> Defines an image
<map> Defines an image map
<area> Defines a clickable area inside an image map
<picture> Defines a container for multiple image resources
For a complete list of all available HTML tags, visit our HTML Tag Reference.
