Is it necessary to use block elements when specifying image dimensions in HTML?

I have encountered a unique scenario where I want to set a pre-determined height for an HTML img element before it finishes loading. This is crucial because this height will be utilized in a calculation that may occur before the image is completely loaded, and accuracy is essential. I attempted the following approach:

<div>hello<img src='http://example.com/invalid.gif' class="testimage"> there</div>

and then added some CSS rules:

.testimage {
    height: 200px;
    width: 200px;
}
​

Surprisingly, in Firefox 5, the additional space is not displayed (and interestingly, the broken image is not shown either – just a blank space). However, when I include display: inline-block, the extra space does appear. It seems that other browsers render correctly with the default display of inline. Is this behavior expected? If so, what is the reason behind it?

You can also view a jsFiddle demonstration here: http://jsfiddle.net/uYXD4/

htmlcss

Answer №1

According to this source, images are considered inline elements -

However, another perspective can be found here - Is <img> element block level or inline level?

The <img> element seems to have characteristics of both an inline and block element. Without strict rules defining its behavior, browser vendors may determine their own defaults. To ensure consistency, it is recommended to reset assumptions by using display: inline-block

Answer №2

When it comes to images, they are considered as replaced elements:

A replaced element is an element that falls outside the CSS formatting model, like an image or embedded document. For instance, the content of an HTML IMG tag is usually replaced by the designated image in its "src" attribute.

For replaced elements, using display: inline-block should have the same effect as display: inline, which is the default behavior.

This might explain some unexpected behavior in certain browsers*:

It's possible that only completely loaded images are treated as replaced elements, while others are treated as non-replaced elements until fully loaded. This interpretation makes sense and aligns with the standard, leading to three scenarios:

  1. If an element is a replaced element, whether displayed inline or inline-block, the height property will work as expected.
  2. For inline non-replaced elements, the height attribute may not have any impact.
  3. Inline-block non-replaced elements will also respond to the height property.

Fully-loaded images fall into category 1., while broken or loading images could fall under 1. or 2. (or 3. if explicitly set to display: inline-block).

*This explanation may not fully reflect how browsers actually handle these situations.

Answer №3

Have you considered using a different approach, such as utilizing

<img src="..." width=400 height=200>

I have implemented this method before and found it to be quite effective. Alternatively, you could also try...

$('.myimg').on( 'load', function() { /* operations */ } );

However, I am unsure if this method ensures the image is fully loaded in all web browsers.

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