Guide to Creating a Basic Photo Gallery

Walkthrough on building a photo gallery with HTML for image placement and CSS Grid for a responsive layout.

When I first tried to build a photo gallery, I thought it was just about dumping a bunch of images on a page and calling it a day. Turns out, that's how you get a page that looks like a messy collage from the early 2000s. A clean photo gallery needs structure, responsiveness, and good design flow. Let's build one from scratch using just HTML and CSS Grid.

Understanding the Structure

A photo gallery is basically a collection of images arranged in a grid. The idea is simple: we use HTML to hold the images and CSS Grid to control how they're displayed. This setup makes it responsive, which means it adapts to different screen sizes without breaking the layout.

Here's the base HTML to get started.

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
  <meta charset="UTF-8" />
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" />
  <title>Basic Photo Gallery</title>
  <link rel="stylesheet" href="styles.css" />
</head>
<body>
  <h1>My Photo Gallery</h1>
  <div class="gallery">
    <img src="images/photo1.jpg" alt="Photo 1">
    <img src="images/photo2.jpg" alt="Photo 2">
    <img src="images/photo3.jpg" alt="Photo 3">
    <img src="images/photo4.jpg" alt="Photo 4">
    <img src="images/photo5.jpg" alt="Photo 5">
    <img src="images/photo6.jpg" alt="Photo 6">
  </div>
</body>
</html>

This is as minimal as it gets. A simple container called .gallery holds all our images. The magic will happen in the CSS.

Setting Up the Grid with CSS

CSS Grid is built for layouts like this. It gives us full control over how elements are placed, how much space they take up, and how they rearrange themselves on smaller screens.

Here's a clean CSS setup:

* {
  margin: 0;
  padding: 0;
  box-sizing: border-box;
}

body {
  font-family: Arial, sans-serif;
  background-color: #f7f7f7;
  color: #333;
  padding: 2rem;
}

h1 {
  text-align: center;
  margin-bottom: 2rem;
  font-size: 2rem;
}

.gallery {
  display: grid;
  grid-template-columns: repeat(auto-fit, minmax(250px, 1fr));
  gap: 1rem;
}

.gallery img {
  width: 100%;
  height: auto;
  border-radius: 10px;
  object-fit: cover;
  transition: transform 0.3s ease, box-shadow 0.3s ease;
  cursor: pointer;
}

.gallery img:hover {
  transform: scale(1.03);
  box-shadow: 0 4px 15px rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2);
}

Here's what's happening:

display: grid activates the CSS Grid layout.

repeat(auto-fit, minmax(250px, 1fr)) makes sure the gallery automatically adjusts the number of columns depending on the screen width.

Each image takes up the full width of its grid cell and keeps its aspect ratio with object-fit: cover.

The hover effect adds a bit of depth when users interact with images, making the gallery feel alive.

Making It Responsive

The grid setup we used already handles most of the responsiveness automatically, but we can fine-tune it for better spacing on smaller screens.

@media screen and (max-width: 600px) {
  body {
    padding: 1rem;
  }

  h1 {
    font-size: 1.5rem;
  }

  .gallery {
    gap: 0.5rem;
  }
}

With this, the gallery becomes tighter and more compact on phones, keeping the layout clean without any horizontal scrolling. You don't need to write a lot of CSS—just smart rules that let Grid do the heavy lifting.

Optional: Adding a Lightbox Effect

If you want to make your gallery feel more interactive, you can add a lightbox feature. It's a simple overlay that enlarges the image when clicked. Here's the simplest version using HTML and CSS, no JavaScript required.

<div class="lightbox" id="lightbox">
  <img src="" alt="">
</div>

Add this to your HTML and then use this CSS:

.lightbox {
  display: none;
  position: fixed;
  z-index: 1000;
  top: 0;
  left: 0;
  width: 100%;
  height: 100%;
  background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.8);
  justify-content: center;
  align-items: center;
}

.lightbox img {
  max-width: 90%;
  max-height: 90%;
  border-radius: 10px;
}

Then add this small JavaScript snippet to make it work:

const lightbox = document.getElementById('lightbox');
const images = document.querySelectorAll('.gallery img');

images.forEach(image => {
  image.addEventListener('click', () => {
    lightbox.style.display = 'flex';
    lightbox.querySelector('img').src = image.src;
  });
});

lightbox.addEventListener('click', () => {
  lightbox.style.display = 'none';
});

This code listens for clicks on gallery images, displays the clicked image in a full-screen overlay, and closes it when you click anywhere outside the image. It's simple but gives your gallery a much more professional touch.

Lessons Learned

Building something visual like a photo gallery teaches a few key things about web layout. CSS Grid is incredibly flexible, and learning it pays off in every type of layout you'll create. Responsive design isn't about writing separate code for every device—it's about building smart structures that adapt naturally.

If you want to expand this project, try adding captions, filters, or category tags for each image. You could also integrate it with a JavaScript image API or connect it to a CMS for dynamic image loading. Once you understand the basics, scaling up is just a matter of creativity.

Wrapping Up

Creating a photo gallery isn't just about arranging pictures—it's about building a layout that feels natural, responsive, and visually appealing. Using just HTML and CSS Grid, you can build something that looks clean on every device without relying on heavy frameworks. Keep experimenting with the grid properties, tweak the hover effects, and you'll soon find your own style.

Whether it's a personal portfolio or an image showcase, this gallery setup is a solid starting point that you can refine and expand as your skills grow.