Masonry, Justified, Horizontal or Waterfall Grid Layouts
A grid layout decides two things: how many references you see at once, and whether you see each one whole. refern has four layouts. Masonry is the default.
- Masonry packs images tightly in columns. Wide and very tall images are cropped.
- Justified shows each image at its own shape, in rows that fill the width.
- Horizontal scrolls sideways, in rows that fill the window height.
- Waterfall shows every image whole, in a fixed number of columns.
Compare the four layouts
| Layout | Crops images? | Scrolls | What the slider sets | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masonry | Yes, wide ones in narrow columns and very tall ones | Down | Item Size: the smallest column width | Scanning a big folder quickly |
| Justified | No | Down | Item Size: the smallest row height | Comparing images at an even height |
| Horizontal | Yes, very wide or very narrow ones | Sideways | Item Size, with the window height: the rows | A wide screen and a long, flat strip |
| Waterfall | No | Down | Columns: 2 to 12 | Seeing every image whole, mixed shapes |
The table is a starting point, not a rule. Switch layouts while you look at a real folder. The right one depends on your images and the task.
Masonry: a dense overview
Masonry places images in columns. Each new image goes into the shortest column, so the grid has no gaps. The Item Size slider sets the smallest column width, and refern fits as many columns as the window allows.
Image cells stay between 200 and 800 pixels tall. An image that would be shorter, such as a landscape photo in a narrow column or a panorama, gets a taller cell, and its sides are cropped. A very tall image is cropped at the top and bottom. A bigger Item Size makes columns wider, so landscape images lose less.
Use Masonry when you want a dense overview, for example when you sort a new import or look for one image you remember.
Justified: rows of even height
Justified fills each row edge to edge. Every image in a row has the same height and keeps its own shape, so nothing is cropped. Rows can have different heights. The Item Size slider sets the smallest row height.
Because images in a row line up at the same height, Justified works well for comparing compositions, poses, or lighting side by side. A row with a very wide image holds fewer images.
Horizontal: a sideways strip
Horizontal turns the grid on its side. Rows fill the height of the window, and the grid scrolls left and right. The Item Size slider and the window height decide how many rows you get and how tall they are.
Cell widths are limited, so a very wide panorama or a very narrow image is cropped. Horizontal suits a wide monitor, or a set you want to read like a filmstrip.
Waterfall: every image whole
Waterfall, added in refern 1.11.1, also uses columns. The difference is that you choose the number of columns, from 2 to 12 (4 by default), and no image is cropped. Every reference shows at its own shape.
Some details:
- Narrow windows. A column needs to be at least 80 pixels wide. If the window is too narrow for your count, refern shows fewer columns. Your saved count does not change.
- Very wide images. A wide panorama in a narrow column would be only a few pixels tall. Its cell is at least 52 pixels tall, and the image sits inside it whole, with space above and below.
- Size. There is no Item Size slider in Waterfall. Fewer columns make each image bigger.
Use Waterfall when the whole frame matters: checking compositions, reviewing crops before you use them, or browsing a mix of portraits, landscapes, and panoramas. To look at only the wide images, search aspect:panorama. The search operators guide lists the other shape filters.
Set the layout for one folder or the whole workspace
Click Grid Settings in the grid's toolbar. The menu has the layout choice, the Item Size or Columns slider, Gap, Padding, and Item caption, which adds details such as the name, dimensions, or tags under each image.
Where you open it decides what changes:
- In a folder, the menu is marked Local. Changes apply to that folder only.
- In a smart folder, changes apply to that smart folder only.
- On other pages, such as All or a tag page, the menu is marked Global. Changes set the workspace default, which every folder without its own setting follows. Settings > Grid sets the same default.
Reset to workspace default removes a folder's own setting. A suggestion: set the workspace default to the layout you use most, then give only special folders their own. For example, a folder of panoramas or comic pages can use Waterfall while the rest of the library stays in Masonry. Smart folders can keep a layout of their own too.
If you are still setting up, start with your first reference workspace, then organize your references before you fine-tune the view.
Frequently asked questions
Which grid layout shows reference images without cropping?
Justified and Waterfall keep each image's shape. Waterfall is the one built for it: every image shows whole in a fixed number of columns. Masonry and Horizontal crop images that are much taller or wider than the rest.
What is the difference between Masonry and Waterfall in refern?
Both place images in columns. Masonry fits as many columns as the Item Size allows and keeps cells between 200 and 800 pixels tall, so wide and very tall images are cropped. Waterfall uses the column count you choose, from 2 to 12, and crops nothing.
Can each folder have its own grid layout?
Yes. Grid Settings in a folder changes that folder only, and in a smart folder it changes that smart folder only. On other pages, such as All, it sets the workspace default that every folder without its own setting follows.
Why does Waterfall show fewer columns than I picked?
Each Waterfall column needs to be at least 80 pixels wide. When the window is too narrow for your count, refern shows fewer columns. Your saved count stays, and the columns come back when the window is wide enough.