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Just how transparent are your QR codes.

And I do mean literally as can be seen below. It's a bit like hiding QR codes in plain sight.

QR Code Transparency

Transparency allows the QR codes to blend in with the surrounding and not being 'so loud'. On the left is a normal code with the standard black and white colours as all good bar-codes should be. As we move to the middle both the background and foreground colours have been adjusted with opacity and the transparency allow the background to 'shine' through. The image on the right is a perfect test pattern as I found that only the latest versions of QR code readers will decode it.

QR Code Opacity

Did you know that most of the on-line QR code generators of QR4 and 0D0A support transparency and opacity.

Making transparent QR codes.
Each QR Code generator has a colour management components that resembles the image below. Here the current background and foreground colours are shown.

QR Code Colour Manager

By clicking on the colour button a colour dialog display is opened and here is where the fun begins.

QR Code Colour Panel

At the bottom of the panel the radio-button "A" (Alpha channel) should be selected this exposes the transparency and opacity settings which can be typed in as a percentage or the slider can be used to make it more or less transparent. The checkerboard pattern shows how transparent or opaque you colour is. Basically that is all there is too it. One golden tip when working with transparency and QR Codes is test, test, test and test again. Also of interest may be the previous article on working with colours and QR codes, before you get stuck into transparent codes.

If you have any questions regarding the use of colour and transparency with QR codes, please contact us.

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Posted by: jeroen Steeman
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Categories: QR Code Generator | QR Codes
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QR4 is maintained by Jeroen Steeman - Geleenhof 42, 5655 AH Eindhoven - Tel: +31 (0)6 130 33 743