Frequently Asked Questions

HoloPath accepts static images (JPG, PNG, WebP, BMP), animated GIFs, and video files (MP4, WebM, MOV, M4V, OGG). All files must be under 15 MB. Videos can be of any length (longer videos use more memory). Video format support depends on your browser — MP4 and WebM have the widest compatibility.

Yes, completely free. No account, no sign-up, no watermarks, no limits on downloads. The generated hologram GIFs are yours to use however you like, including commercially.

No. All processing happens entirely in your browser using client-side JavaScript. Your files are never uploaded to any server. They are read locally, processed in your browser's memory, and the generated hologram GIF is created on your device. See our Privacy Policy for full details.

A hologram pyramid is a transparent four-sided pyramid (usually plastic or glass) placed point-down on a flat screen. The screen shows the same image in four orientations — top, bottom, left, right — each one reflected by a face of the pyramid toward the centre, creating the illusion of a 3D object floating inside. This is technically a Pepper's Ghost effect applied in four directions simultaneously.

You need four identical trapezoid-shaped pieces of clear, flat plastic. Old CD jewel cases work well. The standard dimensions for a smartphone-sized pyramid are roughly 1cm top edge, 6cm bottom edge, and 3.5cm height. Cut four pieces, tape them together into a truncated pyramid shape, place it point-down on your phone screen, play a HoloPath "Pyramid 360°" GIF in fullscreen, and dim the room lights. There are many YouTube tutorials with exact templates.

A hologram fan (also called a POV or persistence-of-vision display) is a device with LED-equipped blades that spin at high speed. Because the LEDs change colour faster than your eye can track, you see a floating image instead of the spinning blades. Content needs to be circular, centred on a black background — which is exactly what HoloPath's "Hologram Fan" layout produces. Most fan displays accept MP4 or GIF files via SD card or Wi-Fi.

Pepper's Ghost is an optical illusion from the 1800s that's still widely used today. A piece of glass or clear acrylic is angled at 45° between the viewer and a hidden screen. The screen shows a bright image on a black background, which the glass reflects toward the viewer — making it appear to float in mid-air. HoloPath's "Pepper's Ghost" layout positions the hologram in the lower-centre of a 16:9 black canvas, optimised for this setup.

Pyramid 360° places four copies of the hologram (top, bottom, left, right) for 4-sided pyramids — viewable from all angles. Pyramid 270° places three copies for 3-sided showcase displays common in retail and museum settings, where the back is against a wall and you view from three sides.

GIFs are universally supported — they autoplay and loop on every device, browser, and platform without needing a video player. This is important for hologram pyramids, which need seamless looping. For hologram fan displays that prefer MP4, you can convert the GIF to MP4 using free tools like ffmpeg or online converters.

For smartphone hologram pyramids, 400–512px is usually sufficient. For tablet displays or hologram fans, 600–800px gives better detail. Higher resolution means larger file sizes and longer processing times. The output resolution refers to the hologram image size before it's placed into the layout canvas.

Classic — traditional cyan/green hologram with moderate scan lines and glow. Cyberpunk — high-contrast magenta with strong glitch and chromatic aberration. Ghost — faded, transparent look with heavy flicker and low saturation. Glitch — aggressive horizontal displacement and noise. Matrix — green-tinted with prominent scan lines and grid overlay. All presets are starting points — every parameter can be adjusted individually.

Each frame goes through a 13-stage rendering pipeline (edge detection, hue colorisation, scan lines, glow, glitch, noise, chromatic aberration, etc.), then gets composed into the chosen layout — all running in your browser using JavaScript and Canvas 2D. A 10-second video at 10fps produces 100 frames, each requiring full pipeline processing. Lower resolution and fewer frames will speed things up. Performance depends on your device's CPU capabilities.