---
title: "Blend Difference"
description: "Auto-inverting text using mix-blend-mode: difference — flips between white and black per-pixel against the background"
---

import { InstallCommand } from "/snippets/install-command.jsx";

## Install

<InstallCommand command="npx hyperframes add caption-blend-difference" item="caption-blend-difference" />

That writes one file: `compositions/components/caption-blend-difference.html`.

<video className="w-full aspect-video rounded-xl object-cover bg-zinc-100 dark:bg-zinc-800" src="https://static.heygen.ai/hyperframes-oss/docs/images/catalog/components/caption-blend-difference.mp4" poster="https://static.heygen.ai/hyperframes-oss/docs/images/catalog/components/caption-blend-difference.png" autoPlay muted loop playsInline />

## Source

<Accordion title="caption-blend-difference.html">

```html
<!--
  Blend Difference — auto-inverting captions via mix-blend-mode.

  Text color inverts per-pixel against whatever is behind it:
  white stays white on dark areas, flips to black on light areas.
  On color video, white inverts to the complement (blue → orange,
  red → cyan, green → magenta).

  Setup:
  1. The composition root (or a shared ancestor of both the video
     and the caption layer) MUST have `isolation: isolate` so the
     blend operates against sibling content, not the page background.
  2. Add class="blend-difference" to any caption container.
  3. Set caption text color to white. The blend mode handles the rest.

  Works on any element — divs, spans, SVG text, even images.

  Customize:
  - --blend-caption-color: base text color (default white)
  - Change blend mode via --blend-mode to 'exclusion' for a softer effect

  Variants:
  - .blend-difference         → standard per-pixel inversion
  - .blend-difference-soft    → exclusion mode, less harsh contrast
  - .blend-difference-screen  → text glows on dark, fades on light
-->

<style>
  .blend-difference {
    mix-blend-mode: var(--blend-mode, difference);
    color: var(--blend-caption-color, white);
    pointer-events: none;
  }

  .blend-difference-soft {
    mix-blend-mode: exclusion;
    color: var(--blend-caption-color, white);
    pointer-events: none;
  }

  .blend-difference-screen {
    mix-blend-mode: screen;
    color: var(--blend-caption-color, white);
    pointer-events: none;
  }
</style>

<!--
  Composition setup example:

  <div data-composition-id="root" ... style="isolation: isolate;">

    <video id="bg" data-start="0" data-duration="30" data-track-index="0"
           src="video.mp4" muted playsinline></video>

    <div class="clip blend-difference" data-start="0" data-duration="5" data-track-index="1"
         style="position: absolute; inset: 0; z-index: 10;
                display: flex; align-items: center; justify-content: center;">
      <span style="font-size: 120px; font-weight: 800; text-transform: uppercase;">
        YOUR CAPTION
      </span>
    </div>
  </div>


  Timeline integration — animate captions normally, blend mode is passive:

  tl.from(".caption", {
    y: 50, opacity: 0, duration: 0.6, ease: "expo.out"
  }, 0.2);


  Notes:
  - isolation: isolate on the composition root is REQUIRED.
    Without it, blend mode composes against the page background
    (usually white or black) and you get no inversion.
  - Works with any GSAP animation — the blend composites every frame.
  - For caption containers with multiple text elements, apply the
    class to the shared parent, not each text element individually.
  - On pure black backgrounds, white text stays white (difference
    of white and black = white). The effect is most visible when
    the background has varied luminance or color.
-->
```

</Accordion>

## Usage

Open `compositions/components/caption-blend-difference.html` and paste its contents into your composition. See the comment header in the file for detailed instructions.

{/* hf:generated-footer */}

Tagged `text` `text-effect` `effect` `blend-mode` `contrast` `inversion`.

## Related topics

- [Browse the complete Catalog](/catalog)
- [Add assets and Catalog items in Studio](/studio/assets-and-blocks)
- [Build a richer composition](/go-further)