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Newspaper · Photo · 4 × 2 widget

Newspaper photo widget

By the WidgetCraft team · Updated November 13, 2026

A newspaper photo widget frames a favorite picture with a short caption. Front-page layouts with a masthead, columns and black rules. This page gives the exact colors, type settings and layers, with a preview drawn from the same values.

Newspaper photo widget design preview: Front-page layouts with a masthead, columns and black rules. — Design preview drawn from the recipe below. Example values are shown; your widget uses live data.

What a newspaper photo widget shows

A photo widget puts a person, place or pet on the home screen without making it the wallpaper. The frame, the crop and the caption decide whether it feels designed or just pasted in.

You pick the picture with Android's photo picker, so WidgetCraft needs no storage permission, and the photo stays on your phone. It is a free element.

How the newspaper style shapes it

Newspaper widgets copy a front page: a bold serif headline, a dateline in small capitals, double rules and tight columns in black on newsprint.

Photos: Convert photos to black and white and add an italic caption.
Text: Write the title as a headline in bold serif and add a dateline in small capitals.

Newspaper photo widget recipe

Layer	Settings
Canvas	360 × 200, background #F1EEE6, corner radius 0
Layout	caption on the left, photo on the right
Image	190 × 160, corner radius 0, crop to fill
Text	place label, size 12, color #666159
Text	caption in two lines, Playfair Display, size 24, color #111111
Shape	rule 28 × 3 in #111111
Text	date, size 12, color #666159
Ornament	a masthead rule at the top made of a 4-point bar with a 1-point line beneath it, and a 1-point rule along the bottom
Font	Playfair Display (import the font file), or the built-in Serif
Home screen size	4 × 2 cells

Newspaper color palette

Newsprint #F1EEE6Background
Fold grey #E4DFD3Surface and tracks
Ink black #111111Text
Halftone #666159Labels
Ink black #111111Accent

How to make a newspaper photo widget in WidgetCraft

Create a widget and open Canvas. Set the size to 360 × 200, the background to #F1EEE6 and the corner radius to 0.
Tap Add and choose Image. Pick your photo, size it to 190 × 160 and set crop to fill.
Set the image corner radius to 0. Drag the crop so the subject is centered.
Add a Text caption at size 24 in #111111 using Playfair Display.
Add a small place label above and a date below, both at size 12 in #666159, with a short rule in #111111 between them.
Add the newspaper ornament with Shape layers and move them below the other layers in Layers: a masthead rule at the top made of a 4-point bar with a 1-point line beneath it, and a 1-point rule along the bottom.
Tap Save, then Add to home screen and resize the widget on your launcher if needed.

Everything in this recipe works in the free version.

Tips for newspaper photo widgets

Add a thick rule and a thin rule together as a masthead line.
Keep everything black on newsprint.
Choose a photo whose subject sits in the middle; widgets crop the edges.
Portrait photos suit 2 × 2 or tall widgets better than wide ones.
Very large images make widgets slow; let the app resize the photo when asked.
Do not use color except one dark red word.
Do not round the corners.

Questions about the newspaper photo widget

What size is a newspaper photo widget?

It is designed for 4 × 2 home screen cells on a 360 × 200 canvas. You can resize it on the launcher and the design scales in proportion.

Which colors does it use?

Newsprint (#F1EEE6) for the background, Ink black (#111111) for the main text, Halftone (#666159) for labels and Ink black (#111111) as the accent.

Is it free to make?

Yes. Photo widgets use free features in WidgetCraft, and the newspaper styling is free too.

What else is this style called?

People also search for news style photo widget, headline photo widget, print photo widget. They describe the same look as this newspaper photo widget.

More newspaper widgets

Photo widgets in other styles