Back in March, Google+ released a number of changes to user profiles, including a radical new look to cover photos – those large images at the top of our profile pages. They got bigger. A lot bigger. So big that you had to scroll down to see the meat of your profile, or scroll up to see the whole image. Some users loved them, but many users hated them and felt them to be unwieldy.
So, we’re changing again.
Today, for what appears to be every profile and brand page, cover photo displays have changed.
Your existing cover image is still there, but it’s taking up less space. And instead of having your information displayed on the lower third of the cover photo (your profile image, follower count, and other information), that has been moved to the left. While it looks like it’s an opaque overlay over your cover photo, your cover photo is actually displayed in its entirety to the right, and your profile image and information is displayed over a second section of your cover photo.
That means that, for most of us, there’s likely nothing that needs to be done, and I’m sure that was deliberate on Google’s part. I took a look at the cover photos for myself, my brand page, and those of my clients, and they all look fantastic. Here’s my new brand page cover photo:
Your profile page itself is still responsive, so the graphic will shrink or enlarge depending on the width and resolution of your browser window, and you may still two or three columns of posts below your image.
Also, when you scroll down, the cover photo is now completely static. Previously, it would switch to the bottom portion with your profile image overlaid and travel down the screen with you.
When it comes to hovercards, the profile card that pops up whenever you hover over someone’s name, that appears to remain unchanged. Hovering over my name still shows my full cover photo at the top with my profile image centered and overlaid at the bottom of the cover photo. It looks something like this:
There has been no official announcement from Google. If there is, or additional changes are noted, I will be sure to update you.
What do you think of the new cover photo? Does yours look OK? Do you like the smaller version, or were you getting attached to the giant images we had before?
UPDATE: Reader +Nathan Davis pointed out that if you’re sharing your mobile location, so that it appears on your profile card, and you mouseover that location, your cover photo is replaced with a Google Map of where you’re at! How cool is that? Thanks Nathan!