Deconstructing CSS Box-Shadow Properties

In CSS and design tooling, box-shadow is defined by five parameters:

box-shadow: <x-offset> <y-offset> <blur-radius> <spread-radius> <color>;

1. X-Offset: Horizontal displacement (typically 0px in UI to preserve centered lighting).
2. Y-Offset: Vertical displacement. Higher values indicate higher elevation above the canvas.
3. Blur Radius: How softly the shadow feathers out. Higher elevation equals a larger, softer blur.
4. Spread Radius: Expands or contracts the shadow footprint before blurring. Negative spread helps keep deep shadows from looking unnaturally oversized.
5. Color & Alpha: Must always use transparent alpha channels (rgba(0,0,0, 0.08)), never opaque grays.