When does the UINavigationBar shadow show? (iOS 6)

Question

I am using a navigation bar with a custom background image. When I wanted to add a custom shadow image, I was surprised to find that even the default shadow image is not visible.

iOS 6 introduced an automatic drop shadow on UINavigationBars, which I expected to see. The example project from http://www.raywenderlich.com/21703/user-interface-customization-in-ios-6 demonstrates this.

However, creating a new project from Xcode’s Master-Detail template does not show the shadow.

When exactly is the shadow shown, and when is it not?

Answer 1

IOS 6 automatic drop shadow is shown by default. If you want to disable/hide this shadow you can try this:

[[UINavigationBar appearance]setShadowImage:[[UIImage alloc] init]];

What I have noticed is that, if I copy/paste a viewController from one project to a new one, the UINavigationBar shadow (sometimes) it's not shown. Replacing the copied viewController with a new one solves the problem... (maybe your case)

Answer 2

I had the same problem on a project upgraded from iOS5, but only on navigation controllers inserted in the pre-iOS6 Xcode versions. Removing them and replacing them with new ones in the most recent version of Xcode (4.6) fixed the problem.