diff --git a/src/Pennington.Beck/BeckZoomHeadContributor.cs b/src/Pennington.Beck/BeckZoomHeadContributor.cs
index ea99d6b9..b57bb616 100644
--- a/src/Pennington.Beck/BeckZoomHeadContributor.cs
+++ b/src/Pennington.Beck/BeckZoomHeadContributor.cs
@@ -7,7 +7,8 @@ namespace Pennington.Beck;
 /// <c>&lt;script&gt;</c> block contributed to every page head while <see cref="BeckOptions.Zoom"/>
 /// is on. The script is a single delegated click listener on <c>document</c> (so it survives
 /// Blazor re-renders and covers every embed on the page) that opens a native
-/// <c>&lt;dialog class="beck-lightbox"&gt;</c> holding a clone of the clicked diagram's SVG —
+/// <c>&lt;dialog class="beck-lightbox"&gt;</c> holding a clone of the clicked diagram's SVG on an
+/// opaque theme-surface panel —
 /// cloning is safe because the SVG's animation and theming are hash-scoped CSS classes that apply
 /// to the copy too, and its <c>url(#id)</c> refs still resolve to the original's defs, which stay
 /// in the document. The dialog is built per-open and removed on close.
@@ -32,7 +33,12 @@ public Task ContributeAsync(HeadContext context, HeadBuilder head)
     /// <summary>
     /// The zoom button/lightbox CSS and the dialog-opening script, emitted verbatim. Colors ride
     /// the host's <c>--color-base-*</c> ramp with slate fallbacks, and dark mode keys off
-    /// <c>[data-theme="dark"]</c> — the same signal the Beck SVG itself uses.
+    /// <c>[data-theme="dark"]</c> — the same signal the Beck SVG itself uses. The backdrop washes
+    /// the page out (blur + desaturate) behind a scrim mixed from the ramp's ends rather than the
+    /// SVG's own surface token, which is scoped to the per-diagram class inside each SVG and
+    /// doesn't resolve on a <c>&lt;dialog&gt;</c> in <c>&lt;body&gt;</c>. <c>@starting-style</c>
+    /// gives the <c>::backdrop</c> — newly rendered on every open — a from-state to transition
+    /// out of; the dialog is removed on close, so the cue is entrance-only.
     /// </summary>
     internal const string Assets = """
         <style data-head="beck:zoom">
@@ -45,10 +51,16 @@ public Task ContributeAsync(HeadContext context, HeadBuilder head)
         @media (hover:none){.beck-zoom{opacity:1}}
         .beck-lightbox{border:0;padding:0;margin:auto;background:transparent;width:100vw;height:100vh;max-width:100vw;max-height:100vh;overflow:hidden;cursor:zoom-out}
         .beck-lightbox[open]{display:flex;align-items:center;justify-content:center}
-        .beck-lightbox::backdrop{background:rgb(0 0 0/.25);backdrop-filter:blur(6px);-webkit-backdrop-filter:blur(6px)}
-        .beck-lightbox .beck-svg{width:auto;height:auto;max-width:94vw;max-height:90vh}
-        .beck-lightbox-close{position:fixed;top:18px;right:18px;display:flex;align-items:center;justify-content:center;width:38px;height:38px;padding:0;cursor:pointer;border:1px solid rgb(255 255 255/.25);border-radius:9999px;background:rgb(0 0 0/.35);color:#fff;transition:background-color .15s}
-        .beck-lightbox-close:hover{background:rgb(0 0 0/.55)}
+        .beck-lightbox::backdrop{background-color:color-mix(in srgb,var(--color-base-50,#ffffff) 55%,transparent);backdrop-filter:blur(12px) saturate(0.1);-webkit-backdrop-filter:blur(12px) saturate(0.1);transition:background-color .18s ease-out,backdrop-filter .18s ease-out,-webkit-backdrop-filter .18s ease-out}
+        @starting-style{.beck-lightbox[open]::backdrop{background-color:transparent;backdrop-filter:blur(0) saturate(1);-webkit-backdrop-filter:blur(0) saturate(1)}}
+        [data-theme="dark"] .beck-lightbox::backdrop{background-color:color-mix(in srgb,var(--color-base-950,#0d1117) 60%,transparent)}
+        .beck-lightbox-panel{display:flex;padding:24px;border-radius:16px;background:var(--color-base-50,#f8fafc);border:1px solid var(--color-base-200,#e2e8f0);box-shadow:0 25px 80px -12px rgb(0 0 0/.35)}
+        [data-theme="dark"] .beck-lightbox-panel{background:var(--color-base-950,#0d1117);border-color:var(--color-base-800,#1e293b)}
+        .beck-lightbox .beck-svg{width:auto;height:auto;max-width:calc(94vw - 48px);max-height:calc(90vh - 48px)}
+        .beck-lightbox-close{position:fixed;top:18px;right:18px;display:flex;align-items:center;justify-content:center;width:38px;height:38px;padding:0;cursor:pointer;border:1px solid var(--color-base-300,#cbd5e1);border-radius:9999px;background:color-mix(in srgb,var(--color-base-50,#f8fafc) 88%,transparent);color:var(--color-base-500,#64748b);transition:color .15s,border-color .15s}
+        .beck-lightbox-close:hover{color:var(--color-base-900,#0f172a);border-color:var(--color-base-400,#94a3b8)}
+        [data-theme="dark"] .beck-lightbox-close{border-color:var(--color-base-700,#334155);background:color-mix(in srgb,var(--color-base-900,#0f172a) 88%,transparent);color:var(--color-base-400,#94a3b8)}
+        [data-theme="dark"] .beck-lightbox-close:hover{color:var(--color-base-50,#f8fafc);border-color:var(--color-base-600,#475569)}
         </style>
         <script data-head="beck:zoom">
         (function () {
@@ -63,7 +75,13 @@ function openLightbox(embed) {
             // Drop the engine's inline sizing (max-width cap + height:auto) so the lightbox
             // CSS controls the box: natural size, shrunk only when it exceeds the viewport.
             clone.removeAttribute('style');
-            dialog.appendChild(clone);
+            // The panel gives the diagram an opaque theme surface so it reads solid against
+            // the washed-out backdrop; the surface lives here, not on the <svg>, because
+            // padding on an auto-sized SVG box skews its intrinsic-ratio sizing.
+            var panel = document.createElement('div');
+            panel.className = 'beck-lightbox-panel';
+            panel.appendChild(clone);
+            dialog.appendChild(panel);
             var close = document.createElement('button');
             close.type = 'button';
             close.className = 'beck-lightbox-close';