.. _pylab_examples-legend_demo:

pylab_examples example code: legend_demo.py
===========================================



.. plot:: /home/mdboom/Work/builds/matplotlib/doc/mpl_examples/pylab_examples/legend_demo.py

::

    """
    Demo of the legend function with a few features.
    
    In addition to the basic legend, this demo shows a few optional features:
    
        * Custom legend placement.
        * A keyword argument to a drop-shadow.
        * Setting the background color.
        * Setting the font size.
        * Setting the line width.
    """
    import numpy as np
    import matplotlib.pyplot as plt
    
    
    # Example data
    a = np.arange(0,3, .02)
    b = np.arange(0,3, .02)
    c = np.exp(a)
    d = c[::-1]
    
    # Create plots with pre-defined labels.
    # Alternatively, you can pass labels explicitly when calling `legend`.
    fig, ax = plt.subplots()
    ax.plot(a, c, 'k--', label='Model length')
    ax.plot(a, d, 'k:', label='Data length')
    ax.plot(a, c+d, 'k', label='Total message length')
    
    # Now add the legend with some customizations.
    legend = ax.legend(loc='upper center', shadow=True)
    
    # The frame is matplotlib.patches.Rectangle instance surrounding the legend.
    frame = legend.get_frame()
    frame.set_facecolor('0.90')
    
    # Set the fontsize
    for label in legend.get_texts():
        label.set_fontsize('large')
    
    for label in legend.get_lines():
        label.set_linewidth(1.5)  # the legend line width
    plt.show()
    

Keywords: python, matplotlib, pylab, example, codex (see :ref:`how-to-search-examples`)