
Good Light
Make sure to have a good source of natural light, outdoor lighting is the best!
Sunny or cloudy it’s the same. No flash.

No Wrinkles
Try also not to wrinkle the paper and keep the paper nice and flat for your photo.

Steady Hands
Make sure the picture is in focus and sharp!
The sharper the picture, the better the final engraved gift will look!

Good Resolution
Smart phones have cameras with really good resolution.
Use the original picture not one that has been texted as that will have resolution removed from it.

Nice & Close
Make sure the picture is taken nice and close, don’t forget to stay in focus!

Straight
Get the photo from straight on, not from an angle.
Tips for Choosing a Photo
Size matters! If you have a small thumbnail image it will be very blurry when enlarged and there is really nothing we can do to fix the blurry look of a small, low-resolution photo.
Sometimes an image looks nice on a small phone screen, but when you view it on a regular monitor you can see that it really isn’t in focus.
We will look at them on our giant graphics monitor and let you know which one would make the best engraving. We would be happy to help you choose before you place your order, as switching photos mid-order could result in additional photo editing fees.
Check for glare spots, reflections, and shadows. We can only do so much to edit an image of your dog with the shape of a hand holding a phone in the middle of the dog’s face. Consider taking the photo to an office supply or mailbox store and having the photo scanned.
Please leave the editing to us – we will probably do a better job of removing the photo background or fixing photo issues while retaining as much photo detail as possible.
We can work with images of varying quality and we will do our best to enhance and improve images to make the very best etching as possible, but sending a great image to begin with is the best-case scenario.
Need Help Finding the Perfect Option?
We have a wide variety of products and services that we offer to help provide you with the perfect gift, memorial, award, or custom engraving. If you need help making a selection or have questions about our offerings, please reach out to us!