More disappointing prints are caused by how the photograph reached us than by anything that happens at the press. This is the single most useful thing on this website, and it takes two minutes to learn.
WhatsApp is quietly destroying your photo
When you send a picture through WhatsApp the normal way, it is compressed hard, commonly to about a tenth of its original file size. On a phone screen you will not notice. Printed at 12×18 inch you absolutely will: soft edges, blocky patches in skin tones and sky, and a general muddiness that cannot be undone.
The fix takes one extra tap. In WhatsApp, tap the paperclip, choose Document instead of Gallery, then browse to the image. It arrives at full resolution. Everything else stays the same.
How much resolution you actually need
| Print size | Comfortable | Absolute minimum |
|---|---|---|
| 4×6 inch | 1200×1800 | 800×1200 |
| 8×12 inch | 1600×2400 | 1000×1500 |
| 12×18 inch | 2400×3600 | 1500×2000 |
| 16×24 inch | 3200×4800 | 2000×3000 |
| 24×36 inch | 4800×7200 | 2400×3600 |
| Mug wrap | 1600×1000 | 1200×800 |
Larger prints tolerate less resolution per inch because you stand further back from them. A 24×36 inch frame viewed from six feet does not need the same pixel density as a photograph held in your hand. That is why the minimum column does not simply scale.
Where to find the original
- Your own photo: the phone's gallery holds the original. Share it as a document, or bring the phone and we will copy it.
- Someone sent it to you on WhatsApp: the copy you have is already compressed. Ask them to resend it as a document, this genuinely matters and is worth the message.
- From Instagram or Facebook: these are heavily compressed and usually capped around 1080 pixels. Fine for a keychain, poor for a wall frame. Find the original.
- An old printed photograph: bring the print itself. We scan at high resolution. A phone photograph of a photograph keeps every fault and adds glare and lens distortion on top.
Screenshots never work
A screenshot captures your screen, not the image. Even on a good phone that is roughly a quarter of what print needs, and on a laptop it is less. If the only copy you have is a screenshot, we can print it small, a keychain, a wallet card, but not a frame.
What we can and cannot fix
We can sharpen, reduce noise, correct colour casts, remove a date stamp, straighten a horizon and repair damage on a scanned print. We cannot create detail that the camera never recorded. Software that claims to "enhance" a 400-pixel image to poster size is guessing at the pixels, and on faces the guess is usually visible and unsettling.
Our online editor checks this for you: it warns before you order if the file is too small for the size you have chosen. And if we spot a problem after the order comes in, we call you before printing rather than after.
A short checklist
- Find the original file, not a forward of it
- Send it through WhatsApp as a document, or email it
- Check the pixel size against the table above
- If it is borderline, choose a smaller print, a sharp 8×12 beats a soft 16×24
- For old prints, bring the print
