The One Photo Rule (And When To Break It)

The rule, in one line

Send the most readable photo you own, not the most dramatic one. Drama can be added later with a costume, a prop or a base. The face has to be clear first, because the face is the only part we cannot invent.

What “clear” actually means

• One person, facing the camera. A three-quarter angle is fine; the back of a head is not.
• Even light. Open shade, an overcast day or a window on a cloudy morning. Avoid a single hard flash and avoid half the face in shadow.
• Eyes visible. No sunglasses, no deep hat brim, no heavy filter that has already smoothed the skin.
• Reasonable resolution. A normal phone photo is plenty. A screenshot of a screenshot, or a picture forwarded four times, usually is not.
• Natural expression. The one where they are half-laughing at whoever is holding the phone is almost always the right one.

When to break it

There are three good reasons to send something imperfect. First, a memorial piece: the only photo that exists may be a scan from decades ago, and we would rather work with it than ask for another. Second, a group photo where the person you want is standing at the edge — we can isolate and rebuild one figure. Third, a pet that will not sit still, where the best frame is slightly soft but the expression is perfect.

In all three cases we will tell you honestly what we can and cannot recover before you approve the proof.

A thirty-second checklist before you send

1. Is the face bigger than a thumbnail?
2. Are both eyes visible and open?
3. Is the light even, with no hard shadow across the nose?
4. Is the expression one you would actually want on a shelf?

Four yeses and you are done. Anything less and we will suggest a fix — the design proof exists precisely so nothing is printed until the face is right.