Photo guide · Field notes
The photos that make their tiny chibi self look like them.
Three required, up to three extra. Your phone is fine. 2 minutes to read.
When the markings are clear, we're not guessing — and guessing is how a figurine ends up looking like any dog but yours.
Front
Side
Back
Three photos we need — front, side and back.
-
1Required
Front
Facing the camera, whole face visible. This is where the expression comes from — the look that's unmistakably them.
-
2Required
Side
A full side profile, standing or sitting. This gives our artisans the body shape, posture and tail.
-
3Required
Back
From behind, tail included. Markings don't stop at the face — this is how we get the whole coat right.
The more angles we have, the less we have to guess.
Not a clean back shot? The closest angle you have works — a person reviews every set.
From your phoneStraight from your phone is fine — no need to shrink them first (up to 50MB each).
Where your photos goYour photos go to the team making your piece — we never sell them or post them on their own. Filming is a separate box in the wizard: tick it and a short clip of your piece being made may appear on our channels, and it may show the reference photos you sent next to it; untick it and your order stays off camera.
Up to three close-ups — the details we paint from.
Optional-
The face
Closer than your front shot — close enough to see the eye color you'll pick in the wizard.
-
The markings
Tuxedo bibs, merle patches, the M on a tabby's forehead — matched to your photos patch by patch, not pulled from a template. One photo, straight on, is enough.
-
Haircuts & quirks
Fresh from the groomer or shaggy? Ear up or ear down? The scar, the collar charm, the one white sock — the thing everyone notices first. Photograph it, or tell us in the notes box: that box exists for exactly this.
Three rules that make every photo count.
Tap a photo to fix it-
Rule 1Natural light
Near a window or outside beats flash every time. Flash flattens fur color — daylight shows the real coat.
-
Rule 2Their eye level
Crouch down to their height. Top-down shots distort the proportions we build from — eye level keeps them looking like themselves.
-
Rule 3Face sharp and visible
Face in focus, nothing across it. Sharp-but-plain beats blurry-but-cute — we can add charm, we can't add detail.
Dark coats — the hardest to photograph, and what to do about it.
Black, charcoal, dark brindle — dogs and cats have the same problem: the camera reads the coat as one flat shape, and the face disappears into it.
How to shoot it
- Find daylight. Outside on an overcast day, or right beside a window.
- No flash. It bounces off the coat and flattens everything behind it.
- Keep the light in front of them, not behind. Backlight eats the eyes, the nose and the mouth — the three things we build the face from.
- Add one close-up of the face, closer than feels necessary.
How we paint it
Black dogs and black cats aren't painted flat black: warm browns and a soft sheen keep the eyes and nose readable under a lamp — built up by hand against your photos, layer by layer.
No markings?
Then it's the grey on the muzzle, the collar, the set of the ears, the way they hold their head — we work from those.
Questions we get a lot
Q1What if I only have old photos?
Old photos are usually enough. What we need is a clear look at the face and where the markings start and stop — not a studio shot.
If they've passed, older photos work fine. When we ask their age, tell us — we'll take extra care.
Q2What if they won't sit still?
Normal. Send the best angles you can get, and use the notes box to tell us what the photos got wrong — the ear that's actually up, the patch that never photographs right, the collar they really wear.
Q3Buying this as a gift?
You can't exactly ask their dog to pose. If you can, ask for the originals from their camera roll — an Instagram screenshot has less detail than the photo behind it. Front and side matter most; for the back, the closest angle they have works.
Q4What if I'm not sure my photos are good enough?
Order anyway — you're covered twice. A person reviews every set before anything is made — if a photo won't work, we email you and say which of yours to use instead. Then you see a color 3D preview before anything is printed, and you can cancel for a full refund any time before you approve your preview.
The less we have to guess, the more it looks like them.
Already uploading? Head back to your order — your photos are still there.