Keep the drawing’s character
A child’s drawing can hold a whole story in a few lines: a family with enormous smiles, a pet with an extra leg or a house in colours nobody else would choose. Photographing it well lets you make a print while keeping the original safely at home.
The aim is to make a clear record of the artwork, including the details you want to remember. You can do this with a phone and a little care over light and camera position. You are preparing a digital file to upload; there is no need to post the original drawing to us.
Set up the artwork
Choose a clean, flat surface near a window. Lay the drawing down so that it is as flat as it comfortably allows. Do not force a fragile or heavily textured piece flat, and avoid placing anything over paint, pencil or collage elements that could be damaged.
Move loose objects out of the background. If the paper has curled corners, position small weights outside the part you intend to photograph, taking care not to mark the work. Leave a little space around the sheet in the camera view so you can straighten and crop the photograph later.
Use soft, even light
Bright indirect daylight is a useful starting point. Direct sunlight can produce strong shadows, while a lamp close to one side can make half the drawing look darker than the other. Turn off the flash for an initial photograph, especially if the work has glossy paint or reflective materials.
Look across the whole sheet before taking the picture. If your phone or body casts a shadow, change your position or move the artwork. For shiny surfaces, try a different angle to the light while keeping the camera facing the drawing squarely. A flat photograph will record the appearance of glitter or collage, but it cannot reproduce the physical texture.
Hold the camera square to the page
Clean the camera lens and hold the phone directly above the artwork, with the camera parallel to the sheet. Use the edges of the paper as a guide. If one end looks much wider than the other, the camera is tilted and the drawing will appear distorted.
Move closer rather than using heavy digital zoom, but leave enough room for the complete picture. Tap the artwork on the screen to focus and hold still as you take the photo. Take several versions so you can choose the sharpest one instead of trying to rescue a blurred file later.
Check small details before tidying up
Open the photographs and enlarge them. Can you read the name or date if these are part of the picture? Are pale pencil marks still visible? Has a reflection hidden a section of colour? Retaking the photograph now is usually easier than correcting uneven light afterwards.
Keep the full-resolution original photograph. Avoid sending it through a service that reduces the file before you upload it, and do not replace it with a screenshot. Save any cropped or edited version as a separate copy.
Crop gently and leave room for the edges
Straighten the photograph if needed and crop away the tabletop. Decide whether the paper border belongs in the finished picture. A small margin can preserve a signature or the sense of the original sheet, whereas a very tight crop may remove details that make the drawing special.
Keep colour adjustments modest. Strong filters can change a child’s chosen colours or erase faint lines. When choosing a canvas, check how the drawing fits its proportions and whether any lettering would wrap around the sides. A different canvas shape or an available plain-side option may keep more of the artwork on the front.
Choose a print that suits the file
A small drawing photographed clearly may suit a larger print, but enlarging also reveals blur, shadows and paper texture. Check the preview carefully and choose a size you are comfortable with. Keep the original artwork and the digital photograph, even after the print arrives.
Explore the options on our personalised canvas prints page. If the file is difficult to judge, our image preparation and quality guidance explains the checks we make. The goal is a print that still feels like your child’s picture, right down to its wonderfully individual details.