A QR code to share your party photos

How a photo-sharing QR code works

A QR code is nothing magic. It is a web address drawn as tiny squares. When a guest points their phone’s camera at it, the phone reads the address and offers to open it. On most recent phones there is nothing to install: the camera is enough.

What the guest sees next depends on where the address leads. It can be a page where they send their photos, or an album to browse. The whole guide rests on that idea: the QR code is only the front door. Its quality matters less than what is behind it.

1. The guest scans with their phone’s camera.
2. A page opens in the browser, with no app to install.
3. They pick their photos and send them.
4. You receive them in the same place as everyone else’s.

Three ways to go about it

Behind the QR code, three broad families of solutions exist. None is right for everyone.

A link to a shared album

The QR code opens an album you created in a photo service. It is free and easy for you. However, depending on the service, the guest may have to sign in to an account before adding anything, and that is where many give up. Test with a phone that does not have your account.

An upload page

The QR code opens a page made for sending photos: the guest picks, sends, done. No account, no app. The photos arrive in a space you control. It is the shortest path for the guest. EventSlide offers this, like other services.

A photo wall

The same principle as the upload page, with a bonus: photos appear live on a screen, once you approve them. Guests see their photo show up and want to send another. You need a screen and someone to moderate. Our photo wall guide explains how to go about it for a wedding; for a birthday or a party with friends, the birthday party photo wall page gives examples.

If you are organising a wedding, our guide How to collect all your wedding photos compares these solutions with other methods.

Where to put the QR code, and what size

The best spots

• On every table. It is the most effective. A tent card, a card leaning on a glass or a small sign: guests have it under their eyes when they have their phone in hand.
• At the entrance. People arrive, put their things down, look for something to do. A poster with the code and one short sentence, at eye level.
• At the bar and near the buffet. The places where people wait.
• On the screen. If you have a photo wall, the code shows there too: someone arriving late sees it straight away.
• On the invitation. The guest knows before arriving that they can send their photos.

What size to print

A practical rule: a code scans from about ten times its width. A 5 cm code scans from about 50 cm, a 20 cm code from about 2 metres.

• On a table: 6 to 8 cm per side at least, a little more if it lies flat and is scanned at arm’s length.
• A poster at the entrance: 12 to 15 cm per side, seen from 1 to 1.5 metres.
• A sign read from further away: 20 cm or more.

So that it reads well

• Keep a white margin around the code, at least four small squares wide. Without it, some phones fail.
• Dark on light. Avoid pale colours, photos behind it and inverted codes (white on black): they read badly.
• Do not stretch it. A distorted code no longer reads. Keep it square.
• Matt paper. Glossy paper reflects chandelier light, and scanning fails.
• Print it sharp. A blurry code taken from a tiny screenshot is a false friend. Use an image of a decent size.

What to tell your guests

A QR code without explanation is a riddle. A code with a sentence is an invitation. Keep your message short, with no technical words and an action verb.

Say why, too: “We want all your photos!” works better than “Please send your photos.” And say what happens next: on the screen, in a gallery, with a link after the party. Guests like to know where their photos go.

Test before the party

A test takes ten minutes. A failure on the night takes the whole party. Do it the day before, or that morning, on site if possible.

• Scan the printed code (not the one on the computer screen) with two different phones, an iPhone and an Android if possible
• Scan from the real distance: at arm’s length, seated at the table
• Send a real photo from a phone that is not yours and does not have your account
• Check the photo actually arrives where you expected
• Test on mobile data alone, then on the venue’s Wi-Fi
• Read the address written under the code: no typo, no extra space

Pitfalls to avoid

The network

A QR code that opens a page that will not load is worse than no code at all. In some venues, thick walls cut mobile data, and the Wi-Fi is overloaded when everyone connects. Check on site. With EventSlide, an upload made with no network is queued on the phone and retried afterwards, but that does not replace a test.

The link that expires

Some free generators create a “dynamic” code: the code goes through their server, and may stop working when the trial ends or you stop paying. Printing 40 cards with a dead code is bad. Prefer a code that contains the address directly, and note the end date of the address itself.

Privacy

• Do not post the code on social media. It opens an upload page: anyone could add photos. Keep it on paper, at the party.
• Tell your guests. Who sees the photos, how long they are kept, how to have one removed. EventSlide shows this information to the guest before their first photo.
• Think about location. A phone often records where the photo was taken, sometimes the guest’s home. EventSlide removes GPS position and device data as soon as each photo arrives; check that the tool you choose does the same.
• Keep control. If photos appear on a screen, it is better to approve before: that is the principle of moderation.
• Where are the photos? Look at where the service hosts them. Ours are in France, with OVHcloud, with no ads and no resale.

For more on what we do with photos, read our privacy page.

And after the party?

The QR code did its job. What is left is to collect the photos and give them back to the guests.

1. Take down the posters and do not leave the upload address lying around: nobody needs to add photos any more.
2. Download everything the next day or within the week, at full resolution, ideally as a single ZIP file.
3. Share back. A gallery link, sent to everyone, lets each person find the others’ photos. With EventSlide, this link can expire on a date you choose, be protected by a password, and be switched off at any time.
4. Say thank you. A message with the link, a favourite photo: a small gesture, and guests will remember having taken part.
5. Keep two copies. One copy is not a backup.

A party coming up? See how it works, or read the guide How to collect all your wedding photos for the other methods.