Your photo becomes the QR code.

Yes. There is no QR code behind or around the portrait — the QR modules themselves are drawn from your photo's light and dark areas, so the face, hair and clothes emerge from the code. The three corner patterns scanners need are kept, but softened and textured to belong to the picture, and the white border (quiet zone) is preserved.

It uses error correction level H, and every portrait is decoded by a real QR reader in four conditions — sharp and high-resolution, phone-camera distance (slightly tilted, lower contrast, sensor noise), slightly blurred, and reduced size. The final image with your colours and caption is decoded too. Only then is it marked Scan Ready; if a test fails, the artwork is refined automatically and downloads stay locked. Always try it with your own phone before printing.

Yes. In “Colours & finish” pick a palette — your photo's own colours, Sunset, Ocean, Rose, Duotone, Ink & paper — or your own solid or gradient colours, a fade or spotlight background, and a soft glow. Colours are deepened just enough to keep dark marks on a light background, and the final coloured image is decode-tested before it's marked Scan Ready. Dark-background palettes and pop art are Art Only: a light-on-dark code is inverted, which many scanner apps can't read.

A portrait in the QR visual language — modules, bars and dots, with no code, frame or corner squares. Because there's no code to protect, you can go all out: colour palettes (gradients, your photo's own colours, duotone, neon or gold on black, pop art ×4), your own colours, square, rounded or round marks, spacing, glow and a caption. It looks QR-like but doesn't scan. Press “Make it scannable” to turn it into a real QR Portrait with your link, keeping the same photo and a matching look (QR blocks, Lines, Stipple or Mixed).

Yes — in Art Only, pick the “Text” look and type a name, a nickname or a short message. The words repeat line by line to draw the photo: big, bold letters in the shadows and tiny ones in the light, so the text reads through the darker areas. Choose bold sans, serif or typewriter letters, any colour palette, and download it as PNG, SVG or an animated video.

Yes. In Art Only, “Mark shape” draws the portrait with squares, rounded or round marks, diamonds, hearts, stars or any emoji. “Sizes & mockups” lays it out as an Instagram post, a story or WhatsApp Status, a phone or desktop wallpaper, or an A4 poster with a print-ready PDF — and shows it on a framed print, a phone, a mug and a T-shirt so you can see it before you share or print it.

Yes — in Art Only, “Animated reveal” makes a 5-second video of your portrait building itself: Assemble (a swarm of marks flies into the face), Scan (a scanner line reveals it), Stack (blocks fall and stack up) or Ripple (a wave from the centre). Download it as an MP4 — square for posts or 9:16 for Reels, Status and Stories — or as a small looping GIF. It's rendered on your device, so your photo is never uploaded.

Scanners only read the centre of each QR square. So each square is split into a tiny grid: the centre carries the real data and the cells around it draw your picture. On top of that, spare data bits in the code are chosen so the squares themselves follow your photo, and a small share of the error correction is spent pulling important areas — like eyes — toward the image.

No. The artwork is created entirely in your browser. Smart subject detection uses an on-device AI model (downloaded once, about 8 MB) — your photo never leaves your device. You can switch it off and crop by hand.

A clear, well-lit portrait with the face large in the frame. Front, three-quarter and side views all work — the pose is kept. Background removal works on people; for pets and objects use Fade out. For the scannable version, keep faces away from the top-left, top-right and bottom-left corners, where the QR's corner squares go.

At least 6 cm (about 2.5 inches) wide for close scanning; frames and posters can be much larger. Use the Print detail level and the hi-res PNG or print PDF for framing.

You do. You keep all rights to your photos and the artwork you create — PL Tools never sees or stores them. Only use photos you have the right to use. Flags are offered as artistic themes and imply no endorsement.