Questions,
answered properly.

One clear, well-lit photograph with a good view of the face. Daylight near a window beats a flash every time, and a three-quarter angle reads better than a straight-on shot. Phone photos are completely fine — resolution matters far less than light and sharpness. The photo guide goes through this properly, including what to do with old prints and low-resolution files.

Usually, yes. Grain, faded colour and creases are workable; a face lost in shadow, a face too small in the frame, or a face blurred by movement is not, because the detail was never captured in the first place. The only reliable way to know is to upload it and look at the preview, which costs nothing.

Yes, and it is one of the most common reasons people come here. An older or imperfect photograph is usually still enough. Take as long as you need over it — nothing is charged until you have a portrait you are happy with, and there is no expiry on deciding.

Yes. The requirement is that every face is clear in the source photograph — a shot where one subject is sharp and the other is turned away produces a portrait where one is right and the other is a guess. If you cannot get everyone looking at once, upload separate clear photos of each and say they belong together. Many people also order two portraits at the same size and hang them as a pair, which often looks better than crowding both into one frame.

Four new portraits every 24 hours. The window rolls rather than resetting at midnight, so each slot becomes available again exactly a day after it was used, and the page shows you the real time rather than an estimate. Editing a portrait you already have does not use a slot.

Edits are free and the ceiling is set high enough that ordinary use never reaches it. Ask for warmer light, a calmer background, a wider crop, a different style, a softer expression — in plain words, as many rounds as it takes. Most people settle within two or three passes.

Say what is off and it is reworked, free. Likeness is usually a source-photo problem rather than a style problem, so trying a second photograph is often faster than a fourth edit of the first. Nothing is charged until you are satisfied with what is on screen.

Try several — switching costs nothing and takes a minute. As a rough guide, the darker styles suit a subject with strong features and a room with warm lighting, while the lighter, more open styles suit pale coats, children and anything hanging in daylight. Look at the portrait next to the wall it will hang on, not on its own.

Framed canvases reach US addresses in about 8–10 days including production, plain canvases in 12–15, and fine art prints in 8–12. Digital downloads arrive by email immediately. Delivery is free everywhere, with no minimum. Regional detail is on the delivery page.

Three sizes: 12 × 16 inches (30 × 40 cm), 18 × 24 (45 × 60) and 24 × 32 (60 × 80). The middle size is the most common choice and suits a wall above a sideboard or a bed. The largest is for above a fireplace or at the end of a corridor. Cut a rectangle of newspaper to size and tape it up before deciding — going one size too small is the regret people report, never the other way round.

It is one of the most common reasons for an order, and the practical answer is to allow two weeks for a framed canvas and three for a plain one, more in December. If the date has already passed that window, buy the digital download and print it locally — the file is large enough to print well at any of our sizes. We do not currently send to a third-party address with a gift note, so most people ship it to themselves and give it in person.

Custom pieces are made for one order, so there is no general change-of-mind return once production has started — which is why previews and edits are free beforehand. If the piece arrives damaged, does not match the preview you approved, or never arrives, we remake and reship free, or refund you if you would rather. Full detail is on the returns and remakes page.

It stays private to you. Uploads and unpurchased previews are deleted automatically 72 hours after they are made, and your photographs are never used to train anything. If you order, the finished artwork is kept so it can be reprinted or reordered; the original photograph still goes. The privacy page sets out who processes what.

Use it however you like for yourself: print it, frame it, set it as a wallpaper, send it to family, print it on a card. You hold the rights to the photograph you uploaded and you are free to use the portrait made from it personally. What we ask you not to do is resell it as stock or licence it on to someone else.

Yes. A receipt is emailed automatically with every order. If you need one with a company name, an address or a tax number on it, reply to that email with the details and we will reissue it. For business purchases, ask before you order where possible — reissuing after the fact is straightforward but slower.

Email support@burnishedportraits.com with your order number if you have one. Replies come within two working days, and you are welcome to write in whichever language you are comfortable in. For anything about a damaged or missing parcel, attaching a photograph in the first message usually saves a round trip.