📷 Tips for a Great Card Photo

A better photo means a more accurate grade. Follow these quick tips before you submit.

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Use bright, even lighting

Shoot near a window on an overcast day, or under a soft overhead light. Avoid dim rooms — if the photo looks dark to your eye, it will be rejected. Direct flash creates glare; diffused light is best.

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Shoot straight down from above

Hold your camera or phone directly over the card, parallel to the surface. Slight tilt is fine — the system corrects it — but steep side angles will be rejected. Lay the card flat on a hard surface instead of holding it.

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Plain, contrasting background

Place the card on a solid surface — grey, white, or dark — that contrasts with the card border. Busy patterns, textured fabric, or matching colors make it harder to detect the card edges.

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Tap to focus on the card center

On a phone, tap the center of the card on your screen before pressing the shutter. Keep the camera still — motion blur is one of the most common rejection reasons.

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Let the card fill most of the frame

Leave a small margin of background visible on all four sides. All four corners of the card must be visible. Don't crop flush to the edges before uploading — the system crops automatically.

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Remove sleeves and toploaders

Plastic adds glare and softens the image. Always photograph the bare card. For foil or holographic cards, angle the light slightly to one side to distribute reflections away from the card art.

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Front face only — one card per photo

We grade the front of the card only. The back is not analyzed. Submit one card per photo — bulk grading accepts multiple photos, but each must contain a single card.

🚫 Photos rejected automatically (no tokens charged)

✅ Quick checklist

Bright, even lighting
Camera directly above
Plain background visible
All four corners in frame
Card in sharp focus
No glare over card art
Sleeve / toploader removed
One card per photo