$9.99

Memorial photo collage: a whole life in pictures, for the service and for always

Q: How many photos do I need for a memorial collage?

On the usual 24 x 36 inch poster, around 110 photos lets each one print about two inches across. It works with as few as 55 at that size, and with smaller prints you need fewer: around 70 on a 20 x 30 inch print. If you have hundreds, choose a bigger print.

Q: What size should a funeral photo collage be?

24 x 36 inches is the most common, because it stands well on an easel and can be seen from across the room. A 20 x 30 inch print suits a smaller gathering or a table display, and 30 x 40 inches suits a large service or a lifetime of photos.

When someone you love is gone, the photos are suddenly everywhere: in shoeboxes, in old albums, on a dozen phones across the family. A memorial photo collage gathers them into one poster, with their name across the top, their dates beneath it, and a lifetime of moments around one favourite photo in the middle. It stands on an easel at the funeral or the celebration of life, where people gather around it and tell the stories behind each picture. Afterwards it comes home and goes on the wall.

In Loving Memory photo collage poster for Margaret Ellis, 1941 to 2026, framed above a walnut sideboard — Margaret and her dates are a sample. You type your loved one's name and your own words in Canva.

In Loving Memory photo collage poster in a black frame on a living room wall — Margaret and her dates are a sample. You type your loved one's name and your own words in Canva.

Design the memorial poster free

New to Canva? Watch the how-to video or read the step-by-step guide.

Three ways to remember them

The In Loving Memory poster: "In Loving Memory" or their name across the top, their name and dates beneath it, and one large photo in the centre surrounded by all the others. The one most families choose for the service.
A quiet gallery wall, with white borders: Every photo with its own white edge, like a wall of framed prints. Calm and gentle, and it makes a mix of old scanned photos and new phone pictures look like one set.
A heart full of photos: All their photos inside a heart, with their name underneath. Lovely for a husband, a wife or a mother.
For a beloved pet: Their photos cut to the shape of their breed: dogs, cats and horses.

What size, and how many photos

Most memorial posters stand on an easel at 24 × 36″, and that's the size the button opens. Around 110 photos is where each one prints about two inches across, big enough for everyone to find a face they know. Fewer photos? 70 on a 20 × 30″ print gives the same size per photo. A big family with hundreds of photos can choose 30 × 40″, which suggests 150, or go up to a 40 × 60″ print that holds up to 1,075.

Print size	Photos	Suggested
12 × 12″	10 to 60	15
12 × 18″	15 to 100	25
16 × 20″	20 to 140	40
16 × 24″	25 to 170	45
20 × 20″	25 to 180	50
20 × 30″	40 to 275	70
24 × 24″	35 to 250	70
24 × 36″	55 to 375	110
30 × 40″	80 to 525	150
36 × 54″	120 to 875	250
40 × 60″	150 to 1,075	300

These are for the In Loving Memory poster. "Suggested" is where each photo prints about two inches across; you can use any number in the range.

What to put in it

Baby and childhood photos, even faded or creased ones
The wedding, the first home, the children arriving
Work, service, hobbies: the garden, the fishing trips, the kitchen
Holidays and family gatherings, with everyone squeezed into the frame
Grandchildren on their lap
One recent photo that looks just like them, for the centre

Words for the poster

In Loving Memory, with their name and dates
Celebrating the life of Margaret Ellis
Forever in our hearts
A life well lived, a person well loved
Gone from our sight, but never from our hearts

Gathering the photos in a few days

Ask everyone in the family to add their favourites to one shared album, and set a deadline. For old prints, lay them flat by a window and photograph them with your phone; a free scanning app such as Google PhotoScan removes the glare. Photos from every decade tell the story better than many from one year, and the faded ones are often the ones people stop at.

Ready in time for the service

The template arrives the moment you order. Filling it takes an evening: you drop the photos in and type the name and dates. Most print shops can print a 24 × 36″ poster and mount it on foam board for an easel in a day or two; call ahead if the service is soon. Download it from Canva as a PDF with the Print setting, not as a PNG or JPG, so it prints sharp.

After the service

The poster doesn't have to end its life at the funeral home. Frame it for the family home, or download the file and print a smaller copy for each of the children. Many families bring it out again on birthdays and anniversaries.

Questions

How many photos do I need for a memorial collage?

On the usual 24 × 36″ poster, around 110 photos lets each one print about two inches across. It works with as few as 55 at that size, and with smaller prints you need fewer: around 70 on a 20 × 30″. If you have hundreds, choose a bigger print.

What size should a funeral photo collage be?

24 × 36″ is the most common, because it stands well on an easel and can be seen from across the room. A 20 × 30″ suits a smaller gathering or a table display, and 30 × 40″ suits a large service or a lifetime of photos.

Can I add their name, dates and a quote?

Yes. The title, the line beneath it and the footer are ordinary Canva text: their name, their dates, a favourite saying or a verse. Change the words, the font and the colour however you like.

Can a print shop mount it on foam board?

Yes. Download a print-ready PDF from Canva and ask for a 24 × 36″ poster mounted on foam board. It stands on an easel at the service and hangs easily at home afterwards.

What do I get?

A Canva template with the poster already laid out and every photo space placed, for $9.99. It downloads instantly; you open it in a free Canva account, replace every sample photo with your own, type their name and print it anywhere.