Plan your memory board
1. The board
2. Spacing between photos
3. Clear margin around each panel edge
4. Title banner
5. The prints you have (or plan to make)
Everything fits on one board
20 photos planned on the tri-fold display board, with the top of the widest panel kept clear for the title banner.
- Left wing
- row by row: 1 × 8 × 10 (upright), then 1 × 8 × 10 (upright), then 1 × 5 × 7 (sideways), then 1 × 5 × 7 (sideways)
- Center panel
- row by row: title banner, then 3 × 5 × 7 (upright), then 1 × 5 × 7 (upright), then 3 × 4 × 6 (sideways), then 4 × 4 × 6 (upright)
- Right wing
- row by row: 2 × 4 × 6 (upright), then 2 × 4 × 6 (upright), then 1 × 4 × 6 (upright)
- Print shopping list
- 2 × 8 × 10, 6 × 5 × 7, 12 × 4 × 6 (20 prints, 1 board)
- Spacing & edges
- 1 in between photos · 1 in board margin
- Room to spare
- 5 more 4 × 6 prints in this same row model
Rows are a printing-and-buying plan, not a rulebook — real boards drift, overlap and tuck keepsakes between photos, and that’s exactly how they should look. Photos that only exist as old prints can be digitized first with the photo scan DPI calculator and repaired with the free photo restorer.
How many prints fit on each board (1 in spacing and margins, no title banner)
| Board | 8 × 10 prints | 5 × 7 prints | 4 × 6 prints | Wallet (2.5 × 3.5) prints |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tri-fold display board (48 × 36 in open) | 12 | 22 | 41 | 96 |
| 24 × 36 poster or foam board (36 × 24 in landscape) | 6 | 14 | 22 | 50 |
| 22 × 28 poster board (28 × 22 in landscape) | 5 | 10 | 15 | 36 |
| 20 × 30 foam board (30 × 20 in landscape) | 4 | 9 | 14 | 32 |
Everything on this page is computed in your browser from the counts you type. Exact counts and custom dimensions are never uploaded, stored or sent; analytics count views, starts, completions and errors and use only a broad photo-total range for completed plans.
Make the centerpiece a painted portrait of them — free preview first →How many photos fit on a memory board?
The geometry is straight rows: the planner subtracts the chosen edge margins, fits each print-plus-gap across the remaining width, and stacks those shelves down each panel. With classic one-inch spacing and margins, a 36 × 48 inch tri-fold holds 41 separate 4 × 6 prints without a title strip, or 36 when the top of the center panel is kept clear for an “In Loving Memory” banner. A 20 × 30 foam board holds 14. The full single-size capacities are in the table below, and the planner recomputes the row plan for your own print mix, margin, spacing and board size.
A mixed board can use one or two 8 × 10 prints as anchors, 5 × 7s for the main moments and 4 × 6s for the rest. The planner places the largest prints first, panel by panel, then fits smaller sizes onto the remaining shelves. If you have not printed the smaller photos yet, its auto-fill action calculates exactly how many of the selected size complete one board around the counts you already entered.
Getting the photos ready is the harder part
Older prints need to be digitized before they can be reprinted. The photo scan DPI calculator gives the scanner setting for the reprint size, and the free photo restorer corrects fading and mild softness after scanning; tears or missing paper still need a restoration specialist. The planner uses four common print sizes — wallet through 8 × 10 — so its print list can go straight to whoever is doing the printing; the copy button writes it out as plain text for a family group chat.
The same math plans a graduation, retirement or milestone-birthday board — pick the board, count the prints, keep or drop the title banner. And if one photograph deserves more than a printout pinned to foam board, the photo-to-painting tool shows what it looks like as painted portrait art, free, before the service or after — including bringing two people into one artwork when no good photo of them together exists.
How it works
- Pick a 36 × 48 tri-fold, a poster or foam board, or type a custom size in inches or centimeters.
- Choose separate edge margins and photo spacing, keep or drop the title banner, and enter how many prints of each size you have.
- Use auto-fill if you want the exact count that completes one board, then read and copy the row plan and print shopping list.
Frequently asked questions
How many photos do I need for a funeral memory board?
It depends on the board, margins, spacing, title and print mix. Under this planner’s straight-row model, a 36 × 48 inch tri-fold holds 41 separate 4 × 6 prints with one-inch spacing and margins and no title strip, or 36 when a six-inch title strip is reserved on the center panel. A 20 × 30 foam board holds 14 under the no-title settings. Enter your real counts or use auto-fill for the exact result under the model.
What size board should I use for a celebration of life?
A 36 × 48 inch tri-fold stands on a table and splits the layout into three panels. A 24 × 36 or 20 × 30 foam board makes one flat composition for an easel, while a 22 × 28 poster board makes a smaller flat display. The planner compares your actual count with the selected board and states when the arithmetic needs another board.
How should the photos be arranged?
A chronological arrangement is easy to follow: childhood on the left panel, the middle of life at center under the title, and recent years on the right. Place the largest prints first as anchors — the planner already orders its rows this way — and keep spacing consistent. The row plan is a starting layout, not a rulebook; you can still overlap corners or tuck in ticket stubs and handwritten notes.
Does this work for graduation or retirement photo boards?
Yes — the geometry doesn’t care about the occasion. Tri-fold and poster boards are the same products, the print sizes are the same, and the title banner works as well for “Class of 2026” as for a memorial. Pick the board, enter your print counts, and use the same row-by-row plan and print list.
Are my photos or counts uploaded to calculate this?
No — there is nothing to upload. You type counts and, for a custom board, its size; every calculation runs in your browser, and the exact counts and dimensions are never sent or stored. Limited usage analytics count views, starts, completions and errors and place completed plans in a broad photo-total range. If you later use the photo restorer or a portrait tool, those pages explain their own photo handling separately.
Make the centerpiece a painted portrait of them — free preview first →