FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions and Answers

We place great importance on data privacy. That’s why your images and related data are automatically removed from our system after a certain period of time. You can also delete your data manually. You can find more information and options for deleting your data on our Privacy page.

Many mosaic providers do not create true photo mosaics and instead simply tint the images. Rapid-Mosaic on the other hand offers several different mosaic types.
You can find the full comparison here: Why Rapid-Mosaic? – Comparison with other mosaic providers

Choose a subject with few details: The simpler and more high-contrast the image, the better the result – small details don’t show up well in a mosaic. The image should be at least 1000×1000 pixels. The format doesn’t matter, since you can crop it in the next step.

1. High Contrast

Light and dark areas should be clearly separated. This creates a mosaic with stronger contrast and more visible detail.

2. Large Main Subject

Your subject should take up as much of the image as possible. Avoid very small people or objects in the distance.

3. Clean Background

A clean background keeps the focus on the main subject and helps create a more balanced mosaic.

4. Good Lighting

Natural daylight or even lighting helps produce clear colors and better results.

There are no limits to your creativity: Portraits, animals, and landscapes work just as well as logos, symbols, numbers, or lettering. The most important thing is a clear, high-contrast subject.

Absolutely! You can remove the main image at any time and upload a different one. Even after the mosaic has finished processing, you can simply start over and try a different subject.

The mosaic is calculated to fit your selected format exactly: the number and arrangement of the tiles are optimized for that size and aspect ratio. That’s why you choose the format before the mosaic image is created.

You choose the material only after your mosaic image has been calculated. As soon as you receive the preview by email, you can select your preferred material during the ordering process – for example poster, canvas, acrylic, or Dibond.

Yes. Simply start a new mosaic calculation with the desired format and request a new preview. An existing mosaic can’t simply be resized, since it is always calculated for a specific format.

You should have at least 50—the more, the better. There is no upper limit, so you can also use well over 1,000 photos.

No. The photos are automatically compressed before upload, and the algorithm crops them to the appropriate format on its own when creating the mosaic.

We try to use every photo. Depending on the characteristics of the photos or the selected mosaic type (e.g. Classic, Parquet), this is not always completely possible. You can see which photos were used afterward in the preview.

Depending on the format, about 1–3 cm. After the calculation, you can choose between different tile sizes and compare them directly.

Data privacy is important to us: If no order is placed, your photos will be automatically deleted again after a certain period.

Depending on server load and the number of photos, creating your mosaic takes about 15 minutes to 2 hours. We’ll then send you the preview by email. If you don’t receive anything, please also check your spam folder.

Yes. Creating and sending the mosaic preview is free and without obligation. You only incur costs if you actually place an order.

Only to send you the preview and the link for selecting and ordering. If no order is placed, your data and photos will be automatically deleted again after a certain period.

Using the link in the email, you can choose between different mosaic versions and tile sizes and order your preferred design directly.

In the free version of Rapid-Mosaic, the generated mosaic images can only be uploaded to www.rapidmosaic.com and ordered as a poster/canvas/etc. If you would still like to save your images so that you can have them printed by your local print shop or continue editing them, you can purchase the Professional version of Rapid-Mosaic. This version allows you to save the mosaic images as JPG files. The Professional version is included in the Professional package from Foto-Mosaik-Edda and is available here:
Buy Rapid-Mosaic Professional 

Rapid-Mosaic is our new free software that allows you to easily create photo mosaics for wall decor and order them online right away. It is based on the libraries of Foto-Mosaik-Edda, but is much easier to use. With the free version of Rapid-Mosaic, you can only order images online, which is sufficient for most users. Only the Professional version also allows you to save the mosaic images.

When installing Foto-Mosaik-Edda in German, Rapid-Mosaic is automatically installed and launched. If you would still like to use the "old" Foto-Mosaik-Edda software, you can still find the program in the installation folder, and it can still be launched and used.

After purchasing the software, you will receive an email with the download link and a license file attached.

• Download the installer using the link from the license email, start the installation, and install the software on your computer. If you still have the standard version installed, uninstall it first to avoid conflicts.
• To activate the Professional version, copy the file "license.lic" attached to the email to your hard drive. This file contains your license for Rapid-Mosaic Professional.
• Then start the installed Rapid-Mosaic Professional. The following message will appear: "License file '[...]' does not exist.".
• Confirm the message and a dialog will open: "Open License File...".
• In the dialog, open the "license.lic" file that you copied to your hard drive.

You can now use Rapid-Mosaic Professional.

Rapid-Mosaic generally tries to use all images in the folder at least once. However, there are two reasons why an image in the folder may not be used:

• If the image on the hard drive could not be read properly, for example because it was not fully transferred from the camera.
• If an image in the folder has a different format than the images in the mosaic image. For example, a portrait image will not be used if landscape images are used in the Classic/Detail mosaic. This is intended to prevent heads or other important parts of the image from being cropped.

The software’s debug output shown during calculation provides information about how the image collection is structured. For example:

... Database: Reading Database done. 1630 items read. Time: 128 ms.
... Database: Count (1630): landscape (959), portrait (668), square (3). ...

In this example, 1,630 images were found. Of these, 959 are landscape, 668 are portrait, and 3 are square. In this example, the Classic and Detail mosaic will use landscape format. The Parquet mosaic uses both landscape and portrait images. The Chaos mosaic uses all images, but some may be partially hidden because they are underneath others.

In the online version of Rapid-Mosaic, there is currently no way to check whether all images were used.

The print sizes are stored in the file "C:\Users\<USER>\Documents\Rapid-Mosaic\PrintSizes.xml" or "C:\Users\<USER>\Documents\Foto-Mosaik-Edda\PrintSizes.xml". By editing the file with a text editor, you can add or change print sizes. Please note that only the formats listed in the price list can be used for online orders.

Due to an update of the SSL protocol on the server, Foto-Mosaik-Edda and Rapid-Mosaic must be updated to the latest version 7.7.20050.1 from 02/19/2020. Otherwise, uploading the finished mosaic will unfortunately no longer work and will fail with the error message: "The request was aborted: Could not create SSL/TLS secure channel".
Please download the latest version of the software to resolve this issue. By using the latest SSL protocol, your data is optimally protected.

The mosaic image is produced exactly as you see it in the Rapid-Mosaic preview. We do not make any changes afterward (black and white, blending, cropping). Please also note the print preview in Rapid-Mosaic. The way the tile size is displayed there is exactly how it will appear on the final product.

The dimensions of the mosaic image must be defined in the Rapid-Mosaic program before the calculation. Based on the selected print size, Rapid-Mosaic calculates the ideal mosaic image. This is the only way to ensure that the mosaic image resolution, tile size, and print preview are set correctly. After uploading the mosaic image from the Rapid-Mosaic software, only the selected print size will then be available in the order options.

Fast & convenient

If you need it quickly, just order the Download Version. The high-resolution download will arrive via email in about 5 minutes.

Create Downloadable Mosaic

Shipping method: Standard

We aim to use our resources as efficiently and eco-friendly as possible, so it takes up to three business days to produce your picture. After that, the picture will be shipped via standard delivery the next day. The shipping time by the delivery service usually takes between one to five business days (for bulky goods, such as large canvas/acrylic/Dibond formats).

We currently ship to the following countries: Germany , Austria , Switzerland , Spain , France , Italy , Netherlands , Belgium , Luxembourg , United States , Great Britain , Canada , Australia
You will usually be redirected automatically to the appropriate country version of our shop. Alternatively, you can manually select your country in the footer of the page using the flag at the bottom right.

You can find more information about prices and shipping costs on the respective country page under: Price and Size Overview

If you do not want to have your image printed directly by us, you have two alternatives:

• You can purchase the finished image as a high-resolution JPG file directly in the shop and download it.
• Or you can choose the Professional version of Rapid-Mosaic, which allows you to create and export your mosaic locally on your PC.