# How to Use the Photo Challenge Builder — User Guide | PuzzleBuilder > URL: https://puzzlebuilder.co/docs/how-to-use-the-photo-challenge-builder/ Step-by-step guide to creating a Photo Challenge game with PuzzleBuilder. Learn how to upload photos, write story clues, customize the design, and publish an interactive online game with hints and a live leaderboard. --- ## How to Use the Photo Challenge Builder This guide walks you through everything you need to know to create a personalized photo challenge using PuzzleBuilder — from setting up your grid to downloading or publishing your finished puzzle. ### 1. What Is a Photo Challenge? A photo challenge is a photo-based question-and-answer game. You upload a set of photos, write the correct answer for each one, and players try to guess them. The format works for many concepts: - Where Were They? Photos of locations — players guess the city or country. - Which Year? Photos from different moments — players guess the year. - How Old? Photos at different ages — players guess the age in each. - Time Tunnel, Guess the Place, Name That Moment — the concept is up to you. Typically, a single concept runs through the whole challenge. The player sees photos and answers a consistent question for each one. ### 2. Getting Started To create a photo challenge, you first need an occasion. An occasion is the container for your puzzles — it can be a wedding, a birthday, a classroom activity, or any other event. If you haven't created an occasion yet: - Click + New Puzzle from your dashboard. - Choose an existing occasion or create a new one. - Select Photo Challenge as your puzzle type. Once your occasion is set up, the photo challenge builder opens automatically. The first time you open a new puzzle, you'll be asked to choose a page size and orientation — these can be changed later from the **Size** tab at any time. ### 3. The Builder Interface The photo challenge builder has three main areas: - Left panel: Four tabs — Challenge (your grid layout and answers), Size (page dimensions), Templates (ready-made designs), and Layers (element list and new element tools). - Center canvas: A live preview of your puzzle design. The artboard inside the canvas represents the actual page — everything within its boundaries appears in your downloaded file. - Right panel (Style & Content): Controls for the photo grid styling and for the currently selected element. The top toolbar includes **Save** (with an input field to name your puzzle), **Guide** (a link to this page), **Download**, and **Publish**. Below it, you'll find zoom controls, a **Fit** button to fit the canvas to your screen, and toggle buttons for **Hide Crop Marks**, **Hide Grid**, and **Show Answers**. You can also right-click anywhere on the canvas to open a quick menu with shortcuts to Save, toggle Crop Marks, Grid, Answers, and Download. To move around the canvas, hold **Alt** and drag, or press the middle mouse button and drag. You can also zoom in and out using your mouse wheel. #### On Mobile On mobile devices, the builder adapts to your screen. The left and right panels are hidden by default and open from the buttons at the top of the screen: - Tap Panel at the top left to open the left panel. - Tap Properties at the top right to open the Style & Content panel. - The Save, Guide, Download, and Publish actions are grouped under the ☰ menu button in the top row. Mobile also includes a **Pan** toggle for navigating the canvas by touch. When Pan is on, you can drag the canvas with your finger to move around. When Pan is off, tapping and dragging selects and moves elements on the artboard. ### 4. Setting Up the Grid Open the **Challenge** tab in the left panel. At the top, you'll find the **Grid** section, which controls how many photo slots your challenge has and how they're arranged. - Number of Rows: Choose between 1 and 5 rows. - Number of Items in a Row: Choose between 1 and 5 items per row. Click **Apply Grid Layout** to update the canvas. The artboard will instantly show the new arrangement of empty photo slots. Each photo slot has space below it for an answer (a line or a box layout, depending on your style settings). The total number of slots is rows × items per row — for example, 3 rows of 3 items gives you 9 slots. ### 5. Writing Answers Below the Grid section is the **Answers** section, with one input field for each slot in your grid. Type the correct answer for each photo. Answers are required for online play — that's how the game knows whether a player's guess is correct. They're not shown on the printed version unless you download with **Show Answers** enabled in the toolbar (mostly useful for previewing). ### 6. Adding Photos Empty photo slots show a _Double-click to add image_ placeholder on the canvas. To add a photo: - Double-click an empty slot. - Choose an image file from your device. - Wait for the upload to finish — a progress modal will show Uploading Photo... Processing image... Once uploaded, the photo fills the slot. You can also click an empty slot once to select it, then use the **Upload Photo** button in the right panel. Supported formats: JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP. Maximum file size: 5 MB per photo. #### Adjusting Photos Click a photo (single click) to select it. The right panel shows photo controls: - Remove Photo: Removes the photo from the slot. - Size: Adjust the photo's width and height in pixels. Use the lock toggle to keep the aspect ratio. Click Fill Slot to make the photo fit the slot exactly, or Reset Size to restore the original dimensions. - Flip: Mirror the photo horizontally or vertically. - Rotate: Enter a rotation angle in degrees, or click Reset to return to 0°. You can also drag a photo within its slot to reposition it, and resize it using the corner handles. Photos can extend beyond the slot's edges, but the parts outside the slot are clipped and won't be visible in the final output. ### 7. Customizing the Photo Grid Unlike other puzzle builders, the photo challenge builder shows grid styling options in the right panel **even when nothing is selected**. This lets you fine-tune the appearance of the grid as a whole. #### Spacing - Gap: The space between slots (0–100px). - Grid Padding: The distance between the grid and the edges of the artboard (0–100px). #### Slot - Border: The thickness of each slot's frame (0–10px). - Border Color: The color of the frame. - Gap: The space between the frame and the photo inside (0–10px). #### Answers Choose how the answer area below each photo looks. Use the **Type** toggle to switch between two styles: **Line** — A simple line where players write their answer freely. Best for longer answers. - Top Space: The space between the photo and the line (0–50px). - Line Thickness: 1–10px. - Line Style: Solid or Dotted. - Line Color: The line's color. **Box** — A row of letter boxes, one per character — like a mini crossword. This style adds a puzzle feel and works well for short answers. - Top Space: The space between the photo and the boxes (0–50px). - Box Thickness: Box border thickness (0–5px). - Box Size: The size of each character box (5–50px). - Box Border Color: The box border color. - Box Bg Color: The box background color. - Gap between boxes: 1–10px. - Box corners: 0–10px (for rounded corners). When you change any setting in Spacing, Slot, or Answers, an **Update Grid** button appears below that section. Click it to apply your changes to the canvas. ### 8. Choosing a Page Size Click the **Size** tab in the left panel to choose your page dimensions. Available sizes include: - 5×7 in (Card Size) — 127 × 177.8 mm - 5.5×8.5 in (Half Letter) — 139.7 × 215.9 mm - 8.5×11 in (US Letter) — 215.9 × 279.4 mm - 11×17 in (Tabloid / Ledger) — 279.4 × 431.8 mm - 18×24 in (Medium Poster) — 457.2 × 609.6 mm - 24×36 in (Large Poster) — 609.6 × 914.4 mm - 30×42 in (Giant / Easel) — 762 × 1066.8 mm - A5 — 148 × 210 mm - A4 — 210 × 297 mm - A3 — 297 × 420 mm - A2 — 420 × 594 mm - A1 — 594 × 841 mm - A0 — 841 × 1189 mm You can also switch between **Portrait** and **Landscape** orientation. Click **Apply Page Size** to update the canvas. When you change the page size, your design is automatically rescaled to fit the new dimensions. In most cases, you may want to fine-tune element positions and sizes afterward. ### 9. Applying a Template Click the **Templates** tab to browse ready-made designs. Each template includes a pre-arranged layout with styled elements — titles, decorative shapes, and grid styling presets. Select a template and click **Apply Template**. A confirmation dialog will ask you to confirm, because applying a new template replaces the decorative elements of the current template (including any customizations you've made to them). Your photos and any elements you've added yourself stay exactly where they are. ### 10. Customizing the Overall Design Beyond the photo grid, you can add and style other elements on the canvas. #### Inline Text Editing Double-click any text element on the canvas to edit its content directly on the artboard. This includes template titles and any text elements you've added yourself. You can also edit text from the text field in the **Style & Content** panel. #### Size, Rotation, Flip, and Alignment Every added element has the same core controls in the right panel: - Align to Page: Snap the element to the Left, Center, Right, Top, Middle, or Bottom of the page. - Size: Set exact width and height in pixels. - Flip: Mirror the element horizontally or vertically. - Rotate: Enter an angle in degrees, or click Reset to return to 0°. You can also drag elements freely on the canvas, resize them using the corner or edge handles, and rotate them using the rotation control that appears below a selected element. #### Multi-Select Alignment Select multiple elements at once by holding **Shift** and clicking each element, or by dragging a selection box across them on the canvas. You can also multi-select from the **Layers** tab by holding **Shift** and clicking layer rows. When multiple elements are selected, the right panel shows two sets of controls: **Align Elements** aligns the selected elements relative to each other, and **Align to Page** aligns them relative to the page. #### Adding New Elements Open the **Layers** tab. At the bottom you'll find the **Add Element** section with these options: - Rectangle: A shape with adjustable fill color and corner radius (for rounded corners). - Triangle and Circle: Shapes with adjustable fill color. - Line: A straight line with adjustable thickness and color. - Text: A new text box with full typography controls — font family, weight, style, color, and alignment. - Image: Upload your own decorative images (JPEG, PNG, GIF, or WebP — up to 5 images, max 5 MB per file). These are separate from the photo slots in your grid. You can add up to 10 of each shape or text element. Any added element always appears on top of the photo grid in the layer stack — the photo grid stays in the background. #### Layer Management The **Layers** tab shows the stacking order of all elements on the canvas. Note that the photo slots and uploaded photos themselves don't appear in the Layers list — they're managed directly through the grid settings and the canvas. Other elements (template decorations, your added shapes and texts) appear normally and can be reordered by drag and drop. ### 11. Crop Marks, Grid Lines, and Show Answers The builder includes three display toggles in the top toolbar: - Hide/Show Crop Marks: Small corner marks that indicate the safe print area. Useful when printing to ensure accurate trimming. - Hide/Show Grid: A background grid that helps you align elements while designing. - Show/Hide Answers: Reveals the correct answer below each photo in the answer area, so you can verify your setup. Note: Answers are never included in the downloaded print version — this toggle is for previewing inside the builder only. ### 12. Saving Your Work Click the **Save** button in the top toolbar to save your current progress. Your puzzle name appears in the input field next to it — you can rename it at any time. Saving preserves everything: your photos, answers, grid layout, design choices, element positions, template, page size, and orientation. Your puzzle is stored in your account, and you can return to it any time from your dashboard. ### 13. Downloading Your Puzzle Click the **Download** button in the top toolbar to open the download dialog. You'll see three options: - PNG Preview: A standard-resolution image for quick previews and sharing. - PNG High-Quality: A high-resolution image suitable for printing. - Print Ready PDF: A PDF file optimized for professional print quality. The downloaded file shows exactly what's inside the artboard — crop marks, grid lines, and answers are not included. Players write their guesses in the answer area when playing the printed version. Downloads are available on all paid packages. Free plan users can preview their puzzle in the builder but cannot download files. ### 14. Publishing Your Puzzle Online Click the **Publish** button in the top toolbar to open the publish dialog. Here you can: - Get a public link: A unique URL that anyone can open to play your photo challenge online. - Add password protection: Optionally set a password so only invited guests can access the puzzle. - Enable scoring and leaderboard: Turn on the scoring system to track each player's score, completion time, hints used, and failed attempts. Players are ranked on a live leaderboard visible on the puzzle page. - Show leaderboard to players: Choose whether players can see the leaderboard and other players' scores. You can copy the public link, share it via any messaging app, or unpublish the puzzle at any time. Online play is available on all paid packages. Free plan users cannot publish puzzles. ### 15. How Online Play Works for Players When someone opens your puzzle link, they see a welcome screen with the puzzle title, your custom header (if set), and a name entry field. After entering their name, they tap **Start Playing**. The photo challenge is displayed differently depending on the device: - On wide screens: The grid layout you designed is shown as-is, with all photos arranged in rows and columns. - On mobile: Photos are shown one at a time as a slider, with thumbnails of all photos at the bottom for quick navigation. The active photo is highlighted in the thumbnail strip. Players tap a photo to open the answer panel. They type their guess into a row of letter boxes — one box per character — similar to a crossword. If the answer contains multiple words, the boxes include spaces between them. Numbers are also supported. Each photo slot includes: - Hint: A limited number of hints reveals one letter of the answer. - Check: Submits the guess. Correct answers are marked with a green gradient overlay on the photo; incorrect answers get a red gradient overlay. - Cancel: Closes the answer panel without submitting. The game also tracks the player's time, hints used, and failed attempts to calculate a final score. Players do not need to create an account or download anything. The game runs entirely in their browser on any device. ### 16. Tips for a Great Photo Challenge - Start with 3×3 or 3×4: These layouts work best on most page sizes and feel substantial without becoming overwhelming. - Use high-quality photos: If you plan to print the puzzle, low-resolution images may look blurry or pixelated. Photos can be up to 5 MB each, so there's room for crisp, sharp images. - Keep your concept consistent: Players have the most fun when every photo asks the same question — Where was this taken? or How old were they? — rather than mixing concepts. - Choose Line or Box for answers: Use Line for longer answers (full sentences, place names with multiple words) where players need room to write freely. Use Box for shorter answers — it adds a puzzle feel and turns the challenge into something closer to a guessing game. - Online play tip: The Line vs Box choice only affects the printed version. Online players always type into letter boxes, similar to a crossword. - Preview before publishing: Use Show Answers in the builder to verify each photo has the correct answer assigned to it. - Test the online version: Open your own puzzle link and play through it once to make sure photos load correctly and answers are accepted. ### Need Help? If you have any questions or run into any issues while building your photo challenge, contact our support team through the [Support page](https://puzzlebuilder.co/support/?contact). #### All Documents - How to Use the Crossword Builder - How to Use the Word Search Builder - How to Use the Number Hunt Builder - How to Use the Photo Challenge Builder - How to Use the Bingo Challenge Builder - How to Use the Sudoku Builder - How to Use the Spy Challenge Builder - How to Use Online Play and Leaderboards - Printing Guide - How to Print Your Puzzles - How to Use the AI Clue Generator - The Complete Guide to Designing Print-Ready Puzzle Cards - How to Create Engaging Classroom Puzzles for Any Subject [← Back to Support](https://puzzlebuilder.co/support/) ### Ready to make your event unforgettable? Open the editor and build your first puzzle in minutes. You only pay when you're ready to download or publish — and every purchase is covered by a 14-day refund. 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