Start a design from a photo (drag-and-drop)

This article shows you how to drag a photo from your computer onto a Studio folder to kick off a new design — skipping the manual steps of creating a design, then separately adding the photo.

How drag-to-create works

When you drop an image file directly onto the design grid in Studio, Templified opens the New Design dialog with your photo already queued. Once you pick a template and confirm the design, the photo is automatically placed into the first photo slot and the design opens in the editor — ready for any remaining adjustments.

This is the fastest way to start a design when you already have the photo at hand. It is especially useful for single-player or portrait workflows where you know which photo goes with which design before you create it.

Before you start

• You need at least one template in your organization. If no templates exist yet, see Creating and editing a template.
• Make sure you have a folder selected in the Studio sidebar. Dropping a photo without a folder selected shows a prompt to select one first.

Step 1: Select a Studio folder

1. Open the Studio tab.
2. Click the folder you want the new design to live in. The folder's design grid appears on the right.

If you haven't created a folder yet, use the folder tree on the left to add one before continuing.

Step 2: Drop a photo onto the design grid

1. Drag an image file from your desktop or file browser and drop it anywhere on the design grid (the main panel on the right).
2. As you drag over the grid, a highlight appears to confirm the drop zone is active.
3. Release the file. The New Design dialog opens immediately.

If you drop more than one file at once, only the first file is used. A notice appears to let you know.

Step 3: Pick a template

The New Design dialog works in two steps. In the first step — New Design — choose which template to base the design on:

1. Use the folder dropdown (Choose a folder) to narrow the template list to a specific template folder.
2. If you've used templates recently, a Recent section appears at the top of the list for quick access.
3. Use the search box to filter by template name when working with a large library.
4. Click the template you want. The dialog moves to the second step.

Step 4: Name the design and confirm

[Screenshot coming: The Create Design step showing the auto-filled design name derived from the template name and the dropped photo's filename]

In the second step — Create Design — the Design Name field is pre-filled with a name derived from the template name and the dropped photo's filename, with the file extension removed. For example, dropping smith_jane.jpg onto a template called Spring 2026 Portrait suggests the name Spring 2026 Portrait - smith_jane.

1. Review the suggested name. Edit it if you want something different — for example, the athlete's actual name.
2. If a design with the same name already exists in this folder, the name is automatically adjusted to a unique one (for example, Spring 2026 Portrait - smith_jane-2), and a note reading Duplicate design name found — updated to a unique name. appears in amber beneath the field. You can accept the suggestion or type a different name.
3. If the template has dynamic text fields (such as a name or jersey number), they appear above the Design Name field. Fill them in here or leave them to edit later in the editor.
4. Click Create Design.

What happens next

After you click Create Design, Templified creates the design and opens it in the editor. The dropped photo is automatically placed into the first photo slot — you don't need to drop it again inside the editor. The canvas shows your photo scaled and positioned according to the template's settings.

From here, you can:

• Edit any text layers — player name, team, jersey number.
• Adjust the photo position or fit mode.
• Run Background Removal if the template calls for a cut-out subject.
• Save and send the design when it's ready.

Dropping a photo onto a design that was already sent

The drop behavior above creates a brand-new design. But if you drop a photo onto a design that was itself created from a dropped photo and has already been sent to a preset, Templified pauses and asks what you meant to do — instead of silently swapping the photo on a design whose render already went out.

This guard exists to prevent accidental overwrites. Once a design has been sent to a destination, the photo it carried has already been rendered and delivered. Replacing that photo without warning could quietly change a design that someone downstream is already working from. The prompt — titled This design was already sent — names the design and gives you two choices:

• Create new design — Keep this one as-sent and start a new design from this photo. The design you dropped onto stays exactly as it was sent, and Templified begins a fresh design from the photo you just dropped (the same template-picker flow described above).
• Edit current design — Replace the photo on this design in place. This swaps in the dropped photo on the existing design, just like a normal photo replacement. Use this only when you intend to revise the design that was already sent.

If a design hasn't been sent yet, no prompt appears — dropping a photo replaces it directly, the same as any other edit.

Auto-naming and text tokens

The design name set during the drag-to-create flow is the value that text tokens read. If your template contains a text layer with the {designName} token, it resolves to whatever name you gave this design — including the auto-suggested name if you didn't change it. Similarly, the {LayerName.filename} token resolves to the dropped file's name (without its extension), matching the same filename that seeded the design name.

This means a well-named drop — for example, doe_john.jpg — flows through to any on-design text that displays the filename, with no extra typing. See Text layers: content, tokens, and dynamic values for more detail on how tokens work.

Tips

• One photo at a time. Drag-to-create starts one design per drop. To build many designs at once from a roster of photos, see Building a team photo composite.
• The photo goes to the first photo slot. If the template has multiple photo layers, the dropped photo lands in the first one. You can add photos to the remaining slots inside the editor.
• No photo slot in the template? The design is still created and named, but no photo is placed. You'll land in the editor with an empty canvas.
• Edit the name any time. You can rename the design later from its card in Studio using the three-dot menu.

Related articles

• Studio overview: managing your designs
• Adding photos to a design
• Text layers: content, tokens, and dynamic values
• Templates vs designs: what's the difference?
• Building a team photo composite