A clearer reference makes a calmer painting.

1. Match the canvas before the detail

Open Upload and choose a picture you created or are allowed to use. The image is converted locally. A reference with a distinct subject and an uncluttered background is easier to read after conversion than tiny lettering or many overlapping objects.

Use the canvas picker for a supported item, checking its section such as Front or Back. For a plain drawing, choose the aspect ratio of your target. Use Custom Grid when you know the exact columns and rows. A template can lock its grid dimensions, so switch back to Drawing if you need a freely sized board.

Start with a smaller grid and check the subject’s outline. Increase precision only when a useful feature disappears. More cells mean more positions to count; they do not automatically make a better painting.

2. Decide what happens at the edges

• Fit keeps the full image. Use it when the entire reference matters; a different canvas ratio can leave margins.
• Crop fills the canvas. Check that the subject’s face, leaves, or other important edges have not been cut off.
• Stretch maps the reference directly to the grid. It can change proportions, so use it only when that distortion is acceptable.

Try filters after choosing the grid and fit. If a shadow merges into the background, compare the outline before and after each adjustment. Avoid changing several controls at once; it becomes difficult to tell which change helped.

Example: a leaf with one highlight

This diagram explains the approach; it is not an exact preview of the tool’s palette conversion. PainTopia maps your source to its available tones, so the selected colors can differ from the original image.

3. Work through tones without losing your place

The guide lists colors used by the converted picture. Use previous and next, or the progress bar, to move between tone steps. Colors that are not used remain inactive. Turn on tone numbers or the active-tone blink when neighboring colors are hard to distinguish.

Enable rulers to track a row and column while counting. The 10 × 10 block mode limits the area you are working on; Follow target can move the view toward the current area. Long-press a cell to inspect its tone. Zoom with the wheel or a pinch, and drag to move around the board.

On a supported desktop Chrome browser, Overlay → Open PiP Guide opens an always-on-top reference. This depends on browser support and window permissions. You can use the regular guide if PiP is unavailable.

4. Keep a copy of your source

Saved guides are stored in this browser on this device. Use Saved to manage and reopen them. They are not synchronized with another browser or the Android app. Keep your original image separately and reopen a saved guide to check that it is present before leaving a session.

Private browsing, blocked storage, a full storage quota, or clearing website data can prevent saving or remove local work. A browser save is a convenience, not a backup service.

When the result needs another pass

The picture looks stretched or clipped.

Check the canvas ratio and compare Fit with Crop. Stretch deliberately changes proportions.

Small details vanished.

Try a tighter crop around the subject or a larger grid. For a small physical canvas, simplify the reference instead of adding more cells than you can paint.

Processing or zoom feels slow.

Try a smaller source image or grid, especially on a phone. Large pictures and multi-board work require more browser memory.

The overlay button is unavailable.

Use the main board, or try a desktop Chrome browser that supports Document Picture-in-Picture. Mobile and other browser support differs.

I cannot find my saved guide.

Check the same device, browser, and site address. If site data was cleared, PainTopia has no server copy to restore.

Still stuck? Contact the publisher with your browser, device, and the steps that caused the problem. Share only images you are comfortable sending.