Guide

Your first build

Let's create your first Minecraft build from a photo.

1

Snap any object in good quality on your camera — whole object in frame, even light.

Photo: object on a plain background
2

Upload the picture in the build form, give it a name and press Generate. One token is reserved when the run starts.

3

When it finishes, copy the command with this button — the right half copies the full /photocraft build ….

4

Join your Minecraft world, sign in to the mod once and paste the command in chat.

/photocraft login [email protected] ••••••
/photocraft build my_duck

Installing the mod

The mod is free and works without an account — three demo builds ship inside it.

1

Install Minecraft Java Edition 1.20.1 with the Forge loader (47.x). Other versions are not supported yet.

Screenshot: Forge profile in the launcher
2

Download the mod file. It is the same file as the download button in the dashboard header.

Download .jar
3

Drop the .jar into your mods folder and start the game with that profile.

Screenshot: mods folder with the .jar
4

Try it immediately, no account needed — the demo builds are inside the mod.

What comes out well

The pipeline reads shape and colour. Some subjects survive that better than others.

1

Works well

Solid objects with a clear silhouette — toys, tools, food, furniture. Flat, strong colours map onto blocks cleanly.

Example: plush toy → build
2

Struggles

Glass and anything transparent or mirrored, thin parts like wires and chair legs, faces and text at small scales.

Example: glass bottle → build
3

Background matters

Shoot against something plain. A busy background can be pulled into the shape, and no scale will fix that afterwards.

Example: busy vs plain background
4

More angles, closer result

One photo is enough for simple objects. For anything with a non-obvious back, upload up to five angles: front, back, left, right, top.

Example: five angle slots filled

Your build library

Everything you generate is stored with a preview, and stays there.

1

Find it

Search by name or id, sort by date, name or block count, filter by colour tag.

2

Copy the command

The split button on a card: left half copies the name, right half the whole command.

3

Rename

The pencil on the card renames in place. Letters, digits, hyphens and underscores — the name is what you type in game.

4

Delete

Permanent, and the token is not returned. The photo the build was made from is deleted with it.

Screenshot: delete confirmation

Rescaling a build

Change the size of a finished build without shooting a new photo.

1

Open a build and press the scale badge — on the card or in the build window.

8x
2

Pick a new scale. It is a level of detail, not a multiplier: 1 is about 20 blocks tall, 10 about 65. Scales you already have are greyed out.

New Scale3x (more detail)
SmallMassive
3

Press Rescale. About 15 seconds instead of a minute — the 3D model is reused, only the block map is built again — and it costs 1 token.

Screenshot: rescale progress
4

The result is saved as a new build named name_3x. The original stays untouched.

Refunding a token

A build came out unusable? Ask for the token back — a human looks at it.

1

Open the build in your library and press Request refund.

Request refund
2

Confirm. While the request is open the build is hidden from the mod, so /photocraft build … will not place it.

Screenshot: refund confirmation
3

A human reviews it within 3 hours. We look at the generated build and its statistics — never at your original photo.

Illustration: review
4

Approved means the token is back on your balance and the build works again. Refunds are available on every plan.

Token refunded

Reviewed by support

+1

Mini questions

Plan tokens arrive monthly with your subscription and expire 12 months after the last refill. Purchased top-up tokens never expire. Spending always takes plan tokens first, so nothing expires that could have been used.