Short answer: first ask the funeral home what they can play and in which format. Then collect photos from family and friends in one place, choose fewer than you think, put them roughly in order of the person's life, and build the slideshow in a program you already have. Keep a copy of the files on a USB stick and online.
Last updated: 3 November 2026. The facts about Google Photos and PhotoScan, and the advice on handling prints, were checked on that day on the official pages; the sources are at the bottom.
The days before a funeral are short and full. A slideshow is often the one task that someone in the family takes on at night, with a box of photos on the table and messages coming in from cousins and old friends. This page is meant to make that task smaller and calmer.
Step 1: ask the funeral home
Before you collect a single photo, ask the venue:
- Is there a screen, and how big? Landscape or portrait?
- Do they want a video file, a presentation file, or do you bring a laptop?
- On a USB stick, by email or through a link? By when?
- How long may it last, and when in the service is it shown?
- Can music be played with it, and who arranges that?
Those answers decide everything else. Many venues have someone who has done this many times and can tell you what works.
Step 2: collect photos from family and friends
Send one short message to family and friends, with one link to one place, and a deadline. Ask for a few photos each, with a line about who is in them and roughly when. Friends and colleagues often have photos the family has never seen: the holiday, the choir, the work outing. For old prints, ask people to photograph or scan them rather than lending the originals in these busy days.
Step 3: choose and order
- Choose fewer than you think. At five to seven seconds a photo, 60 photos already take five to seven minutes.
- Roughly chronological works best: childhood, youth, love, work, family, friends, the last years.
- Mix in people. Make sure the photos show the people they loved, family and friends.
- Let the most recognisable photo come last. Often it is the one people will remember.
- Repair what needs it. A faded or torn photo can be improved with the free photo restore, one photo at a time.
Step 4: build it with what you have
You do not need special software. The presentation program on your computer, or the slideshow or movie feature in your phone's photo app, is usually enough. Keep the transitions simple, avoid text on every photo, and export it in the format the funeral home asked for. Watch it once from start to finish, and if you can, test it on the venue's equipment.
The options at a glance
| Task | Option | Good for | Not the best choice when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collecting | Group chat | Fast, everyone already has it | Photos get lost between messages, and you want them all in one place |
| Collecting | Google Photos shared album | Pooling photos from many people; anyone with the link can view and add | You want the story next to each photo, or control over who has the link |
| Collecting | The Memory Palace collect link | Photos, written memories and voice recordings from family and friends, without an account | You only need the photo files, today |
| Building | Presentation or photo software you already have | Making the slideshow itself | The venue needs a format your software cannot export |
| Building | The funeral home | Some venues make the slideshow from your photos | You want to choose every photo and the order yourself |
Handling the originals
In the rush, originals get loose, bent or lost. The Library of Congress advises against tape, glue, sticky notes, paper clips and rubber bands on photographs, and recommends writing on the back only near the edge with a soft pencil. Photograph them where they are, and put them back.
The Memory Palace, honestly
The Memory Palace is not a slideshow maker. What it does is collect and keep. You make a room for the person, send a collect link, and family and friends add a photo, a written memory or a voice recording from the browser, without an account; you can withdraw the link and remove a contribution with one tap. The room is private by default and stays after the funeral, so the stories that were told in those days are not lost in a group chat. You can download everything as a ZIP on every plan, including the free plan with 1 GB. It is encrypted in transit and at rest, but not end-to-end, and made by a small team in Leuven, Belgium.
What it lacks: no slideshow, no video export, no music. For the service itself, use the software you already have or ask the funeral home.
For the printed side
If you also need a card with a photo for the service, the free memorial card maker works in the browser without an account. If you want a quiet place for the photos and memories after the funeral, you can start a palace for free.
Read on: collecting photos and stories from everyone after a death, a free printable memorial card with a photo, a digital memory book or memorial for someone who died, and all guides on legacy.
Sources
- Google Photos Help, share albums (anyone with the link can view and add): support.google.com/photos/answer/6131416
- Google Photos Help, scan photos with PhotoScan: support.google.com/photos/answer/7177983?hl=en
- Library of Congress, care, handling and storage of photographs (limit markings; write on the back near the edge with a soft graphite pencil; no adhesives, sticky notes, paper clips or rubber bands; cool, dry, stable storage): loc.gov/preservation/care/photo.html