Read on for easy ordering instructions for DVD slideshows. Or contact us in our suburban Philadelphia studio for assistance.

Choose the sections for your slideshow and organize your photos!

Number your photos.

Next, label and number each photo in order. Number the first photo "1" and count upwards. Each photo should have a unique number. If there are 50 photos, the first photo should be "1" and the last should be "50."

There are a few different ways you can label your photos:
1. Write the number on a small adhesive label or sticker and put it on the back of the photo.
2. Write the number on a small stickie note and put it on the back of the photo.
3. Write the number on the back of the photo with a light pencil. If you choose this option, don't press too hard with the pencil. Please don't use a pen or a marker, which can distort the photo, bleed through, or smear.

Do not put any labels or stickies on the front of a photo, or write on the front of it.

What if you need to add or remove a photo after you've already done all your numbering? It's easy. To add a photo, just add a letter to its number. For example, let's say you want to add a new photo between photo #13 and photo #14. The new photo would receive the number "13A." If you wish to remove a specific photo, just take it out and make a note of it on your order form: "There is no photo #36." For all other changes, please renumber as needed.

For slides, write the number in pencil on the paper border. Make sure the number is on the same side as the correct side of the slide. We will use the numbered side.

You must remove all photos from frames and scrapbooks or albums.

When all your print photos and slides are in order and numbered, place them in Ziploc bags or large envelopes. If possible, use a separate bag or envelope for each section or song.

If you are including digital photos, change the name of each file name to the correct number. For example: "25.jpg." You may provide your digital photos on a CD-R, memory card, or a flash drive (all are returned to you). Or, you can take your digital photos to a photo center, have them printed professionally, and send us the prints.

Please note: We prefer to scan your photos. Please do not scan any prints yourself. When we scan, we use special high-resolution settings that minimize dust, hairs, and scratches, which ensures that your photos will look crystal-clear onscreen. If you scan photos yourself, we are unable to perform any restoration work on your photos, and we cannot use scans that are too low-resolution for DVD work. Our "digital photo" price only applies to files that were taken with a digital camera.

One last note on numbering: sometimes it's a good idea to wait to do the numbering until you've selected your music, which is step 4.

Select music

The right music sets the mood, holds the audience's attention, and produces laughter and tears. So think about the feeling you want the slideshow to have: happy, funny, sentimental, heart-tugging. The right music can evoke all of these feelings and more.

There are no rules for choosing music. A good place to start is by including the favorite songs of the people who are spotlighted in the slideshow. For an anniversary slideshow, what song did Mom and Dad dance to at their reception? For a childhood photo montage, use your child's favorite song. Is there a song with important lyrics for your graduate that could be used in his or her graduation photo slideshow? Using meaningful songs is key to a memorable show.

Another method is to choose music that goes well with the main idea of each section of photos. For example, for a section in a reception slide show featuring the bridesmaids, there are tons of songs out there about friends: "That's What Friends are For," "We Are Going to be Friends," "Stand By Me," etc. For a section of photos from a specific time period, check out music of that era. For example, for photos taken in the 1940s, look into swing and big band music.

For more tips on choosing music, take a look at our Song Suggestions page.

How much music do I need? Go by these estimates: Each photo is onscreen for about 6 seconds. Therefore, about 10 photos fit in each minute of music. Use these estimates to plan your music. However, keep in mind that these are very general estimates. We will shorten or extend these averages depending on each photo's content and the tempo of the music. It is best if you make sure there are at least 6 seconds devoted to each photo in a given song, and then have about a minute of the song left over so we have room to be creative with zooms and pans. It's always better to have the song be a bit longer than the photos and content you want to set with it rather than too short.

So, for example, let's say you have 20 photos in the "Mom and Dad's wedding" section of your anniversary slideshow. 20 photos x 6 seconds=120 seconds of music (2 minutes). That means that the song you assign to this section needs to be AT LEAST 2 minutes long. And to be safe, it's better if the song is about 3 minutes long.

We ask that you assign a minimum of 10 photos to each song you'd like to use. This will create a smoother slideshow. Also, ensure there is enough time in each song to cover as many photos as you have set to it. If you have a section with 30 photos, make sure there's 3–4 minutes of music provided. And remember to allot time in the music for items such as title screens and video clips.

These are rough guidelines. For all slideshows, we custom-edit the music to best fit with your photos. So don't be too concerned about lining everything up perfectly. Usually, giving us a song and telling us "I want these 25 photos to be set to that song" works fine. In most cases, we can loop songs to add length or edit songs to shorten them. And if you have any instructions for a given song, such as specific verses you want to include or cut out, just let us know.

To provide music, please send us the original CD or a burned CD. If there is a song you can't find, we can use a legal download service such as iTunes to purchase it on your behalf. Please note that to avoid any potential copyright issues, we can only provide this service for 1–2 songs. We encourage you to provide your own music, since that way you can guarantee that each song is exactly the version you want. All CDs are returned to you when your DVD is finished. For information about the legality of using music in your slideshow, please see our Slideshow FAQ.

Most important: Please provide enough music for the number of photos you have! That means 6 seconds of music per photo, or at least 1 minute of music for every 10 photos.

Additional options

Adding a Scene Selections menu is $20 and features full-motion video buttons showing chapters that you select. Eight chapter stops of your choice are included on the scenes menu. Additional chapter stops can be added for only $2 each. Indicate your preferred chapter stops and their titles on your order form by marking the photo number at which they should occur. You may also write brief captions for your chapters, which will appear next to the buttons on the menu. A Scene Selections menu is often beneficial for lengthy slideshows (20+ minutes).

You may specify that one of your slideshow's songs be used for the Main Menu as well. This is absolutely free! Simply indicate this preference on the order form. (If you desire a different song for the Main Menu, there is an additional $5 cost.)

We also offer a Restored Photo CD, which is a CD that contains all of your optimized photos, for only $20. Your photos will be saved as high-resolution JPEGs and can be printed out on your home printer. The Restored Photo CD is a valuable backup for cherished family photos, as well as an easy way to obtain copies of photos that we have optimized to look their best.

Would family members enjoy having a copy of your DVD? Copies are available for only $12, and ordering more than 9 copies entails even further discounts. All copies are absolutely identical to the original in every way.

Select a Theme for your DVD.

Every Timeless DVD includes a selection of one of our Themes. Each Theme includes a Main Menu, color DVD cover, and disc design. If you are adding a scenes menu, that is also included in the Theme. Most Themes include a photo of your choice, which appears on the menu, cover, and disc.

Browse through our Themes Gallery, or request a copy of our printed Themes Catalog. If you're unsure about selecting a Theme, you may check the box on the form asking us to select the Theme that best complements your project and/or photo.

Consider what photo you want to use for the cover. Our Themes are sorted by general photo shape. Choose a photo that is clear and best represents your slideshow. (When we begin constructing your DVD, we may contact you if your photo shape does not work with the Theme you have selected.)

On the order form, you may also indicate which of our 16 DVD case colors and styles you wish to order. Available cases are shown on our Themes Gallery page. Most customers prefer a black case, which looks great with most projects, and if this is what you prefer, you may leave this line blank. However, if planned properly with the Theme, a color case can look very distinctive.

Finally, you may also indicate on your order form any color preferences you have for your Theme design. We adjust most Themes to match the colors in your photo, but this option is helpful for certain occasions, such as a reception slideshow for a wedding that features a certain color palette.

Write a title for your DVD.

A title of your choice appears on the Main Menu, DVD cover, and disc. Your title can be two lines of text. Most customers prefer to have a main headline title and a smaller subhead, which is frequently a date. A sample title is shown at the left.

Fill out the Photo Slideshow Order Form.

You can indicate all your instructions for your DVD on our easy ordering form, including which songs go with which groups of photos, titles and captions, video clip information, chapters for the optional scenes menu, and copies. The order form is available at the top of this page as a downloadable PDF. Just contact us if you would like us to mail a printed copy to you instead.

If you run out of room on the order form for information about any item, download and fill out our DVD Photo Slideshow–Extra Space Form (available as a PDF at the top of this page). There is no limit to the extent of special instructions you can give us for songs or photos or anything else! The more information you provide, the easier it will be for us to create your perfect DVD slideshow.

Don't forget to indicate the make and model of your DVD player on your order form! We research your DVD player before finishing your project to make sure the DVD will play correctly for you. This is an extra measure of service that few other DVD services provide, but we think it is essential to avoiding any potential problems.

If you have any questions, please visit our General FAQ or Photo Slideshow FAQ. And don't hesitate to contact us if you have unanswered questions. We're happy to help! If you are confused by anything on the order form, feel free to write out your instructions in a way that makes sense to you on a piece of paper. If we have questions, we'll ask.

Payment Information

Please include full payment with your order. Due to the time and labor involved in creating our DVD slideshows, payment in full is required before DVD production can begin. We accept personal checks, major credit cards, and PayPal. Make checks payable to "Timeless DVD." For credit cards, we accept MasterCard, Visa, Discover, and American Express.

You may also use PayPal. Mark this as your preferred payment choice on your order form, and include the e-mail address that PayPal has on file for your account. We will e-mail a PayPal request to you for the total amount when we receive your order. Please note that you must complete your payment through PayPal before we can begin work on your DVD.

Mail your order to us!

Please include your photos, CDs, videotapes, order form, and payment, and use the mailing address that's on the bottom of the order form.

For safe shipping, make sure to pack your project as carefully as possible to avoid any damage. As mentioned above, place your photos into Ziploc bags to seal out moisture. If you used paper envelopes to organize your photos, put the envelopes into a large single Zip-lock bag. Then place the baggies between layers of cardboard to protect them. If you are enclosing 5x7s or 8x10s, definitely use cardboard to avoid bending photos.

If you are including videotapes, we recommend first placing your tapes in a Ziploc plastic bag to seal out moisture. Then, wrap your tapes with bubble wrap before putting them in your envelope or box.

Finally, tightly pack all of your materials in a padded or reinforced envelope or sturdy box. All of these steps add an extra buffer of protection.

In addition, we strongly recommend sending your package via a trackable shipping carrier such as UPS, FedEx, or USPS with tracking service. We have never lost a package using these services!

We realize that your photos and tapes are irreplaceable and we handle your materials with the highest attention and care. However, we cannot be held responsible for any damage that occurs during the shipping process. This is why we encourage you to pack your project correctly and send it via trackable shipping. We will do the same when we send your completed project back to you.

If you live in the suburban Philadelphia area, you also have the option of requesting pickup or dropoff service. This service includes Bucks, Montgomery, Delaware, Chester, and parts of Philadelphia county. Because of traffic and parking costs, we are not able to offer this service in Center City Philadelphia, but we will meet you at a location between the city and Lansdale.

A third option is for you to drop off your order at our Lansdale, PA studio. Please note that this is only offered as a final option. Available times for meeting in our studio are extremely limited, so it may be a week or more before we can set up an appointment for you. For that reason, we urge you to either mail your project or request our local pickup service instead.

Our turn!

If you wish, you can e-mail or call us when you've sent your order so we know to watch for it. In any case, we'll e-mail or call to let you know that your materials were received. Then we'll get to work. If your order form raises a question, we'll be back in touch.

We ask that you allow 3-4 weeks for turnaround for a DVD Photo Slideshow.

If your order requires a specific due date or you need your project to be completed in less than 1 week (a rush order), please contact us before sending your order. We only guarantee a desired due date if we have confirmed to you that your project will fit into our production schedule (prior to project submission).

If you have changes to make to your slideshow after we've started work, please e-mail or call as soon as possible. Depending on how close to the finish date we are, the changes may affect your deadline.

All finished!

We'll mail your Timeless DVD with your personalized slideshow and all original materials back to you! We pack orders carefully with bubble wrap and use a trackable carrier for the most safe shipping possible. When the order has been sent, we will e-mail you with tracking info, and we will also check with you to make sure that your package arrives safely.

If you live near Lansdale, PA or you're local to suburban Philadelphia, we can arrange delivery options. As with project pickup, we offer free delivery of a finished project in the general area.

Then . . . enjoy the show! And don't forget, your satisfaction is guaranteed. If there is a problem with your slideshow, please let us know as soon as you can. We will make every reasonable effort to solve the issue for you.

P.S. We keep a copy of your slideshow in our archives, just in case you need an additional copy after your order has been completed. Just e-mail us and let us know! We can even send DVD copies directly to relatives' and friends' addresses to save you both time and postage!