How to Create a Professional Paint-by-Number Image (Step-by-Step Guide)

Want to turn a photo into a professional paint-by-number template? In this guide, you'll learn how to prepare your image, convert it into a clean vector, and automatically add paint-by-number numbering for printing and painting.

Step 1: Prepare Your Image

Start by opening your image in Photoshop or any photo editing software.

Remove unnecessary details by applying a slight blur to background elements and areas that don't contribute to the final painting. This helps simplify the image and creates cleaner paint regions later in the process.

Next, adjust the image settings to enhance the most important colors, especially those found in the main subject. Increasing contrast and color separation will improve the quality of the vector conversion.

Step 2: Convert the Image to a Vector

Import your edited image into Vector Magic.

Select the Custom Advanced option and set the color count to 24 colors. You'll be presented with three vectorization modes:

Low
Medium
High

Choose the option that produces the best balance between detail and simplicity for your image.

Vector Magic will generate a preview, allowing you to see how the vectorized artwork will look before continuing.

Step 3: Adjust Image Complexity

Move to the next step and adjust the complexity slider.

Increasing complexity creates more shapes and finer details, while reducing complexity produces larger paint areas and a simpler painting experience.

Experiment with different settings until you achieve the desired result.

Step 4: Refine the Vector Artwork

Use Vector Magic's editing tools to clean up any areas that need improvement.

Useful tools include:

Pencil Tool
Bucket Tool
Pen Tool

These tools allow you to fix shapes, merge regions, remove unwanted artifacts, and improve the overall quality of the vector artwork.

Step 5: Edit in Adobe Illustrator

Once you're happy with the vector, export it as an .ai file and open it in Adobe Illustrator.

At this stage, you can:

Apply your preferred color palette by going into Edit>Edit Color>Recolor Artwork>In the pallete icon choose you color pallete.
Simplify or merge shapes
Adjust paths and outlines
Make final design improvements

A clean vector file will produce a much better paint-by-number result.

Step 6: Generate the Paint-by-Number Template

Upload your finished vector artwork to Number My Paint.

The platform automatically:

Converts the artwork into a paint-by-number template
Places numbers inside each paint region
Generates a printable PDF
Creates a color reference sheet
Produces a complete color report

This eliminates the need to manually place hundreds of numbers inside your artwork.

That's it!

You now have a professionally created custom paint-by-number image ready for printing, painting, or selling as a paint-by-number kit.

Whether you're creating artwork for personal use, gifts, or commercial projects, this workflow provides a fast and efficient way to transform any photo into a high-quality paint-by-number design.