A photo round puts things from the physical room onto the canvas: a whiteboard sketch, a paper worksheet, a wall of stickies. When you open a round, everyone who can add images sees their own QR code. They scan it, take a photo, and it lands on the canvas.
Quick links: Start a round | If you're a participant | Troubleshooting
Starting a Photo Round
Hosts and facilitators can open a round. It's off by default.
- Click More settings (⋯) in the bottom-left.
- Under Space Settings, switch on Ask everyone for a photo.
Result: A Send a photo from your phone panel appears in the bottom-right corner of the canvas for everyone who can add images to the board they're on. That includes you.
You don't need to hand out a link or ask people to click anything. The round itself is the prompt.
Who Sees a QR Code
A person gets a QR code only if they could add an image to their current board anyway:
| Situation | QR code? |
|---|---|
| Hosts and facilitators | Yes |
| Participants on a Collaborate board | Yes |
| Participants on a Custom board with the image tool allowed | Yes |
| Participants on a Present or Brainstorm board | No |
| Anyone while the space is in Conference mode | No |
See Board Modes for what each mode allows.
Where Photos Land
Each photo lands in the middle of whatever the sender was looking at on the canvas when their QR code was made. It lands on the board they were viewing at the time.
- Photos are sized like any other image you add to the canvas, so a phone photo won't swamp the canvas.
- If a spot is already taken, the next photo steps slightly down and to the right, so a run of photos cascades instead of stacking on top of each other.
- Everyone in the space sees each photo appear, like any other element.
- The photo is added under the name of the person whose QR code was used.
Tip: Before you open the round, ask people to pan to an empty patch of canvas. That way photos don't land on top of existing work.
Ending a Round
Switch Ask everyone for a photo off again in More settings (⋯). Everyone's panel disappears at once.
Ending the round also shuts off uploads right away. That includes codes someone has already scanned but hasn't sent yet. Photos that already landed stay on the canvas.
Note: There's no built-in time limit. The round stays open until you close it, so remember to switch it off when you're done.
Rounds and Breakout Rooms
Photo rounds belong to the main room. While breakout rooms are running, the panel is hidden and no new codes are made. The round picks up again when breakouts end, if you haven't switched it off.
If someone scanned a code before breakouts started, they can still send that photo.
Limits
| Limit | Details |
|---|---|
| Photos per code | One. Send another makes a fresh code |
| Code lifetime | About 10 minutes. While the round is open, an unused code is swapped for a fresh one before it runs out, so the code on screen always works |
| New codes per person | Up to 20 in a 10-minute window |
You don't need to worry about photo size. The phone shrinks each photo (to 2,000 pixels on its longest side) before sending it. If the phone's browser can't do that, for example with an iPhone HEIC photo in Chrome, Kolab converts it when it arrives. The upload limit for that case is 10 MB, and Kolab accepts JPEG, PNG, WebP, and HEIC.
Privacy and Safety
- Only uploads while the round is open. A code stops working as soon as you close the round, even if someone already scanned it.
- Each QR code is personal. It only appears on the screen of the person it was made for. The round never sends codes to other people.
- Codes are single-use and short-lived. Once a code is used or runs out, scanning it again shows This code has run out.
- Location data is removed. Every photo is re-encoded before it's stored, which removes the embedded metadata (such as where it was taken).
- The phone never signs in. The phone doesn't need a Kolab account, and it never gets access to your space or the canvas. It can only send one photo to one spot.
- Access is checked when the photo is sent, not just when the code is made. Kolab checks again when the photo arrives: can this person still add images to the board? Is the round still open? Is the space out of Conference mode? If any answer is no, the photo is refused.
Note: A QR code works for whoever scans it first. If you're sharing your screen during a round, someone watching could scan your code, and their photo would land under your name. If that matters, close your panel (✕) before you share. Reload the page to get your panel back.
If You're a Participant
When your facilitator starts a photo round, a Send a photo from your phone panel appears in the bottom-right of your screen.
- Point your phone camera at the QR code on your screen and open the link.
- Tap Take a photo. It opens your camera.
- Snap your sketch, worksheet, or sticky wall.
Result: Your phone shows Sent, and your screen shows Nice — it landed on the board. with a preview. The photo appears in the middle of what you were looking at on the canvas.
Want to add more? Click Send another on your screen and scan the new code. Each code sends one photo.
Tip: Your photo lands where you were looking when your code appeared, not when you scan it. To aim your next photo, pan first, then click Send another.
Don't want to take part? Click ✕ to close the panel. It stays closed until you reload the page or your facilitator starts a new round.
Troubleshooting
"This code has run out" on my phone
The code was already used, timed out, or the round closed. You'll also see this if a photo reached Kolab but couldn't be added. If the round is still open, reload Kolab on your computer to get a fresh code, then scan again.
"That photo is too large"
This is rare, because the phone usually shrinks photos before sending. It can happen with a very large photo the phone's browser couldn't shrink, such as an iPhone HEIC photo in Chrome. Tap Try again and pick a smaller photo. Your code still works.
"That file is not a photo we can use"
Photos from your camera work. Videos and other kinds of files don't. Tap Try again and take a photo instead.
"Too many photos arriving at once. Try again."
Lots of people sent photos at the same moment. Wait a few seconds and tap Try again on your phone. Your code still works.
"Too many upload codes at once. Try again in a few minutes."
You've made more than 20 codes in 10 minutes. This usually happens after lots of Send another clicks or reloads. Wait a few minutes, then click Try again in the panel.
I don't see a QR code
- Check that the round is open. Only a host or facilitator can start one.
- Check your board's mode. Present and Brainstorm boards don't allow participants to add images.
- Photo rounds don't show QR codes in Conference mode or during breakouts.
- If you closed the panel with ✕, reload the page to bring it back.
Related Guides
- Board Modes - Control which participants can add images to each board
- Space Modes Explained - Why rounds don't run in Conference mode
- Using Breakout Rooms - How breakouts pause a photo round
- Settings & Preferences - Other switches in the space settings menu