The Ninth Salon Journal · By Sophie, founder · Published 19 August 2026
You have a photo that matters and you want it as a painting. There are three real ways to get there, priced from zero to eight hundred euros. Here is what each one actually delivers, plus the four things to check before paying, whichever route you take.
A hand-painted oil portrait typically runs €300–800 (far more for a known artist) and takes two to six weeks. In exchange: a unique physical artwork with real paint on real canvas. The right choice for a big occasion and a big budget. The limits are obvious: price, delay, and a result you only discover at the end.
Free or nearly, and instant. But a filter does not paint: it drapes one uniform effect over your pixels. Faces warp, backgrounds turn to mush, and the resolution rarely survives printing. Fine for a social avatar; disappointing the moment you want it on a wall.
Image generation changed the equation: minutes, a few euros, and a result that genuinely reinterprets light and texture instead of stamping an effect. The entire difference between a good and a bad service is one word: likeness. A portrait you don't recognise yourself in is not a portrait.
1. Likeness. Insist on seeing the result before paying. If a service won't show you, walk away.
2. Resolution. For printing you need at least 2,000 pixels wide. For screens, anything goes.
3. Rights and privacy. Who owns the final image? What happens to your photo? Look for full rights to you, original photo deleted after processing.
4. Watermark-free download. The advertised price should include the clean, high-definition file.
We built Ninth Salon as the answer to those four checks: you see the result before any payment, the face stays faithful, you keep all rights, your photo is deleted after processing, and the portrait can arrive printed on canvas, ready to hang. Trying it is free; judge for yourself.