Produced with ceramic toners on ceramic tiles. Our production process guarantees high quality and durability. The photoceramic is ready to be mounted to the tombstone with the use of our special silicone.
Photos on porcelain
What photo should I choose?
The production of photoceramics begins with the photograph provided by our client. The better quality of the original photo, the better result we are able to obtain. Minimum resolution of the input file is 300 dpi, the possible formats are .jpg, .jpeg, .tif, .bmp, .png or the original printed photograph. If you send us a tangible photo or a data carrier, we will send you it back with the produced photoceramic.
Shapes and sizes of photoceramics
Our wide rage of products includes above all stardard porcelain tiles that are most popular among our customers. We also offer convex plaques that are mostly used for reproductions of old photoceramics in the process of gravestone restoration. Our newest addition to the offer are thin plaques that are only 1mm! All of our available shapes and sizes are to be discovered in the "Offer" section of our page. The most popular shape is oval in the size 7x10 or 8x11. All of the sizes are available offhand so there is no additional waiting time for the less popular shapes and formats.
Price of the photoceramic
All the current prices and available formats are posted on the Pricelist page in the main Menu. If you are interested in the business cooperation, please contact our office to receive the offer for partner companies. You can gain access to the discounted prices by registering as a company on our website. If you would like to calculate the price depending on different options, use our online order creator that shows the dynamic changes in price while chooseing different parameters.
Types of photoceramic tiles
Standard ceramic plaques
Standard tiles are produced with modern technologies using pressure molds. These plaques are thinner and flatter then the convex tiles. The process of production of our standard ceramics guarantees the repeatability and the consistency in sizes. The margin of error in the size produced is close to none. The colours and lines on th photos fired on our standard tiles are sharper than on the convex plaques. The standard tile itself is whiter than the convex tile so the same photograph on both these tiles may differ in colour. Our standard plaques guarantee a more precise transfer of the photo in terms of colours and sharp lines but also, there is no spherical distortion.
Standard tiles are most commonly used in our production. The classic shape fits well on most gravestones. This is the best choice for customers who prefer timeless look and neutral and simple solutions.
Convex ceramic tiles
Convex tiles are produced in Poland using the traditional method of pouring the liquid porcelain to the cast moulds. They do not stay consistent in size due to the changes in the mould during the production process. When it comes to convex plaques, the small differences in size are a natural outcome and it does not suggest any fault in the production itself. Please, take this into consideration while ordering a convex tile. This type of ceramic plaques are finished with a harder layer of glaze that give these photoceramics unique character and create an effect of softening the photograph. The lines on the photo seem a bit blurred. Convex plaques are mostly used in the process of renvation an old gravestone where some older photoceramics can be reused and there is a need to renovate only some of those. Convex tiles are than used due to the fact that they resamble the older photoceramics more - especially in shape and thickness. Moreover the colour of convex tiles is more similar to the older, cream-colored plaques. This beige tint is not a flaw but the characteristic feature of this product. Even though some people may not enjoy the warmer tone of convex tiles, many people see the beauty exactly in this quality.
Thin ceramic tiles
Thin tiles are the newest product of OPAL Fotoceramika. The are produced with a durable technical ceramic. This allows for even higher flexibility in choice of the gravestone arrangement due to the minimal thickness of the tile: 1 mm! There is no translucency, even on the darkest gravestones. Our thin plaques fit well with the modern looking memorials. We recommend those tiles for the customers that prefer clean, modern and simple look.
Our selection of tiles can be diveded into those three categories: standard, convex and thin plaques. The thickness of our tiles is as follows: standard - about 7 mm, convex - about 1,2 mm and thin - 1 mm! All of our products have this in common: they are totally resistant to the changing weather conditions!
Each product from Opal Fotoceramika has the moisture absorption under 1% so we can guarantee they are frost resistant. Sunlight, freezing cold and suddent temperature changes do not affect photoceramics produced in Opal Fotoceramika.
Instruction for mounting the photoceramic
The safest mounting method of standard and convex photoceramics that guarantees durability and resistance to atmospheric conditions is to use the technical mounting silicone. In Opal Fotoceramika we include a free tube of the silicone to each colourfull plaque and for individual customers - to each order! You can also purchase additional tubes in our shop.
Mounting instructions:
Why are tombstone photos so durable and resistant?
The most important features of Opal grave porcelain are their low water absorption, the use of professional and specialized ceramic toners, as well as the appropriate technological process with a well-chosen firing curve.
Water absorption
Water absorption is, in other words, the susceptibility of a porcelain tile to absorb water. A simple test to check the absorbability of porcelain is to weigh the tile, immerse it in water for 24 hours and weigh it again after the time has elapsed. What information does this give us? First of all, whether the tile has accepted water, which means that when the temperature changes to negative, the porcelain structure may be at risk of cracking. That is why it is so important that the tombstone photos have the lowest water absorption. Some manufacturers cover the entire porcelain with enamel to minimize the risk of water absorption, but if the porcelain is produced in the right way, this treatment is not necessary. Opal Fotoceramika uses tiles with water absorption below 1%.
Ceramic toners
An important aspect when assessing the durability of grave photographs is the use of ceramic toners, which guarantee the lack of color saturation variability. Many times billboards exposed to the sun fade after a few weeks. How is it that headstone porcelain looks like new even after many years? This is due to the inorganic ceramic toners, which will not lose their colors for years, if they have been properly embedded in the glaze of the tile.
Firing
Porcelain is fired in specialized kilns that reach temperatures of several hundred degrees Celsius. The reason for such a high firing temperature is the need to melt the ceramic paint into the glaze that covers the tile. A properly selected firing curve guarantees a glossy surface of photoceramics, but also a guarantee of color durability. The glaze protects our photo by the occurrence of appropriate reactions between the flux and the toner.
Pictures on porcelain
At Opal Fotoceramika we specialize in the production of photographs on porcelain. To create them, we use ceramic paints that guarantee durability and the highest quality. Gravestone photographs are burned at high temperatures (several hundred degrees). This is due to the need to blend the ceramic paint into the glaze that covers the tile. Most importantly, regardless of weather conditions, photoceramics placed on a tombstone will not lose its aesthetics and beauty for years. Mounting the finished photographs in the selected place on the monument is extremely simple - it can be done with the help of specialized silicone, attached to each porcelain made.
We would like to emphasize that each order is carried out individually by us - we pay great attention to it, bearing in mind the respect and feelings of people who want to keep their deceased loved one in memory. We offer a manufacturer's warranty for the photographs taken commemorating your loved ones.
Professional tombstone photos with short production time
In our offer you will find a wide selection of shapes and formats of tombstone photographs made on porcelain. We can prepare standard tombstone porcelain, but also convex or thin. Thin models are only 1 mm thick, but still you can't see the dark surface of the monument through them - a frequent choice of customers who want to put photos on gravestones with a more modern character. Convex models, on the other hand, are mostly found on older, renovated monuments. Thanks to such a wide offer, you can perfectly match the photo on porcelain to the character and style of the tombstone. What is extremely important, we suggest sending us a high-quality photo of the deceased person. Thanks to this, we will get a much better effect of the photo applied to porcelain. We also offer professional advice on the development of a tombstone photo.
