What is a contact sheet template?

A saved set of layout settings — page size and orientation, how many columns and rows, what the labels show, and whether the page carries a header and footer. Picking a template means you start from a grid that already suits the job instead of setting eight numbers from scratch.

Is there a free contact sheet template?

Yes. Every template here is free to open and export, with no account. Pick one, add your photos, and download the PDF; every setting stays adjustable afterwards.

Can I make my own template?

Open any template, change the grid, labels, and page furniture to suit, and save it as a project on a Pro plan. Saved brand presets keep your watermark, header, and footer consistent across every sheet you make.

How many photos fit on an A4 contact sheet?

Between 6 and 48, depending on the grid. Twelve to twenty frames a page keeps each one large enough to judge focus and expression; 35 to 48 turns the sheet into a reference index for finding a frame you already know exists.

Templates

Free photography contact sheet templates

Six layouts for the jobs contact sheets actually get used for — wedding proofs, headshots, property, film, and editorial selects. Open one, drop your photos in, and download a print-ready PDF. Every setting stays adjustable, nothing is uploaded, and no account is needed.

Property listing

Three across on landscape pages, cropped to a consistent size so every room reads at a glance.

Grid: 3 × 2
Per page: 6 frames
Orientation: Landscape
Labels: Filenames, no extension
Page furniture: header, footer

Open this template Property contact sheets

Property contact sheet

A dense grid of every frame from the shoot, for picking the listing set with an agent.

Grid: 4 × 6
Per page: 24 frames
Orientation: Portrait
Labels: Filenames, no extension
Page furniture: header, frame numbers

Open this template Property contact sheets

Wedding proofs

Five across with filenames kept visible, sized for a client to mark selects on paper.

Grid: 5 × 7
Per page: 35 frames
Orientation: Portrait
Labels: Filenames
Page furniture: header, footer, frame numbers

Open this template How to proof a wedding

Editorial selects

Large frames, generous margins, no filenames. For presenting a shortlist rather than reviewing one.

Grid: 2 × 2
Per page: 4 frames
Orientation: Landscape
Labels: None
Page furniture: header

Open this template How to cull a shoot

Headshot proofs

Four across in tall cells, every frame cropped to the same shape, so a change of expression is the only thing that differs from one to the next.

Grid: 4 × 4
Per page: 16 frames
Orientation: Portrait
Labels: Filenames, no extension
Page furniture: header, frame numbers

Open this template How to send headshot proofs

35mm roll

Six across and six down on a near-black landscape page: one 36-exposure roll per sheet, numbered like the film edge.

Grid: 6 × 6
Per page: 36 frames
Orientation: Landscape
Labels: Filenames, no extension
Page furniture: header, frame numbers

Open this template Contact sheets from film

Which paper size

A4 and US Letter hold the same grids at almost the same size, so a sheet built for one prints acceptably on the other. Pick by where the client is, not by the shoot.

Paper	Size	Grids that work	Frames
A4	210 × 297mm	4 × 5 or 5 × 7 portrait	20 – 35	The default in the UK, Europe, and most of the world.
US Letter	216 × 279mm	4 × 5 or 5 × 6 portrait	20 – 30	North America. Slightly wider and shorter than A4.
A3	297 × 420mm	6 × 8 portrait	48	For a wall, or a full take reviewed in a studio.

Picking the density

The only question that matters is whether somebody has to decide from the sheet or only find something on it. Deciding needs 20 frames a page or fewer — below that size it gets hard to judge focus and expression. Finding can go to 48, because recognition survives at thumbnail size when choice does not.

If the sheet is going to be printed and marked up with a pen, widen the page margin to around 28–32px. People need somewhere to put a tick that is not on top of a photograph. The full walkthrough covers the rest of the settings.

Common questions

What is a contact sheet template?: A saved set of layout settings — page size and orientation, how many columns and rows, what the labels show, and whether the page carries a header and footer. Picking a template means you start from a grid that already suits the job instead of setting eight numbers from scratch.
What size should a contact sheet be?: A4 in the UK and Europe, US Letter in North America. Both hold the same grids at almost the same size, so a sheet built for one prints acceptably on the other. Use A3 only when the sheet is going on a wall.
Is there a free contact sheet template?: Yes. Every template here is free to open and export, with no account. Pick one, add your photos, and download the PDF; every setting stays adjustable afterwards.
Can I make my own template?: Open any template, change the grid, labels, and page furniture to suit, and save it as a project on a Pro plan. Saved brand presets keep your watermark, header, and footer consistent across every sheet you make.
How many photos fit on an A4 contact sheet?: Between 6 and 48, depending on the grid. Twelve to twenty frames a page keeps each one large enough to judge focus and expression; 35 to 48 turns the sheet into a reference index for finding a frame you already know exists.

Start from a blank grid instead

The templates are a starting point, not a constraint. Open the editor directly and set the columns, rows, labels, and page furniture yourself. Making a collage rather than a contact sheet? There are photo collage templates too.

Open the contact sheet maker