Put a name behind the person in your photo, in big letters.
This is Addy. One photo from a busy café, one minute in WallyPaper, and her name sits behind her on the Lock Screen like a magazine cover. It works the same with your kids, your partner, your best friend or the dog. Every step happens on the iPhone; the photo is never uploaded.
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Start with any photo, even a busy one.
This is the photo we started from: Addy at a café table by the window, with the counter, a chalkboard and a room full of people behind her. No cropping, no editing, no tracing around her first.
Open WallyPaper and tap Choose a Photo, or Take a Photo for a new one. We started this one from the Photos app: open the photo, tap Share, then WallyPaper, then Make Wallpaper.
Best results: their face clearly in view, reasonably close, and well lit. Window light, like this one, is ideal.
Before: a café table, a window and a room full of people. -
WallyPaper lifts Addy out of the photo. Automatically.
A second later, the café is gone. WallyPaper finds Addy in the photo, lifts her off the background and places her with her face in view, below the clock and clear of the Lock Screen controls. That leaves room above her head for the name.
This runs on your iPhone with Apple's Vision framework, so the photo never leaves your phone. Turn on Lock Screen preview to see the time and buttons over your design while you work.
Then pick a look. For Addy we tapped the Love template: the word LOVE in giant letters, fading from green to blue. Or open the Background tab and pick a solid, gradient, mesh or holiday theme.
The editor, right after the lift: Addy on a plain backdrop, templates along the bottom. -
Type her name and tap Behind.
Open the Name tab and type a name or nickname. Tap Behind, and the letters move behind her. Push the size slider up, then drag the name down until her hair overlaps the bottom of the letters. That overlap is what makes it look like she's in front of her name. Pinch to fine-tune the size.
You can drag and pinch the person too. Addy is a little bigger here than right after the lift, so her shoulders fill the bottom of the screen.
For Addy we picked the Editorial style (a magazine serif), Bold, the Plain effect and a custom gold to match her sweater. Behind works with every style and effect.
The Name tab: Addy in Editorial, Bold and gold, with Behind on. -
Ta-da! Set it as your Lock Screen.
Tap Share, then Set as Wallpaper. WallyPaper renders the wallpaper at your iPhone's exact screen size and saves it to Photos, then shows you the last step: in Photos, tap Share, then Use as Wallpaper, then Add. The clock lands in the space above her name.
The wallpaper is also saved in your WallyPaper library, so you can reopen it to try a new color, a nickname or a different backdrop.
Addy on the Lock Screen, with her name behind her.
Try it with your own photo.
Your partner, your kids, your best friend, the dog, or you. Three things make the name-behind look work:
Face in view
WallyPaper places the face below the clock, so a photo where the face is visible, reasonably close and well lit gives it the most to work with.
A little overlap
Drag the name down until their hair or shoulders cover the bottom of the letters. That's what makes the name look like it's behind them, not just above them.
Short and big
At the top of the size slider, about three capitals fill the screen. Short names and nicknames get the biggest letters.
WallyPaper is free to download, needs no account, and never uploads your photos. See Benji's baby walkthrough, browse more walkthroughs, or get help.
Names behind photos, answered.
How do I put my son's or daughter's name behind them on the Lock Screen?
The same way as Addy's. Choose their photo in WallyPaper, open the Name tab, type their name and tap Behind. WallyPaper lifts your child out of the photo and puts their name between them and the background. Benji's walkthrough shows it with a baby.
How big can the name be?
At the top of the size slider, about three capital letters fill the screen from side to side. Names can be up to 20 characters; shorter names and nicknames fill the screen best.
Can the iPhone do this without an app?
Not quite. When a photo suits it, the Lock Screen's depth effect can tuck the clock behind the person, but iOS has no setting for putting your own words behind them. WallyPaper does that part, then you set the result as your wallpaper in Photos.
Is it free?
WallyPaper is free to download, and wallpapers made with the free version carry a small WallyPaper mark near the bottom. WallyPaper Pro removes it and unlocks the whole app: $2.99 a month, $19.99 a year with a 7-day free trial for new subscribers, or $29.99 once. More about Pro, in Support.
Does WallyPaper upload my photo?
No. The person is lifted from the photo on your iPhone by Apple's Vision framework, and the app makes no network connections of its own. There is no account, no analytics and no tracking. Read the privacy policy.
Does it work with two people, or the dog?
Yes. The name goes behind everyone WallyPaper lifts out of the photo, so it works for a couple, siblings, or a kid and the dog. Charlie's walkthrough shows it with a puppy.
Which iPhones does it work on?
Any iPhone with iOS 18 or later. It works offline; only App Store purchases need a connection.