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How to turn a photo of someone into a life-size cut-out in your room

Updated 29 October 2026 · About 5 minutes

Short answer: CutoutXR cuts a person out of a single photo and stands them, life-size, on your floor in augmented reality. With the free Mac app you see them in a Meta Quest headset, in passthrough or VR, and CutoutXR Pro can give the figure real 3D depth. With CutoutXR for iPhone and iPad (coming to the App Store in late 2026) you see them through the iPhone or iPad camera, no headset needed. Everything happens on your own device; the photo is never uploaded.

What people use it for

• Remembering someone: a grandparent or parent who has passed, standing in the living room again at their real height.
• Family history: bring an old print (scan it or photograph it with your phone) into the room for a family gathering.
• A life-size cut-out without printing one: a graduate, the guest of honour at a party, a sports team.
• Pose and form reference: a photo of an exercise or a dance position you can walk around (3D with Pro).

Steps

1. Pick the photo. On a Mac, drop it into CutoutXR: JPEG, PNG, HEIC, WebP, TIFF and more. On an iPhone or iPad, pick it from Photos.
2. Click or tap the person. On-device AI separates them from the background. For a second person, click them too on a Mac, or tap Add someone else on iPhone or iPad.
3. Check the outline. Look over the edges and add a click anywhere the outline needs fixing.
4. Make the cut-out. A photo makes a still, standing cut-out. On a Mac, CutoutXR Pro can also make it a 3D figure with depth worked out by AI, so it stands out as you walk around it; the free version gives a 3D preview with a small mark.
5. See them in your room. On a Quest, open CutoutXR in the Quest Browser and press Enter AR (see the Quest guide). On iPhone or iPad, point the camera at the floor. Move them where you want and set their size.

Choosing the best photo

• Head to toe gives a full standing figure. A head-and-shoulders portrait works too, but looks like a portrait rather than a person standing on your floor.
• Sharper is better. For an old print, scan it or photograph it flat, in even light, without glare.
• Clear edges help: a person who stands apart from the background is easier to cut out than one half-hidden behind others.

Making an old photo move

A photo makes a still cut-out. If you'd like them to move, some people first animate the photo in a separate photo-animation app, then cut out that short video in CutoutXR, as in the "Just 1 more minute with Nanny" demo on the home page: a decade-old photo of a grandmother, animated, cut out, and walking up for a hug in a living room. Only do this with photos you have the right to use, and with care for the family.

Questions

Is it a real hologram?

No. It's an augmented-reality cut-out: you see it through a headset's passthrough or a phone or tablet camera, standing in your real room. Nothing is projected into the air. People often call it a hologram because that's how it feels.

Are my photos uploaded?

No. CutoutXR does everything on your own Mac, iPhone or iPad. Your photos and cut-outs are never uploaded, and there's no account.

Can I share it with family?

On iPhone or iPad, send the cut-out with Messages or AirDrop; anyone with the free app can open it. On a Mac, the family can take turns watching on the Quest, and you can export the cut-out as a transparent or green-screen video.

More: put a person from a video into Quest passthrough · what is an AR cut-out?