A guest is stuck?

Nine times out of ten, a guest who is stuck is stuck for one of the reasons below, and the fix takes less than a minute. Keep this page handy on the day: it is designed to be forwarded as is to anyone who gets stuck.

1. “The camera won’t open”: the page is open inside Instagram or Messenger

This is by far the most common problem. When you tap a link in Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, TikTok or Snapchat, the page opens in a mini browser built into the app, not in the real browser. These mini browsers often block access to the camera.

The fix: tap the three dots “…” (or the little arrow) at the top or bottom of the screen, then “Open in browser”: Safari on iPhone, Chrome on Android. Everything then works as normal.

Most of the time, you won’t have to do anything. Time to Flash recognises these mini browsers, but it doesn’t give up on them: some of them allow the camera perfectly well. So it tries, and switches automatically to the phone’s own camera if the live preview doesn’t open. The guest then sees a line under the viewfinder, “tap the shutter button and your phone’s camera will open”, and their photos go into the album exactly like everyone else’s.

In other words, don’t expect your guests to see a warning: there isn’t one, because nothing is broken. Instructions only appear if the camera has been explicitly refused, and they then explain what to do (see the next point).

The only real exception, on Android: QR code scanner apps. Many guests don’t scan with their phone’s camera but with a dedicated app downloaded from the Play Store. That app then shows the page in its own window, which is allowed neither to open the camera nor to launch the phone’s camera app: the shutter button stops responding, without any message. Time to Flash recognises this case and offers an “Open in Chrome” button (and, if that isn’t enough, a way to copy the link and paste it into Chrome).

The instruction to give, in one sentence: “scan with your phone’s camera, not with a QR code app”. The camera hands the link over to the real browser, and everything works first time.

2. “Permission denied”: the camera was blocked by mistake

One “Don’t allow” tapped too quickly on the permission request, and the browser remembers it. You need to make it forget.

On iPhone (Safari): tap “aA” to the left of the address → Website Settings → Camera → Allow.

On Android (Chrome): tap the padlock 🔒 to the left of the address → Permissions → Camera → Allow.

Then reload the page. If this feels too complicated to explain over the music: the central button opens the phone’s own camera, and that works too.

3. “The QR code won’t scan”

An old phone, a temperamental camera, dim lighting at the end of the evening. Rather than keep trying: scan the code with another phone, then send the resulting link to the person by message. The link works exactly like the QR code.

A tip to avoid this: on cards set out at the end of the meal, the lights go down. Place a few of them near light sources.

4. “My photos won’t send”: the venue’s network

The classic: an isolated venue, or two hundred people on the same mobile mast. It isn’t the app, it’s the network.

What you need to know: the photo is taken immediately, and the upload happens afterwards. If it gets stuck, just stay on the page for a few seconds, or try again a little further away: near a window, or outside.

For the host: if you know the venue, share the wifi password along with the QR code. It’s the one thing that saves the most frustration.

5. “I can’t find my photos”

They are in “My album”, the stack of thumbnails at the bottom left of the camera. Tap it to open the album, with the counter of shots left and the option to delete a dud.

A useful reminder to pass on: a guest only sees their own photos. They will only see everyone else’s at the reveal. It isn’t a bug, it’s the whole idea.

6. “I’ve lost the link”

Just scan the QR code again: the phone is recognised, the photos already taken are still there, and the counter picks up where it left off.

If the guest has already gone home, tell them to look in their browser history, or simply send them the invitation link again.

7. “Film roll full”

The quota has been reached. Two options: delete a dud photo from “My album” (the space frees up straight away) or, if you have enabled top-ups, claim the bonus shots offered on screen.

However, the total will never go over the limit you set. That’s deliberate: it’s what makes people aim rather than fire away.

8. “Two of us are sharing one phone”

A situation nobody thinks of until it happens: a couple with only one phone, or someone lending theirs.

Time to Flash recognises a phone, not a person. Two guests taking photos from the same device share the same film roll and the same counter. There is no workaround: it’s what makes it possible to ask for no account and no password.

If that’s a problem, one of them can open the link in another browser on the phone (Chrome instead of Safari, for example): they will be counted as a new guest.

9. “I’ve lost everything”: private browsing

In private browsing, the phone forgets everything as soon as the tab is closed. The guest then starts again from scratch, with a fresh counter, and their earlier photos are no longer linked to them.

Reassure them: photos already sent are not lost, they are in the album and will appear at the reveal. Only access to “My album” is broken. From now on, tell them to open the link in normal browsing.

And for you, the host

“The album didn’t open at the scheduled time”

If more guests than planned have scanned, the reveal waits until you switch to the matching plan. Your dashboard tells you so, with the exact amount of the difference: you never pay twice for what you have already paid. No photo is lost in the meantime.

“I’m not receiving the emails”

Check your spam folder, and add our address to your contacts. Your dashboard remains accessible from the link in the creation email: keep it.

A problem that isn’t on this list? Write to us at support@timetoflash.fr, and for everything else, there is the host’s guide.