NewTwos

Write it down

Photo sizes and the gallery

iPhoneiPadAndroidWebMacWindowsLinuxWatchUpdated 2026-08-18

How much room a photo takes up in a list is a setting, not a fixed decision.

Why you'd care

A list of twenty photos at full width is unusable, and a list of one important photo shown as a thumbnail wastes it. The size control is what lets the same feature serve both.

The sizes

SizeLooks likeGood for
SquareA small square thumbnailLong lists where photos are references
NoteA medium inline imageMixed lists of text and pictures
FullFull widthLists that are mostly photos

Set the default in Settings Lists & <i>Things</i> Default photo size, and override it per thing.

Going further

Tap to go full screen. Any photo opens into a viewer you can zoom and swipe through, which is where you actually read a photographed page.

Gallery layout is a different thing. Setting a whole list to the Gallery layout arranges its things as a grid, which is the better answer for a list that is entirely images. See layouts.

Settings that change this

Tips

  • Square is the right default for most people, because most photos are references rather than content.
  • If a list is mostly pictures, change the list's layout rather than every photo's size.