Privacy for parents
Is it safe to upload my child's photo to an AI?
That depends on who receives the photo, what it is used for and how long it is kept. Here is what you can check with any provider, and how Sagalino handles photos: there, a photo is optional.
A character can start from a description
Read the whole story for free
All 14 double pages, the hero and the cover are yours to see before you buy: you only pay if you love the story.
Photo optional
A short description is enough for a lovely hero. Whether you add a photo is up to you. GDPR-compliant.
Illustration styles to choose from
Many styles from the picture-book tradition, from watercolour to ligne claire, kept from the first page to the last.
What happens to a photo in AI book services
In most AI services for personalised children's books, an uploaded photo is sent over the internet to an image model that turns it into a drawn character. Providers differ in whether a photo is needed at all, where it is sent, how long copies are kept and whether inputs may be used to train models. The answers are in the provider's privacy policy, often in more detail than in the advertising.
Six questions you can ask any provider:
1. Is a photo required? If the book can be made without one, you never have to make the decision. That settles the other questions.
2. Is the photo used to train AI models? Search the privacy policy for the word “training”. Either there is a clear statement, or there isn't, and then it is worth asking.
3. Where is the photo processed? In the EU, or in a third country such as the United States? For a third country, the policy should say on what basis the data is transferred, for example standard contractual clauses.
4. How long is the photo stored? Ideally the original is deleted as soon as the portrait has been created. Even a photo that never appears in the finished book is personal data about your child.
5. Can you have everything deleted? Under the GDPR you have a right to erasure. Check whether the provider gives an address for requests, and whether the book and the details about the child are included.
6. Can you see the result before you pay? If you see the story and the portrait first, you can stop when it doesn't suit you, having paid nothing.
Also, only upload photos of people who have consented, or whose parents or guardians have consented.
How Sagalino handles photos, September 2026
- Photo
- Optional. A short description of each character is enough, and the book is just as complete.
- What a photo is for
- Only to create a drawn portrait: no facial recognition, no comparison with other people, no advertising.
- Training AI models
- Under the contract terms of OpenRouter and the model operators, your input and the content created are not used to train AI models.
- Processing
- The creation request goes to OpenRouter, Inc. (USA) and from there to the model operator, also in the USA, on the basis of the European Commission's standard contractual clauses. Your email address, payment details and delivery address are not passed on.
- How long it is kept
- The original photo is deleted as soon as the portrait has been created. OpenRouter doesn't store the content permanently; model operators may keep it for a limited time to prevent abuse. Finished books are available for 12 months and then deleted.
- Deletion
- On request, we delete your book and all the details about the child. You can withdraw consent for a photo at any time.
- Before you pay
- The whole story over all 14 double pages, the hero's portrait, the first scenes and the cover, for free.
How a book comes to life from a description alone is explained on the page personalised book without a photo.
All the details, with legal bases and retention periods, are in our privacy policy.
Three steps to your book
No risk: you read the whole story before you pay anything.
- 1
Describe
30 seconds
Tell us about the main character in a few words: name, looks, what they love. No photo needed.
- 2
Read for free
6 to 8 minutes
We prepare the story, the hero and the cover, and you read everything for free before you decide.
- 3
Give
eBook £4.50
Love the story? After you buy, you confirm your characters, then we paint every page in about half an hour. You can order the hardcover at the same time or later, and the eBook price is fully credited.
Simple and clear
No subscription, no hidden costs, and the preview is always free.
eBook · on screen and as a PDF
£4.50
14 illustrated double pages, ready about half an hour after you buy.
Hardcover · printed in the EU or the US
£37.90+ £5.90 delivery to the United Kingdom
Quality printing in the EU, or in the US for US orders, and the price of your eBook is fully credited.
You read the whole story for free first, and only pay if you love it.
Good to know
Is it safe to upload a photo of my child to an AI?
That depends on the provider. Check whether the photo is required, whether it is used for training, where it is processed, how long it is kept and whether you can have it deleted. You share the least when no photo is needed at all, as at Sagalino.
Does Sagalino need a photo of my child?
No. You describe your child in a few words: hair, eyes, hairstyle, favourite outfit, anything distinctive like glasses. You can add a photo if you like, so the portrait looks more like your child.
Is the photo used to train AI models?
Under the contract terms of OpenRouter and the model operators, your input and the content created are not used to train AI models. Our privacy policy says the same.
What happens to the photo after the portrait is created?
The original you uploaded is deleted. Only the drawn portrait is then used as the model for the other pictures. On request, we also delete the book and all the details about the child.
Your child as the hero, described in your own words
Preview in 6 to 8 minutes. Free. Photo optional.
Create a book without a photo