Why do Storypark screenshots come out black?

Storypark screenshots come out black because Storypark has added screenshot protection to its phone apps: if you screenshot a photo in Storypark for Families on an iPhone or Android phone, the image comes out blank. It isn't a fault with your phone, and there's a better way to keep the photos anyway: save the original files on a computer, either with Storypark's own export or with NurseryDownloader.

What changed

Storypark added screenshot protection to its iOS and Android apps in 2026. Storypark's help article says that when someone tries to screenshot an image in the app, the screenshot "will appear blank rather than capturing the image". It covers both Storypark for Families and Storypark for Educators.

A few details from the same article:

• It's for the phone apps only. It doesn't apply to Storypark in a web browser, because it relies on a feature of phone operating systems.
• It's aimed at images. Storypark says it doesn't affect other content such as story text or comments.
• It's a privacy measure. Storypark describes it as an extra layer of protection for the photos shared within your Storypark community. Plenty of nursery photos show a group of children, and screenshots are an easy way for those pictures to travel further than anyone intended. Storypark still recommends sharing images only with people you trust.

You can still keep your own child's photos, though. In its replies to parents on Google Play, Storypark says admin guardians can still save images in full quality rather than taking a screenshot, and offers to show you how at hello@storypark.com.

Screenshots were never a great way to keep them

A screenshot is a picture of your screen, not the photo. It's smaller than the original, it often catches bits of the app, and it carries the date you took the screenshot rather than the date of the story. We've written more about why screenshots aren't enough. Saving the original files gets you better copies with less effort.

Option 1: Storypark's own export

Storypark can export a copy of your child's profile. According to Storypark's export guide, an admin family member can request it from a desktop browser: open your child's profile, tap Edit next to their name, then Export portfolio. Storypark emails you a download link. The export typically contains:

• an HTML file of your child's stories, and one of their notes, which open in any web browser, even offline
• a folder of JPG images from the stories and notes
• CSV files of routine, attendance and incident records, where there are any

Worth knowing before you start:

• Only admin guardians can request it. If you can't see Edit, you're probably connected as a non-admin family member.
• It can't be done on a phone. It's the Storypark website, on a laptop or computer.
• The link expires. Storypark says export links are valid for 60 days, or 7 days if your nursery uses Storypark Chapter 2, so download it when the email arrives.
• Videos aren't on the list. Storypark's description of the export covers stories, notes, images and records.

The export is the best way to keep the story text, and we'd recommend it for that. There's more detail in our guide to the Storypark export.

Option 2: every photo and video in one click

NurseryDownloader is a Chrome extension that saves the photos and videos from your child's Storypark stories straight to your computer.

1. On a laptop or desktop, add NurseryDownloader to Chrome or Edge.
2. Sign in to Storypark at app.storypark.com as you normally would.
3. Click Download all photos & videos in the panel. Keep the tab open while it works.

What you get:

• Photos and videos, as the original files wherever Storypark provides them. If Storypark won't hand over the original of a particular video, it saves the version Storypark does make available rather than skipping it.
• A folder for each child, then a folder for each month, with the story's date at the start of every filename.
• Every child on your account in one run.
• Nothing twice. Run it again next term and it only fetches the stories added since.

What it doesn't save is the story text. Use the export for that. Together they give you everything: the stories to read, and the photos and videos as files you can back up and print.

Your first 20 downloads are free. Your photos go straight from Storypark to your computer and never pass through our servers, and NurseryDownloader never asks for your Storypark password: it works in your own browser, where you're already signed in.

Questions

Can I turn Storypark's screenshot protection off?

Storypark's help article doesn't describe any way to switch it off. Save the photos properly instead, with either of the options above.

Do I lose my Storypark photos when my child leaves?

No. Storypark says that when a child leaves a service, families keep access for as long as they wish. If you ever close your account, though, Storypark won't keep your stories, so export a copy first.

Can I save Storypark photos on my phone instead?

NurseryDownloader needs a computer: Chrome or Edge on a laptop or desktop. Storypark's export is also done from a computer. It's the same Storypark account you use on your phone.

Read the full guide to downloading your Storypark photos and videos.