Can i put the picture image on top of whipped cream icing or does it have to be a "crusting" icing? This is my first time attempting a picture so any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I haven't done this, but back when I used to order cakes, my sons image was on a whipped cream cake and it looked great.  the sheets actually need moisture to be embedded into the cake.  hope it helps

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I have put  edible images on  fondant (picture on cake) and fresh fruit pavlova  (greetings banner), There are examples of both in my Christmas photos album here on CC. However I did find that due to the HIGH MOISTURE CONTENT in the fruit coulis masking the fresh fruit - that the TEXT on the banner faded pretty quickely and the paper subsequently began to disintegrate. Luckily I had a spare one, which I placed on the dessert just before service!!!  A lesson learnt from this experience was to place image on at the last minute, regards cakes/desserts that have a high moisture content finish i.e. fresh fruit coulis or whipped cream.

I had no problem with the fondant, due to the DRY surface and used water very sparingly to paste the image directly on to a smooth fondant base.

Hope this helps!

Margaret393