How to Make a Passport Photo at Home

Passport photos at a drugstore or post office cost $15-20. You can take one at home for free that’s just as compliant. Here’s the workflow.

Step 1: Read the requirements

Each country has specific passport photo requirements. US passport requirements (most common):

Size: 2 × 2 inches (51 × 51 mm)
Recent: taken within last 6 months
Color: full color
White or off-white background
Face straight on, no tilting
Neutral expression with mouth closed (mild smile allowed)
Eyes open, looking at camera
No glasses (since 2016)
No hats unless religious
No filters or alterations
Both ears visible if possible
Clear focus and sharp

Other countries have similar but slightly different requirements. Check your country’s guidelines before starting.

Step 2: Set up

Background: white wall or large white sheet/poster. Make sure no patterns, shadows, or texture.

Lighting:

Best: indirect daylight from a window
Avoid: harsh overhead lights (cause shadows under nose/chin)
Avoid: flash directly on face (creates shadow behind, blows out features)
Aim for: even, diffuse lighting on both sides of face

Distance: phone about 4-6 feet from subject; head and shoulders fill the frame.

Phone: any modern phone works. Use the rear camera (better quality than front).

Step 3: Take the photo

Stand 4-6 feet from camera
Face the camera directly
Hair off your face if it normally is
Remove glasses
Look at the camera lens, not screen
Mouth closed or slight smile
Have someone else take the photo (or use tripod + timer)
Take several shots — pick the best

The “have someone else take it” version is much easier than selfie attempts.

Step 4: Verify it meets requirements

Review the photo:

Background looks white? Adjust if it’s gray or has visible texture
Face is well-lit? No deep shadows on one side
Eyes visible and open? Not partially closed
Hair off face? Not obscuring features
Looking at camera? Not off to the side
Neutral expression? Not laughing or smiling broadly

If any of these fail, retake.

Step 5: Crop to specifications

This is where most people get it wrong. The official US passport spec:

2 × 2 inches at 300 DPI = 600 × 600 pixels
Head height (top of hair to bottom of chin): between 1 and 1 3/8 inches (50-69% of photo height)
Eye height: between 1 1/8 and 1 3/8 inches from bottom

Crop the photo to:

2:2 square aspect ratio (1:1)
Eyes about 60% up from bottom
Head fills appropriate portion of frame

Use Image Cropper for the crop. Set to square (1:1) aspect ratio.

After cropping: Image Resizer to 600 × 600 pixels.

Step 6: Online checkers

Services that verify compliance:

State Department’s online tool: free check for US passport photos
PhotoAid, iVisa, VisaPhoto: paid services that check + format ($5-15)

For DIY: free official checker on state.gov for US passports. Verify before printing.

Step 7: Print or upload

For online submission (most countries accept digital passport applications):

Upload the 600 × 600 pixel JPG directly
Most systems verify automatically

For paper submission or photo printing:

Print at home on photo paper, or
Send to drugstore photo printing (~$0.50-1 for prints)
Bring printed photos to your application appointment

Print sizes: most photo printers handle 2×2 inch prints. CVS, Walgreens, Walmart all print passport photos from digital files for ~$1-2.

Common mistakes

Background not solid white: gray walls show. Use a sheet pinned to a wall if needed.

Shadows on background: stand 2-3 feet away from the wall to prevent shadow.

Phone selfie distortion: lenses close to face create fisheye distortion. Have someone else take the photo from 4+ feet.

Wrong aspect ratio: most phone photos are 4:3 or 3:4; passport is 1:1. Must crop.

Wrong size: phone photo is huge (4032×3024); passport needs 600×600. Resize after cropping.

Glasses on: US since 2016 requires glasses-off. Many countries similar.

Outdoor lighting: daylight is fine but direct sunlight creates harsh shadows. Indirect daylight (window-lit on overcast day) is ideal.

Background too cluttered: even if it’s a wall, hanging photos or texture can disqualify.

Country-specific requirements

UK: 45 × 35 mm; different head height requirements; slightly off-center allowed.

Schengen visa: 35 × 45 mm; gray or off-white background sometimes allowed.

Canada: 50 × 70 mm; head height 31-36 mm; different specifications.

Australia: 35 × 45 mm; specific lighting and shadow rules.

India: 51 × 51 mm; light blue or white background.

Check your specific country’s requirements before formatting.

After preparing

Save the cropped/sized JPG as your master
Strip metadata: EXIF Stripper — passport photos shouldn’t have GPS or other identifying metadata embedded
Compress if file size is large: Image Compressor (though most passport offices accept files up to a few MB)
Keep a backup for future renewals (must be recent, so a 6-month-old passport photo isn’t reusable for new applications)

Time and cost

At a drugstore: $15-20, 15 minutes
At home: $0 (or ~$2 for prints), 20-30 minutes including learning

For occasional use: drugstore is easier. For families needing multiple photos, or frequent travelers: DIY pays off quickly.

TL;DR

Requirements: 2×2 inches, white background, recent, sharp, no glasses, neutral expression
Take: 4-6 feet from white wall, indirect daylight, someone else photographs
Crop: Image Cropper at 1:1 with eyes ~60% up
Resize: Image Resizer to 600 × 600 px
Verify: US State Dept has free online checker
Print: photo paper at home, or $1-2 at drugstore
Total cost: ~$0-2 instead of $15-20
Time saved: significant for families needing multiple photos