The Fine Art of Passport Photography

My pathetic attempt at taking my husband's passport photo.

My husband and I love traveling in the US and abroad. We realized last month that it was time to renew our passports. After a little internet exploration, I discovered that we could do it online from the convenience of our home. To say we were stoked is an understatement – no waiting in line at the Post Office during working hours.

An iPhone Is All You Need

I carefully read the instructions, discovering that the photo is a key component of the online application. That should be easy, right? After all, I have the iPhone 16 with its amazing camera! Passport photography should be a cinch. The first thing I had to do was find a nice neutral background. You never realize how many pictures you have on the wall until you try to find a good spot for a photo. I finally found an area on the bonus room wall that seemed ideal – until I saw the shadow.

Another no-no, according to the Passport Powers That Be, is shadows. It’s nearly impossible to get a sufficiently shadow-free photo! Believe me, I tried! The bonus room photos were a bust. Even with my iPhone flash, I couldn’t get rid of the blasted shadow. So much for the superiority of my iPhone!

Next, I decided that we would try it outside. I reasoned that maybe I could get the lighting right if we used natural sunlight. Remember the neutral background thing? Well, a sidewalk is a pretty neutral background…especially if you’re lying down on it. I’m sure the neighbors thought we were a little crazy as we searched for the perfect spot of sidewalk for our next photo. It couldn’t be too dark or have too much texture. We located our target sidewalk zone, and he obediently laid down. I maneuvered my camera position to avoid shadows and got several shots. They looked like mug shots on a sidewalk.

My next bright idea was to get him in the bathtub with the bright white tub surround as a background. I had to avoid the cutouts for soap and shampoo – that was a bit of a challenge. Nevertheless, we managed to get him in position and shoot a couple of good photos…complete with shadows. I found a place online that promised to make his photo passport-acceptable for just $9.99. They took my money, and I sent my best photo from the bathroom shoot. They responded by telling me they were sorry, but that photo couldn’t be made passport-acceptable.

Leave the Passport Photography to the Professionals

Finally, we decided that our best bet for a photo that the Department of State would approve was Walgreens. They offered a digital photo as well as the two passport-size copies which was a perfect option. And it didn’t hurt that they knew what they were doing when it came to taking passport photos.  Keith went the next day, got his passport mug shot, and we finished his application.

This weekend, we decided it was time to renew my passport. We went straight to Walgreens!