How to Take a Passport Photo at Home, in 5 Minutes

Getting the size right is the single biggest cause of passport photos being rejected. Two inches per side is exactly 51×51 mm in metric, so as long as your head measures between 25–35 mm from chin to top of skull, most photo labs will accept it. The three mistakes that waste every shot are: measuring to the top of your hair instead of your head, wearing glasses, and using a dark or patterned background.

Before you shoot

• Choose a plain white or off-white background. A white bedsheet works perfectly.
• Find natural daylight from a window. Never use direct sunlight.
• Stand about 4 feet from the wall so your shadow does not fall behind your head.
• Take off any glasses you wear visibly.
• Face the camera straight on with a neutral expression (mouth closed).

Step by step

1. Stand facing the camera from chest height, like a selfie.
2. Hold the phone straight overhead, or take the photo directly at eye level.
3. Ensure the full head — chin to top of skull — is visible and centred.
4. The photo must show both eyes clearly, open, and unsmiling.

How to crop after

After shooting, upload the photo to this site. The browser cropping tool auto-crops to the correct spec (e.g., 2×2 inch / 51×51 mm for the US) and checks the head height automatically. If the height is off, the tool tells you what to do — no retaking is needed. This is why this site exists: it makes the whole process reliable.