How strictly did your passport photo match the face size requirements?

Legal Dual Nationality
21

There are websites like makepassportphoto.com which will automatically change your background to white and ensure the passport photos are exactly 45x35 mm in size. Its a quick process, saves a lot of the hastle. They do have a print and delivery option, but I was satisfied with the digital download option. I received my photo in 6X4 and A4 printable paper sizes. I then used a borderless printer and got my photos done.

22

Thanks to everyone. How do you solve the plain white background and no shadows issue? Plain white background can be done on photoshop But no shadows might be hard without photographer’s lights.

23

Make the room as bright as possible. Brin in a lot of lamps and position them around the place where you want to take the photo. Arrange them in a way where everything is equally lit as possible. Best is if you have a friend who can sit there while you’re making adjustments. Also take it during the day, in a bright room.

24

Thank you. Those are good ideas. And how did you solve the white background problem? Walls in the U.S. are not completely flat. And I am not unclear about whether photoshopping is allowed.

25

You can use Photoshop. As long as it looks like it should, noone is going to ask you whether the it was shot on film, DSLR or whatever. If you want you can use the opportunity to let a possible blemish disappear.
For the background any solid coloured sheet/wall/tablecloth etc. is good. Just make sure it has a good contrast to your Hair, Skin and clothes. Preferably you’d wear a solid black t-shirt.

As stated in the other thread, there are photo-services at Costco(?) that offer international settings. Go for the german settings. They are close enough and will save you time and hassle.

YouTube has also a bunch of tutorials:

26

Thank you. For handy reference, I am using a resolution of 240 pixels per cm, which is about 600 pixels per inch, because a lot of websites online use that resolution.

27

With what do you take the photo?

28

Put the photos in a clear punched pocked. Write your name, birthday and if possible ID number on each photo!

29

A Canon SLR camera.

30

Thank you.

31

600dpi should be sufficient.

32

Thank you.

33

Thanks

34

Thanks to everyone.
I ended up shaving my hair so my ears would show clearly.
To get a photo that matches requirements I ended up taking and printing the photo at home and cutting it with scissors.
I used an SLR camera. The iPhone distorts the face and makes ears smaller, according to my understanding.
Tips for cutting - cut a 45mm x 35 mm rectangle out of a sheet of paper. Use that to cut the photo. If you are cutting $15 store photos, experiment on paper first.
At first my printer printed at low quality. It turns out that to print at high quality I had to find some advanced settings, indicate that I am using photo paper, and then that I am using their brand of photo paper. If I said I was using any other brand, the printer would not print at high resolution.

35

I tried using a paper cutter because scissors are easier because photo paper is thick, and because the photo size is so small. By the way, the photo is much smaller than the space provided for it on the application form.