Making a Passport Photo at Home, From Phone Snap to Print

Yes, you can make a passport photo at home with a phone and a plain wall. The work happens in three places: taking a usable photo, cropping it so the head fills the right share of the frame, and printing it at exact size. Get those right and a single 4 × 6 in print gives you several identical copies.

One rule before anything else: photo requirements vary by country and change from time to time, so always check your government's official rules before you submit. The sizes in this guide are the ones built into Emojar's Passport Photo Maker, and they don't replace those rules.

The scenario: renewing a US passport by mail

Say you need two identical 2 × 2 inch photos for a US passport renewal. Below is the whole process, with notes for 35 × 45 mm countries along the way.

Step 1: Take a photo you can actually use

The tool crops and scales your picture. It does not change the background, remove shadows, or check your expression, glasses or lighting. The photo has to be right before you open it:

• Stand a few feet in front of a plain white or light gray wall, so your body doesn't cast a shadow on it.
• Face a window or use soft, even light, so one side of your face isn't darker than the other.
• Ask someone to take the photo at eye level. Selfies at arm's length tend to tilt the head and exaggerate features close to the lens.
• Leave room above your head and below your chin. This matters more than people expect. The photo always fills the frame, so the widest view you can get is the one at 100% zoom. You can zoom in to tighten the crop, but you can never add space that wasn't in the picture.

Step 2: Choose the document and line up the head

Open the Passport Photo Maker and pick your document from the Document list. Here's what each preset produces:

Preset	Photo size	Pixels at 300 DPI	Head height shown
United States, passport & visa	2 × 2 in	600 × 600	25–35 mm
United Kingdom, passport	35 × 45 mm	413 × 531	29–34 mm
EU / Schengen, passport, ID, visa	35 × 45 mm	413 × 531	32–36 mm
Canada, passport	50 × 70 mm	591 × 827	31–36 mm
India, passport	35 × 45 mm	413 × 531	32–36 mm
India, visa	2 × 2 in	600 × 600	25–35 mm
China, passport & visa	33 × 48 mm	390 × 567	28–33 mm
Australia, passport	35 × 45 mm	413 × 531	32–36 mm
Japan, passport	35 × 45 mm	413 × 531	32–36 mm

If your document isn't listed, choose Custom size (mm) and enter a width and height between 10 and 100 mm.

Now upload your photo. A dashed oval appears over the preview, with a faint vertical line down the middle. Drag the photo and use the Zoom slider (100% to 500%) until your chin sits at the bottom of the oval, the top of your head touches the top, and your face is centered on the line. If you prefer the keyboard, the arrow keys move the photo and the plus and minus keys zoom.

Worked example. On the US preset the photo is 50.8 mm tall. If your head runs from chin to crown across about 60% of the frame, that's 0.6 × 50.8 ≈ 30 mm, comfortably inside the 25–35 mm range the tool shows. If it only covers 45%, that's about 23 mm, which is too small, so zoom in. The note beside the editor confirms the target, for example "Output: 50.8 × 50.8 mm — 600 × 600 px at 300 DPI."

All of this happens in your browser, so the photo of your face is never uploaded to a server.

Step 3: Download a single photo or a print sheet

Download photo (JPG) saves one image at the exact pixel size, with a name such as portrait-passport-51x51mm.jpg. Use it for online applications. If the upload form also caps the file size, run it through Compress Image to Exact Size.

For paper copies, choose a Print sheet and click Download print sheet (JPG). The tool fits as many copies as possible and tells you the count:

Photo size	4 × 6 in photo print	A4 paper	US Letter paper
2 × 2 in	6	20	20
35 × 45 mm	8	36	36
50 × 70 mm	4	16	15
33 × 48 mm	9	36	32

Copies are packed side by side with thin gray cut lines between them. For the US size on a 4 × 6 in print, three columns of two photos fill the sheet exactly, edge to edge. That means the print must not be cropped or shrunk. Print at 100% or "actual size", never "fit to page", and ask a print service for an uncropped print.

Step 4: Measure before you cut

Hold a ruler against one photo before trimming. A US photo should measure 2 inches (about 51 mm) across; a 35 × 45 mm photo should be exactly 35 mm wide. If it's off, the printer scaled the sheet, so print it again at actual size. Then cut along the gray lines with a craft knife or paper trimmer for straight edges.

FAQ

Why can't I zoom out to show more of my shoulders?

The photo always covers the whole frame, so 100% zoom is already the widest view. If your head is still too large or cut off, retake the picture from a little farther away.

Can one photo work for both a UK passport and a Schengen visa?

Both are 35 × 45 mm, but the presets show different head heights: 29–34 mm for the UK and 32–36 mm for the EU and Schengen area. A head of around 33 mm sits inside both ranges. Confirm with each country's official rules first.

Should I print on A4 or on a 4 × 6 in photo print?

A 4 × 6 in print from a photo lab gives you real photo paper for little money. A4 or Letter suits a home printer and gives many more copies per sheet. Either works as long as it prints at actual size.

Ready to try it? Open the Passport Photo Maker and frame your photo.