A good photo starts with good light.

What good lighting looks like

Official U.S. Department of State examples. Images below load from travel.state.gov when you view them; your own photo is never sent there.

See all official photo examples and current rules ↗

Your at-home setup

1. Find a plain wall. Choose white or off-white. Stand several feet in front of it so shadows fall away.
2. Face the light. Use soft, even lighting. Avoid overhead light and strong light from one side.
3. Ask someone to take the photo. Keep the camera level and several feet away. Include the whole head and shoulders.
4. Keep your appearance natural. Face forward with eyes open and mouth closed. Remove glasses for U.S. passport photos unless the official medical exception applies.
5. Check before you upload. Look for blur, uneven lighting and clipped hair. Turn off portrait effects, beauty filters and background blur.

White background: capture it, don’t replace it

U.S. passport rules require an unedited photo. Background replacement is a digital alteration, even when it looks realistic. Retake the photo against a suitable wall instead.

The studio’s optional background cleanup is available only in General photo mode for uses that allow edits. It selects connected areas of similar color, not the person. Review edges carefully; it is not a compliance checker or a tool for complex backgrounds.

Choose the right output

For a U.S. paper application, the cut photo is 2×2 inches and head height is 1–1⅜ inches. The studio guide is a positioning aid; check the final printed dimensions yourself.

For U.S. online renewal, follow the official digital-photo instructions and use your original photo as required. A 2×2 print sheet is not an online-renewal upload.

Other countries and documents may require different dimensions, backgrounds or a photographer’s stamp. Check your issuing authority first.