Where can one have a reasonably flattering passport picture taken? for Questionland Seattle

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Where can one have a reasonably flattering passport picture taken?

I need a passport photo and I am loathe to spend $20 for the privilege of being seated directly under a fluorescent light and having a bored clerk point a digital camera at me. I know it's silly, but I'm going to be looking at this picture for 10 years, dammit, and I'd like it to be somewhat flattering.

Can anyone recommend a place that's NOT Kinko's, Bartells, etc. for a passport photo with decent lighting?

Kalakalot asked in Other - Trip & Travel 11 months ago | Report

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Even assuming the passport becomes your primary ID, you will only look at this photo for like *two seconds* on those occasions when you fly, or cross a border, or go to a bar.

Actually, someone else will look at it so you won't even have to.

If you're really worried about having a flattering photo, you could get glamour shots done separately and then tuck a print into the ID page of your passport.

But really, you shouldn't worry because everybody will already know just from meeting you that you are awesome and attractive. Just bite the bullet and get the picture over with.

capicola answered in Other - Trip & Travel 11 months ago | Report

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Glamour shots ... ha! Thank you for talking some sense into me.

I need to stop obsessing about the damn picture, get the shiny-faced cavernous-eye-socket portrait over with, and concentrate on all the amazing places my shiny new passport will take me.

Kalakalot commented 11 months ago | Report

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Ha! Thanks for taking my gentle teasing in the constructive spirit in which it was offered. Better to spend all that effort and time going abroad than hunting down the perfect photo! And besides--the immigration officers in a lot of countries thrive on schadenfreude. The more miserable and sallow your photo, the less likely they are to resent your being a happy and healthy American, and to hassle you as a result...at least that's my theory.

capicola commented 10 months ago | Report

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I totally understand your desire for a good one, and I wish you luck...I don't have any suggestions. BUT, I wanted to let you know that even if you get a cute photo (I was actually pretty happy with my pics from Fed Ex/Kinko's in lower queen anne), the actual passport process changed the coloration or whatever, and I don't think it looks nearly as cute. They send back your other photo, so I was able to compare the original to the passport and they are different colors/saturation levels (basically my face looks orange-y and splotchy). So I was bummed. I guess I'm just sending this word of caution, so that you don't get your hopes too high. Sending good luck vibes your way, though!

Tracy M answered in Other - Trip & Travel 11 months ago | Report

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I got my passport photos at The Mailbox in Ballard. (Here's their website.) The photos weren't the best ever, but they were much better than my last passport photos. Of course, the distortion, holograms, and whatnot made the photo virtually unrecognizable once I got my actual passport.

I still think it's worth supporting a local business over Kinko's.

keshmeshi answered in Other - Trip & Travel 11 months ago | Report

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I'm going to give taking my own photo a shot, but if that doesn't work out, I will definitely check out the Mailbox. Thanks for the tip!

Kalakalot commented 11 months ago | Report

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Happened across a very thorough tutorial describing how to create your own: http://www.dpchallenge.com/tutorial.php?TUTORIAL_ID=22

Kalakalot commented 11 months ago | Report

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Strangely, some of those $7 passport photo places, like Walgreens, take pretty OK pictures, because they do a lot of them. If you go at a time when they're not swamped, most of the clerks will take the time to make sure you get a picture you're happy with. I was surprised how pleasant the process was at my local drugstore.

Geni answered in Other - Trip & Travel 11 months ago | Report

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This is not a referral to a place to have a photo taken.

No one likes having an ID photo taken. The purpose of the photo does not lend itself to arriving at one that you may feel is a great representation of your true personality. Be sure you review the salient points of what makes an acceptable passport photo so that you submit one that will be accepted and you don't have to go back for a retake.

Passport Photo Requirements

Taking a look at the photo examples provides good illustration of what is acceptable. Actually some of them look good.

Photo Examples

Russ Campbell, NWEBS answered in Other - Trip & Travel 11 months ago | Report

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Russ is SO right.

Another consideration is that the photo MUST be of the proper size. That is, the face must fill the oval target, or else it might be rejected, and you're out even more money.

We learned that some post offices will snap a passport photo for a price, and some will not. We went to a local pharmacy that had a photo counter, and got the bored, unskilled clerk too.

Although our post office accepted the photo, they were marginal about taking it, cause the lens and camera used was lower end, and it had started to distort my face slightly when they got close enough to fill the oval in their viewfinder.
The postal clerk who specialized in passports tactfully warned us not to get our kids' passport photos done there, as the drug store was going to get an unpleasant phone call from the government threatening to cancel their approval as a photo site. (No LIE!)

(I appreciated the officer's frankness, but I was surprised that they could pull the approval, and that they would tell us they were about to do that after we were done!!)

O my captain commented 11 months ago | Report

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Wow. I just went to the sample photos at the link Russ provided, and my photo would have failed under three criteria: Head too large, not high enough pixels, and too dark! Now I see why they were going to bust that shop!

O my captain commented 11 months ago | Report

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For my son I took the photo at home using a digital camera and scaled it using Photoshop to the required specifications on the Passport site. You can get 6 pictures into a standard 4x6 print. I then sent my digital file to Walgreens near my office and picked it up the next morning. This worked great, especially for getting a decent shot of a toddler.

agness answered in Other - Trip & Travel 11 months ago | Report

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