Passport Photos - apps or DIY?

Foxy16

How do people manage about the size of the photo when taken with a smart phone. Last year I took a photo of myself using an android phone, to get a bus pass. The City Council resizes it for the pass, which is great.

But need to renew my passport & driving licence in Feb. The photo has to be the correct size, looked online for a site to do this, but no way of checking if it is the correct size.

Bigphil1474

From what I can remember, the online system allows you to line the photo up so it fits in the box. You aren't supposed to edit the photo in any way. It just needs a bit of experimenting. It's been a couple of years since I did mine, but don't recall that being a problem.

mvk0016

Submitted my passport renewal on 19 Jan, got my passport yesterday. My partner took a photo of me on my phone, I changed the brightness a bit in the in-built phone app, and that was it. The form is built in such a way, that if the photo is not good it will not accept it, so once it's accepted (it needs to conform to specific requirements mentioned on the website), you're good to go and complete the application.

jimi_man

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81858150#Comment_81858150

Oh I agree that mistakes can happen, but surely you go to a company and pay them to do it because you're worried about not doing it properly yourself so you want the certainty of their 'expertise'? If their photo is going to get rejected then you may as well have done it yourself.

I mean it's good that they did it again free of charge, but tbf it was their mistake in the first place so it would be extremely poor customer service if they had charged for another check. It's not like you have to pay if you diy it wrong - they (Passport office) just ping you an email and tell you it's not compliant and to do it again. (Which is how I know not to do it in artificial light!)

I'm all for using businesses and companies for things that are difficult to do yourself, or expensive if you get it wrong but this is neither and just doesn't seem very Money Saving (the ethos of this site).

Anyway, hope you got your passport sorted eventually.

Wyndham

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81874292#Comment_81874292

Yes, it's sorted, I have a new passport.

Again, as I said before, I'm a little wall eyed (due to something some would consider to be a disability), so I'm not a 'normal' case. And the passport application didn't outright reject it, but if I wanted to submit it then I needed to add a justification as to why - and I decided it was easier to go back and get another.

I have no complaints here - but you seem to be having them on my behalf. While I thank you for your concern, I don't need it, thanks. I know my eyes are 'odd' or 'different', and sometimes it takes a bit more effort when I'm trying to conform to however 'normal' is defined. Which is one of the reasons why I decided it was worth paying for a professional photo in the first place.

Maybe not moneysaving, but sometimes circumstances dictate that spending money isn't necessarily a bad idea! When it comes to my eyes, it will always be a consideration. I'd love to be 'normal', of course I would, but I never have been, never will be as far as my eyes are concerned….