Baby and newborn passport photo at home

Getting a newborn to sit still in front of a pharmacy camera is the hard part of a baby's first passport. You don't have to. Lay the baby on a white sheet at home, take a burst of photos with your phone, and the maker below picks the best one, sizes it to 2 x 2 inches and checks it against the rules.

The white-sheet method (2 minutes)

1. Lay a plain white sheet on a bed or the floor near a window. Pull it smooth; wrinkles throw shadows. A car seat covered in a white sheet also works for babies who won't lie flat.
2. Lay the baby on their back in plain clothes (no white onesie, it blends into the background). Take off hats, bows and pacifiers.
3. Stand directly above and hold the phone parallel to the baby's face, about 2 to 3 feet away. Use the main camera, not the selfie camera, and turn off the flash.
4. Take a burst of 10 to 20 shots. Babies blink and turn; the more frames you give the maker, the better the pick.
5. Add all of them above. The maker keeps the sharpest frame with the face square to the camera, replaces the sheet with clean white, and checks the size.

What the rules allow for babies

US passport photos for infants follow the same size rules as adults: 2 x 2 inches, head 1 to 1 3/8 inches from chin to the top of the head, plain white or off-white background. A few rules are relaxed because babies can't follow instructions:

• Eyes: a newborn's eyes may be closed. Open eyes are still the safer choice once the baby is a few months old.
• Expression: a neutral face is ideal, but officials accept that babies make faces. A crying, scrunched-up face usually doesn't pass.
• Support: the baby's head can be supported, but no hands, arms or other faces can appear. That's why lying flat on a sheet works so well.
• Shadows: the background must be even. The maker replaces it, but heavy shadows on the face itself still need better light.

Other countries are similar. The UK says children under one don't need their eyes open, and Canada says babies' eyes don't need to be fully open. Pick your document in the maker to apply its size and background.

Why parents do it at home

Pharmacy photo counters charge around $15 to $17 per attempt, and a newborn who cries or closes their eyes at the wrong moment means another attempt, another day, and another trip with a baby in a car seat. At home you can wait for a good moment, take as many shots as you need, and print the final sheet for under a dollar.