India: how to take passport photos without leaving home
Do you need to extend your Indian passport, PAN card, driving licence or OCI card? Or you can't wait till COVID-19 pandemic is over and plan to get a US, Malaysian or Canadian visa?
Since India had entered the total lockdown all the daily routine has shifted to the Internet. Luckily, for most documents you can easily apply online as well. But what about a photograph? No official document can be made without a compliant, high-quality passport photo. And all the photo studios around New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Goa, Bengaluru, Jaipur, Ahmedabad are on the lockdown (as well as you, sorry for reminding). But there is some good news: you don't have to be a professional photographer to take a good picture for your documents. You don't even need to have photoshop on your laptop (as well as laptop itself).
All you need is a smartphone with a camera for a picture and any device with internet access for Visafoto.com.
How to make a professional passport photo out of a selfie
- First of all, take a picture of yourself. To achieve good quality, make photos in the daytime and avoid strong shadows and glares on your face.
- The picture should include your face, shoulders and upper body. The best distance between you and the camera is 1.5-3 meters. Ask your homemates to take a picture of you or use a tripod/selfie stick.
- Look directly into the camera. Don't smile, don't frown: keep your expression neutral.
- Take several pictures and choose the one you like the most. You are going to see it every time you open your passport for the next several years, so make the right choice!
- If you wear a turban on a daily basis, you can leave it on, but you'd better take off any headgear.
After the picture is done, upload it to Visafoto.com. Select the type of documents you need, wait for a second and get a professional passport photo that you can download.
Visafoto will change the background, fix the size and format, readjust contrast. Everything is done according to official requirements for the selected document.
For a fee of ₹330 you will get and download your picture in 2 versions:
- A digital one for online applications
- The one for 4x6" prints with 4 photos on it.
Does Visafoto.com provide any guarantees?
Yes. Visafoto stores precise information about all the requirements for all documents in India and worldwide. It knows more than a photographer in a professional studio. 24x7 support is ready to help you if something goes wrong. And you will get a 100% refund if your photo is not accepted.
What kind of photos can I make with Visafoto?
You can turn your selfie into a compliant photo for any Indian and foreign document with Visafoto, including:
- Photo for Indian passport
- Photo for Indian driving license
- Photo for Indian PAN card
- Photo for Indian OCI passport
- Photo for Indian offline visa
- Photo for Indian e-visa
- Photo for US visa
- Standard 35x45 photo
- Photo for Nepalese visa
- Photo for Malaysian e-visa
- Photo for Canadian visa
- Photo for UAE visa
- Standard 2x2 photo
- Photo for Canadian temporary resident visa
- Photo for Brazilian visa
- Malaysia expat photo
- Photo for UAE e-visa
- Photo for Bangladesh visa
- Photo for Uzbekistan visa
- Photo for Georgian visa
How to print out passport photos in India?
In most cases a digital photo is enough, as you can apply for all major Indian documents online. #StayathomeBut if you really need to print out your photo, then use online printing services. For example, at Ytori.com you can use a 4x6" print. Visafoto gives you an image file to be printed on a 4x6" paper and it has 4 individual passport photos on it. The cost at Ytori is ₹59 +₹20 for shipping.