Welcome to Mumsnet's holiday forum. Discuss all international travel here, including both shorthaul and longhaul trips. Related topics: UK holidays & day trips, skiing, camping & campervans.
Welcome to Mumsnet's holiday forum. Discuss all international travel here, including both shorthaul and longhaul trips. Related topics: UK holidays & day trips, skiing, camping & campervans.
Holidays
Passport photo nightmare
Frazzled2207 · 18/03/2022 11:16
Applied electronically for son's passport renewal and the photo was rejected. Am not surprised because each attempt at uploading the photo resulted in the software cropping off the top of my son's head. Is crackers that you can't adjust it yourself. I naively thought that the entire file might be sent to them not just the poorly auto-cropped version.
This morning we have taken a dozen new photos, some at considerable distance away and every single one auto-crops off the top of my son's head.
We will try more later but wondering if anyone has any words of wisdom. I just want to email them the photo but of course it's not possible - a classic case of computer says no.
To those saying go and get them done professionally - it will still be an uploaded file and no reason to think that the same would not happen. My husband is a serious amateur photographer so is no numpty with the camera although we're going to try my phone for the next batch.
Infuriating!
Would be great to hear if anyone else had this issue and managed to resolve. We are supposed to be moving house and could do without this totally unnecessary stress. Was easier to get them printed out and sent tbh, is ridiculous that it's so hard.
80sMum · 18/03/2022 12:12
We paid £5 for the local photo/print shop to do it. They emailed a code which we entered into the online application form. It was very quick and easy.
I think photo booths also supply codes nowadays, as very few applications are done on paper.
PineappleWilson · 18/03/2022 12:13
Timsons shoe repairs do passport photos and have a system to confirm they'll be accepted before you leave the shop.
CatherinedeBourgh · 18/03/2022 12:18
We had a problem with ds2's photo, in the end I took it against different walls in the house on a phone until I got the green ticks. The background it accepted in the end was the only one I would not have considered compliant 
HidingFromDD · 18/03/2022 12:26
Stand the recommended distance away as they actually seem to need a lot of ‘dead space’ around the actual photo. Most of mine got rejected as ‘not enough definition with the background’. Yup, pale blonde against a white wall will do that! Finally got one given the ‘green tick’ and it got rejected during processing. Resubmitted the exact same photo 48 hours later and it passed. Bloody awful photo but at least I can leave the country now
misty64 · 18/03/2022 12:33
I downloaded an app on to my phone passport photo uk, think i had to pay about 3.99 for the photo which came as a code i just attached to the application went through first time
stringbean · 18/03/2022 13:10
A photo booth will provide you with a code that you add to the application and will upload the picture for you. We've done two applications this way recently for ds and I. Ds was away at uni so had the pictures taken and texted me the code - very straightforward to do. Only thing is that the code is only valid for a month, so an old one won't work.
MadeForThis · 18/03/2022 13:12
The Photo Booth gives you a hard copy that has a code printed on the top. You put the code into the application.
At the booth select passport photo. It gives you a green tick when it's correct.
It can be hard to get the height right and they may need to kneel on the seat. We did.
TokyoSushi · 18/03/2022 13:16
This happened to us, I did DD & DH fine about 2 years ago. Did DS recently, took about 20 photos, all rejected! Went to the booth and got a code, sorted in 5 mins.
Weclome · 18/03/2022 13:16
If you get them done like somewhere like Timpsons you don't upload the photo you input the code you get and the photo appears automatically Very simple process
bruffin · 18/03/2022 13:18
My husband is a serious amateur photographer so is no numpty with the camera although we're going to try my phone for the next batch.
Infuriating!
My DH is the same , just took mine and adult D's photos and we have had no problems uploading them. Mine has been approved and on its way back.
When I uploaded it , it said fair, because I have some grey hair and it merges into background. I said I would use it and as said above passport approved and on way back.
misskatamari · 18/03/2022 13:20
If you go to a photo booth, they give you real photos and also a code that you can enter on the site for online applications. I did it last week for Dh
Doveyouknow · 18/03/2022 13:20
We used timpsons and they upload the pic onto the database and provide a code. You then provide the code with your application. You don't need to send a hard copy. Photo booths do the same but my youngest is too short too appear in the pic even with the stool at its highest!
misskatamari · 18/03/2022 13:20
Did this after multiple tries at home which was just a frustrating disaster
Easterbunnyiswindowshopping · 18/03/2022 13:20
As a baby dd's was rejected because only 1 ear was visible!!
Was an absolute nightmare.
I share your pain op.
Horizons83 · 18/03/2022 13:26
For those talking about using the code, that doesn’t automatically make it acceptable either. You can still get the ‘computer says no’ messages with the code.
However, if there is any option of ‘I want to submit the photo regardless’ then just tick that and proceed. I’ve done this many times and that passport has always gone through with no issues.
DogInATent · 18/03/2022 13:35
@Thesunrising
I had that problem. What's really unhelpful is that the generic message is about "lighting" even when the problem is a background that's not neutral enough. It was only when someone at the passport office sent me a text after my second attempt that I was able to fix it. The next one I was accepted within a couple of minutes of my sending it.
DogInATent · 18/03/2022 13:38
@Frazzled2207 - crop it yourself before sending it. As long as you leave it a bit loose and not too tight to the edges. The problem can be if you send a photo that's the wrong aspect ratio (wrong shape) and too tightly framed. The system then has no choice but to then crop bits getting it to the right shape.
Joystir59 · 18/03/2022 13:55
I went to the booth at Tesco. You can choose to have a digital.image with a code emailed to you- you type the code into the online application and the photo uploads.
Frazzled2207 · 18/03/2022 13:55
@Horizons83
However, if there is any option of ‘I want to submit the photo regardless’ then just tick that and proceed. I’ve done this many times and that passport has always gone through with no issues.
exactly - why I want to avoid using a 3rd part though I accept possibly more likely they will be accepted this way.
The annoying thing is it did give it a green tick when we first submitted it, it's only now two weeks into the process that it says our application is on hold until we submit a new photo.
MollyQueenOfSocks · 18/03/2022 14:06
We have had the same issue with our newborn. Photos kept getting rejected and rejected for "lighting" when it was perfectly fine. Then it didn't matter how far or close I was, how close I cropped the photo or extending the margins out in photoshop to make it "bigger" (I know you aren't meant to but i had been trying for days at this point), the stupid system kept cropping the photo in exactly the same place, right up to half of babys face, then saying the problem was with the lighting 
Sent it off and have everything else confirmed so just waiting for them to come back and whine about the photo being badly cropped now.
BirdOnTheWire · 18/03/2022 14:06
I did one for DH a few weeks ago. It specifically said do not crop your photo. It took a few goes but eventually there was one it approved. The passport when it came had a very cropped version of the original.
Frazzled2207 · 18/03/2022 14:16
@BirdOnTheWire
I suppose this gives weight to the theory that I shouldn't worry too much about the 'auto-crop' - quite likely they actually have the whole file and crop it themselves in the end.
ParaMonkeyNut · 18/03/2022 14:23
I thought you had to have special passport picture taken at the post office? I didn't think you can just take one one your phone.
WhistPie · 18/03/2022 14:28
@ParaMonkeyNut
Well you've learnt something today then!
To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.