To take a newborn or baby passport photo at home, lay your baby on a plain white or off-white sheet, place a window at the baby’s feet, and take the photo from straight above with the back camera. A baby’s eyes do not have to be fully open, but the full face must be visible and free of shadows.
A baby cannot hold still, so the setup matters more than the pose. This guide gives the setup in order, the tips for a newborn, and the reasons why a baby photo gets rejected. The photo size and the head size are the same as for an adult. See the size guide.
What the State Department says about babies
The State Department has one short section for babies and toddlers. These are the sentences that apply to a baby, word for word:
“For background, place your child on a plain white or off-white sheet. You can also cover a car seat with the sheet, then place your child in the car seat for the photo.”
“Make sure there are no shadows on your child’s face.”
“The child must face the camera.”
“The child’s facial expression must be neutral.”
“The child’s full face must be visible.”
“It is okay if a baby’s eyes are not entirely open. All other children must have their eyes open.”
Everything below follows from these six sentences. Where a step is a PassPose tip and not a rule, the guide says so.
Step 1: Make the background
- Pick a flat, safe place where your baby can lie on the back: a bed, a play mat, or the floor.
- Cover it with a plain white or off-white sheet. Pull the sheet tight. Folds and wrinkles make small shadows that the camera sees.
- Use a sheet with no pattern, no print, and no edge or seam in the part that shows around the head.
- Put your baby in the middle of the sheet. The sheet must fill the whole photo behind the head and the shoulders.
Step 2: Place the light
Use daylight from a window. Turn the flash off. Put the window at your baby’s feet, so the light runs along the body toward the face. This is a PassPose tip. A baby lies flat, so a window at the side makes one cheek brighter than the other. In our own tests with generated baby photos, uneven light was the most common reason for a failed check. The rule behind it is the State Department sentence: “Make sure there are no shadows on your child’s face.”
- Do not stand between the window and your baby. Your body and your phone make a shadow.
- Turn off a lamp that hangs above the bed. It puts a shadow under the nose and the chin.
- Look at the sheet next to your baby’s head. If you see a grey edge, the light comes from too far to one side. Turn the sheet or move the baby.
Step 3: Hold the phone straight above
- Use the back camera. It is sharper than the front camera. Turn off portrait mode, beauty mode, and filters.
- Hold the phone flat, parallel to the sheet, straight above your baby’s face. A phone that is tilted makes the head look turned.
- Do not zoom in. Leave space above the head and around the shoulders. The crop to size comes later.
- Hold the phone with both hands over your baby, or put the strap on your wrist. A second adult stays at the baby’s side. Never leave a baby alone on a raised surface.
Step 4: Get a calm face
The State Department says: “The child must face the camera.” and “The child’s facial expression must be neutral.” A fed, calm baby gives the best face.
- Feed your baby and change the diaper first. Take the photos in the first calm minutes.
- Take many photos in a row. Use burst mode, or record a short video and take frames from it.
- A second adult can sit behind the phone and make a sound. The second adult and their hands must stay out of the photo.
- Look at each photo before you keep it. Wait for the moment when the head is straight and the face is neutral.
Newborn tips
- A newborn’s head often turns to one side. Do not force it. Wait for the moment when the head is straight, and take many photos. A hand that holds the head must not be in the photo.
- Dress your newborn in a plain top or a plain bodysuit. A hat, a headband, and a blanket on the head are not part of the face.
- Let the shoulders show. The head must have space on both sides, because the photo is cropped to a square.
- A newborn’s skin can look red or yellow in a photo. Window light shows the colour better than a lamp. Do not use an app to change it. The State Department says: “Do not change your photo using computer software, phone apps or filters.” (This sentence is from the same page, outside the baby section.)
Eyes: what is allowed
The State Department says: “It is okay if a baby’s eyes are not entirely open. All other children must have their eyes open.” So eyes that are half open or squinting are fine for a baby. A toddler or an older child needs both eyes open.
The sentence does not say what to do when a baby sleeps with the eyes fully shut. It talks about eyes that are “not entirely open”. A photo with fully closed eyes is outside the plain wording, and we cannot say if it is accepted. The safe way is to wait for a moment when the eyes open a little. PassPose asks you to confirm that your baby’s eyes are open (partly open is OK), because a camera cannot judge it.
Option: a car seat covered with a sheet
The State Department says: “You can also cover a car seat with the sheet, then place your child in the car seat for the photo.” This works for a baby who can sit with the head up.
- Cover the whole seat with the sheet, including the sides and the straps that show behind the head.
- Pull the sheet tight behind the head. A fold near the head makes a shadow.
- Take off the canopy. It puts a shadow on the face.
- Hold the phone at the height of the eyes, straight in front of the face. Put the window in front of the seat, behind you or at your side, and not behind the seat.
Why a baby photo is rejected
| Problem | Why it matters | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| A shadow on one side of the face | “Make sure there are no shadows on your child’s face.” | Put the window at the feet. Do not block the light with your body. |
| A wall shadow or a fold in the sheet | The background must be a plain white or off-white sheet. | Pull the sheet tight. Do not take the photo near a wall. |
| The head is turned | “The child must face the camera.” | Hold the phone straight above. Wait until the head is straight. |
| A big smile or a cry | “The child’s facial expression must be neutral.” | Take the photo in a calm moment, and take many. |
| A hand, a pacifier, or a toy in the photo | It hides part of the face, and “the child’s full face must be visible.” A pacifier, a hand, and a toy are the PassPose list of common causes. | Take the pacifier out for the photo. Keep hands and toys out of the frame. |
| A hat or a headband | It hides part of the head. This is a PassPose tip. | Take it off for the photo. |
| Too close, or the head is cut off | The head must fit the size rules, with room for the crop. | Hold the phone higher. Leave space around the head and shoulders. |
Check the photo, then print it
A baby passport needs a printed photo. Check each try before you print, because a retake is easier than a second trip to the store. The PassPose baby photo check tests the photo against the rules that a camera can measure: the face, the head size, the background, the shadows, and the light. It tells you which rule fails and shows an example. The check and the retakes are free. You pay only to download. PassPose crops and resizes the photo and does not edit it.
A camera cannot see a pacifier, a hand, or a hat on every photo, so the check asks you to confirm those before you start. Then print the photo as a 2 × 2 inch print on matte or glossy photo paper. See how to print a passport photo.
Source: travel.state.gov, Passport Photos, section “Babies and toddlers”. Page updated March 24, 2026. Read on October 21, 2026. The full list of rules is in the passport photo requirements guide. For a quick look at the baby rules, see the baby passport photo page.