Are you planning an exciting trip out of Canada with your little one? Are you confused about whether your child needs a passport? Are you trying to figure out what to prepare before applying for passport for babies?
If answers to all these are yes, then you are in the right place. According to the rules of Canadian authority, every citizen must travel abroad with a passport and even infants are no exception. Those under 16 have to apply for a child’s passport photo. Citizens must be aware that anybody at the border exit or entry must take an identity check so as to ensure national security. That is why there must be photos on passports.
A cross-border trip is usually challenging and complicated. If you can’t acquire a passport for your baby, everything would mess up. The application involves a lot of details and the first crucial part is to prepare a baby passport photo.
Luckily, photo for Canada baby passport shares most of the standard as adults, so you just need to go through the same process to apply for your baby’s passport just like yours. The most difficult part is to require your baby or child to work with a photographer. In case that the child loses their temper and ignore instructions, the shooting should be fulfilled in one take. That is to say, we need to learn about the requirements for child’s passport photo.
Canadian Child’s Passport Photo Requirements
●The baby passport photo submitted must be taken recently, said within 6 months.
●The photo for Canada baby passport must be 50mm in width, 70mm in height and 600 dpi in resolution.
●Head height measuring from chin to the top of head must be 31-36mm.
●Bottom of the Photo to the Eye Line must be 39mm.
●The background must be white or off-white.
●The photo must be colored. That is to say, the outfit should contrast with the background.
●The picture must be taken in a neutral facial expression. Never make faces.
● Keep the baby’s eyes open. Note: this is not mandatory for infants below 12 months old.
●Keep the baby’s mouth closed. Don’t pout or grin.
●No glasses or accessories are allowed in case of projecting shadows.
●Make sure only the baby’s head and shoulders are shown in the photo.
●Don’t show the parents or the baby’s hands
●Fully expose the whole face clearly.
Tips for Taking the Perfect Baby Passport Photo
There are some important tricks and tips to guide the child to take pictures no matter you take it to the studio or do it at home. You are recommended to go through the following tips before you set your camera.
Use right color & texture of background
If your baby could sit or stand upright by themselves, things would be easier when taking a child’s passport photo. Just place them in front of a white wall or a white backdrop for photography.
If your baby is too young to sit up, it is recommended to spread a white poster or sheet and lay the baby on it. Pay attention that the texture should be smooth because a textured blanket would lead to rejection of your application.
Look at the following pictures. Rough or wrinkled surfaces (eg. wool or knitted blankets) are not acceptable while non-textured bedsheet (eg. paper, cotton or silk) is favorable. Iron it if possible.
Most people, even studios, might ignore the importance of background which results in disqualified passport photos. So the first tip to take a perfect Canada baby passport photo is to make sure your background is 100% acceptable. If you take the photo at home and can’t decide by yourself, you can turn to an AI passport photo maker, AiPassportPhotos to check whether it is useable.
Wear proper outfit
As the background is white, what your baby wear should have a sharp contrast with the background. It would not only make the figure recognizable but also help you center the head and shoulders. That is to say, white clothes are definitely prohibited. You can choose a solid color like black, yellow, or green. More importantly, any uniform or uniform-like outfit is absolutely deniable, such as doctors’, nurses’ or soldiers’ dressing or animal costumes. Remember to remove all the ornaments like headbands and glasses.
Take a high angle shot
Finding a proper angle would be difficult while taking a baby passport photo. If you hold them up, your hands would appear in the picture, which is not allowed. But if you don’t, your little one could not sit on its own. As we said before, you can let the infant lie down, so the best solution is to take pictures from overhead.
If you choose to take a photo of your baby on your own at home, you can try many times until you have a perfect one.
Choose the best mood
Babies could be emotional, switching between happiness, drooling and crying. By taking a baby passport photo at home, you can observe its mood and choose the best time when it feels the most comfortable. That’s the biggest advantage more than anything else.
A perfect passport photo should involve the baby’s naturally awaken and happy moment. If the baby didn’t cooperate well on the day when you plan to take action, never mind. Just try another day.
Make sure the baby faces directly to the camera without tilting at any angle or showing just the side face. And, the shoulders and face must be visible in the photo.
Interact with the baby
It is usually hard to order a newborn to stay still. Novice parents might have suffered. In order to draw your baby’s attention to the camera, you need to play with him/her. For example, you can make some sounds and hold their favorite toys behind the camera. Capture a shot when it looks at you, but pay attention not to over-entertain them in case of distorting expressions.
Adjust lighting
Natural light is the best option to take passport photos, no matter for babies, children or adults. Make sure the daylight is evenly distributed. Sometimes, the daylight might dim your white background. Then you need to adjust your direction or add some artificial lighting. Anyway, the main point is to avoid projecting any shadows on the face or around the head.
Use an online passport photo editor
There are strict regulations on sizes for the photo for Canada baby passport, you have to crop the photo to 50mm x 70mm. AiPassportPhotos could easily achieve that. What’s even more wonderful is that this online AI editor could also scan and detect whether the photo you uploaded is qualified or not. Then you can save the digital template and print it out for your application.
Summary
Taking a baby passport photo might be a tough challenge. It has to conform to all requirements of photo for Canada baby passport as adults and the special characteristics due to their age added to the difficulty. However, it doesn’t mean mission impossible. If you decide to take child’s passport photo at home, just get acquainted with the requirements and the tips above. Making full preparation from the environment like background, lighting, camera setting to baby preparation like dressing, facial expressions and gesture. Trust yourself. Everything is going to be fine.
Erin Lo 
Dolores Xiao