Field guide
Retouching ID and document photos
An ID photograph is a measurement and identity record, not a portrait commission. Many ordinary beauty edits can make the file non-compliant.
01
Follow the receiving authority's current specification for background, expression, crop, shadows and recency. Generic passport advice is not a substitute for that exact rule set.
02
Avoid reshaping, skin smoothing, eye enlargement, hair replacement and feature removal. Even subtle changes can interfere with human or automated identity comparison.
03
Exposure and colour correction may be acceptable when they represent the capture faithfully, but replacing the background can also be prohibited depending on the authority.
04
Keep and submit an unedited camera file when requested. A technically attractive retouch is still the wrong output if the process itself violates the document rules.