How the photo studio works

How MakeAnID.com finds your face, places your head and checks the finished photo.

Sizes and resolution

Each document's size, head height, eye height and background come from the issuing authority's own publications, listed on the document's page. The downloaded photo has the exact pixel size when the authority sets one (for example 600×600 pixels for the US DV Lottery); otherwise it is rendered at 600 dots per inch, so a 35×45 mm photo is 827×1063 pixels. Print sheets are 300 dots per inch.

Finding the face

The studio uses Google's MediaPipe face landmark and person segmentation models, which run in your browser. They locate the chin, the eyes and the outline of your head and hair; the top of the head is where the head's outline ends above the face.

Placing the head

The studio turns the photo so the eyes are level, scales it so the head height is in the middle of the allowed range, centres the face and places the top of the head a little above centre, within any top-margin or eye-height rule. You can still move, zoom and turn the photo yourself.

The checks

The checks measure the finished photo: head height, eye height, space above the head, centring, tilt, whether you face the camera, open eyes, expression, background and lighting. When an authority sets no head size, the studio sizes the head as in a standard passport photo and says so. It cannot check glasses or head coverings: check those yourself. The checks are a guide, and the authority decides.

Background replacement

The person segmentation model separates you from the background, and the chosen colour is placed behind you. Only the colours the document accepts are offered.