Add your photo, or your whole family’s, and the studio does the rest on your device: it finds and measures each face, crops the photo to the official proportions, saves the exact file the entry form needs, then checks every rule and tells you what to retake.
Your DV photo, done right, for the whole family.
Included in the $5-a-month membership with the complete entry check, your report and every tool. Cancel anytime.
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Want a quick look first? The free photo check frames one photo.
What the studio does for you, automatically
- Finds and measures your face on your device: chin, top of the hair and eye line.
- Frames the photo to the official proportions: head 50–69% of the height (it aims for 60%), eyes 56–69% from the bottom, face centered.
- Crops only from your original photo: nothing is added, painted or retouched, so the result is still your unaltered photo.
- Makes the exact file: 600 × 600 pixels, a real JPEG of 240 KB or less, at the highest quality that fits.
- Removes hidden data such as camera details and location.
- Works for the whole family: up to 8 photos at once, a name for each and one file to download per photo.
What it checks, and tells you to retake
Some problems may not be fixed by editing. The studio measures them on the finished photo and, for each one that fails, gives the official rule and exactly how to retake the photo: a plain white or off-white background, even lighting, sharpness, color, eyeglasses, eyes open, a neutral expression, facing the camera, head straight, one person only, the whole head inside the photo and enough detail in the original.
Why the studio never changes your background or your face
The official DV instructions say an entrant may be ineligible if the photographs “have been manipulated in any way”, and the State Department’s photo guidance says photos must not be digitally enhanced or altered. Tools that whiten a background or smooth skin put an entry at risk. The studio only crops and resizes, and tells you when a new photo is needed.
Official sources: Photo requirements ↗ · Photo FAQ ↗ · DV-2026 instructions ↗
Included in your membership
The photo studio is part of the $5-a-month membership, together with the complete entry check, your acceptance score and report, the passport check and every tool. Cancel anytime.
Questions
Does the studio change my background or my face?
No. It only crops and resizes your original photo. The DV instructions say entrants may be ineligible if their photographs have been manipulated in any way, so background, lighting and appearance are checked, never edited.
Is my photo uploaded?
No. Framing, measuring and the JPEG export all run in your browser. The measuring library is downloaded from a public code host, but your photos are never sent anywhere.
Can I prepare photos for my spouse and children?
Yes. Add up to eight photos at once, name each one and download each file. Every person listed on the entry needs their own photo meeting the same rules, including babies.
What if my photo cannot be fixed?
The studio tells you exactly why and how to retake it: for example more space above your head, a plain white wall behind you or light from the front. Add the new photo and it is framed again automatically.
Does a photo that passes every check guarantee acceptance?
No. Automatic checks cannot confirm that a photo is recent and unedited. The U.S. government decides whether a photo meets its standards.
Building your report…
Measuring your photo