EPassPortPhoto.com: The Cheaper, More Convenient Way To Produce Passport Photos
EPassPortPhoto.com, launched in 2005 by Tomer Shiran and Maya Shiran provides travelers a cheaper and more convenient method of obtaining passport photos. The current version of the site supports the standards of over 60 countries. Tom Green, Marketing Director for EPassPortPhoto.com says, “This is a blessing for a citizen of one country who’s living in another country. For example, it allows a US citizen in France to obtain standard US passport photos, and a citizen of India living in the US to obtain Indian passport photos.” The service is free and the only price one is required to pay is the printing cost, which is under a dollar at most stores.
How It Works
A user takes their picture at home on a white background using a digital camera. The user then goes to the website and is prompted with a three-step wizard. In the first step, the user uploads the photo. In the second phase, the user crops the photo. The system ensures that the photo is cropped according to exact governmental standards. In the third step, the user downloads a passport photo sheet. The user can then either print the photo at home, or have it printed at Walgreen’s, CVS, Target, or any place that prints photos. The user also has the Premium Service Option, which includes human validation, printing, and shipping.
The Advantages
The main advantage to using EPassPortPhoto.com verses having your photo done in a store is how much money it saves. Green says, “Epassportphoto.com was created after we came across many incidents in which passport photos created at traditional photo shops or drug stores were rejected in passport applications. We further realized it doesn’t make sense to pay $10 for a simple photo that we could provide people with a simple tool that would allow them to create compliant photos a fraction of the cost.” Thus EPassPortPhoto.com saves money and is more technically efficient.
The ten-cent verses ten-dollars really makes a difference for someone traveling as a family. A family of 2 parents and 3 children would wind up spending fifty to sixty dollars for passports at a traditional store and would go through the hassle of having the correct cropping standards.
Gaelle Ngcobo used EPassPortPhoto.com because she needed to do her baby’s passport. She googled “make my own passport photos” and the first result was EPassPortPhoto.com. Ngcobo says, “It’s not easy to take a baby photo ID, it would have been a nightmare in a shop!” This is the hassle-free, cheap alternative.
At a store, one often does not have the opportunity to keep taking the photo until they find one they are satisfied with. Often, people are embarrassed or displeased with how their photo turns out on the document. With EPassPortPhoto.com, one is taking the photo in their own home, with their own camera and can therefore, delete and re-take as many times as necessary until satisfaction. Robert Rexach, a site user says, “I liked the ability to ensure I liked the photo before they were paid for/printed.”
EPassPortPhoto.com on the Rise
EpassPortPhoto.com currently is used by about 2.5 million users. The traffic has been constantly rising and the site currently has 100k users per month.