I will never forget the day we had to get that photo taken. I have to warn you, I am about to go on a rant.
The Canadian passport system stinks. There are total inconsistencies to it. Whether or not your photo is accepted or rejected is completely subjective, and honestly, it often seems random to boot.
Kevin has actually had a photo of himself rejected when he mailed in an application because there was a supposed glare on his glasses. Neither of us could see the glare. On principal, he went into a passport office with the SAME photo, waited in the lengthy line, and the photo was accepted. Go figure.
Having said all of that, there is no slack cut for people who need photos of small children. The same strict guidelines apply. The subjects must be looking at the camera, neutral expression (not smiling or screaming), eyes open, mouth closed, and the ridiculous list goes on and on. Try getting a nine day old baby to meet that criteria!
We needed to get Bekah's passport, because we had to leave for Geneva in a matter of days. We had to pay the extra fee to have the application rushed because the moving date was approaching. The first photo we had taken was rejected because of "inconsistencies in the white background". The photographer had laid Rebekah on a white sheet (because she obviously couldn't sit up) and the wrinkles in the sheet were deemed unacceptable.
The second time around, we went to a photographer in the same building as the Canada Passport Office because they recommended him and we didn't have any more time to mess around and try and get the original photographer to retake the photo.
This photographer wanted us to hold the baby in an upright position, while supporting her head sufficiently, without allowing our hands or fingers to show on the head or neck at all. Good luck. First of all, she wouldn't even open her eyes. It was February, and we stripped her down to her diaper and paraded her in front of an open door in an attempt to wake her up. It was such an injustice! Then, once she opened her eyes, I couldn't support her sufficiently without my hand showing. Finally, Kevin was the one who was able to hold her for the magic photo.
Months and months later, we saw the photo of another Canadian baby's passport. It was taken when the child was about the same age as Rebekah had been, and I kid you not, when I tell you that you could very nearly see the father's whole hand supporting the baby's head in the photo. I wanted to scream.
Anyway, the process was a whole lot simpler this time around. This is the result.......
I guess I shouldn't say it was a simpler process until I find out if the photo is accepted or rejected.....
3 comments:
I've never even seen such a gorgeous photo on a passport!
SHe's getting so big. :)
Hope you guys had a wonderful Christmas.
What a sweet photo! I so feel your pain on this one. Goose was 5 days old for her first photo (which was rejected twice) and Little Blue was six days old when he got his (miraculously accepted on the first try--thank heavens, since we were moving). IT's like all the stars in the sky have to align for those things to come out right!
That is such a cute photo of Rebekah!!!!! And you are so right about the hoops you have to jump through to get a passport for your child. Bec. Amma was so young I had to get a temporary birth certificate and had to pay extra to have it processed faster. Amma was 7 days old for her photo and no kidding it took like 30 mins to get a shot that the lady "thought" would be acceptable. As it turns out her eyes were open, but so was her mouth which is supposed to be a no-no, but thankfully it was approved the first time. She hated being held from behind and it was next to impossible to not have my hand show. I swear the lady snapped the photo in mid-cry hence her mouth being open. At least Amma had a ton of black hair when she was born so it can at least be argued that the photo is of the same kid. I don't know if I am going to get the free picture upgrade they offer for kids with baby pictures in their passport. If I do they will take her original and I would love to hold onto it to prove she had a passport at such a young age - I didn't get my own passport until a few months before my wedding!!!!!
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