Photo Examples for USA Green Card Lottery Application

Photo Examples for the US Green Card Lottery Application

Head Position & Background
Brightness, Contrast & Color
Exposure & Lighting
Resolution & Printing Quality

Head Position & Background

Head Too Big	Correct Head Size	Crop the image so that the head size matches the size requirements on the Photo Composition Template.

Head Too Small	Correct Head Size	Crop the image so that the head size matches the size requirements on the Photo Composition Template.

Not Centered	Correct Head Position	Re-crop the original image so that the head is centered in the frame or take a new photo with the head centered.

Not Facing Camera	Head Facing Camera	Look straight ahead at the camera. Profile photos will not be accepted.

Head Tilted	Correct Pose	Keep your head upright and face the camera. Do not tilt your head.

Image Rotated	Correct Orientation	Use a photo editing tool to rotate your image 90 degrees to the left or right so that it is oriented correctly.

Glare on Glasses	No Glare on Glasses	Glare on glasses is not acceptable. Glare can be avoided with a slight downward tilt of the glasses or by removing the glasses or by turning off the camera flash.

Background Not Plain	Plain Background	You must use a white or off-white background in your photo. Use a plain wall or a photographer’s backdrop cloth.

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Brightness, Contrast & Color

Photo Too Dark	Correct Brightness	Ensure there is proper lighting and exposure to avoid an overly dark photo.

Contrast Too High	Correct Contrast	High contrast can be caused by uneven lighting or by inappropriate camera settings. Use balanced lighting to minimize shadows on the face of under the chin.

Improper Color	Natural Color	Photos are affected by the type of light used. Avoid mixing incandescent and fluorescent lighting. The color balance selected on the camera should match the illumination.

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Exposure & Lighting

Over Exposed	Correctly Exposed	Over-exposure occurs when the film or camera sensor receives too much light, which results in a loss of resolution or fine detail in highlights and more graininess. Avoid exposure problems by using the recommended light arrangement and diffuse the light sources.

Under Exposed	Correctly Exposed	Under-exposure occurs when the film or camera sensor receives too little light, which results in loss of detail in shadows. Avoid exposure problems by using the recommended light arrangement and diffuse the light sources

Shadows on Background

Background Uniformly
Illuminated

Shadows on the background can be reduced or removed by positioning a back-light below the person and pointing up and by minimizing the distance between the person and background.

Shadows on Face	Face Uniformly Illuminated	To reduce shadows on the face,avoid overhead lighting and make sure the lights on either side of the person are of equal intensity.

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Resolution & Printing Quality

Low Quality: Discernible Pixels	High Quality:Non- Discernible Pixels	Image quality and resolution are directly related. The higher the resolution on your digital camera, the better the image quality. You should not be able to see individual pixels in the image, even if the image is enlarged on a monitor.

Low Quality: Visible Coarse Dot Pattern	High Quality: No Visible Dot Pattern	Digital printers have variable resolution settings, and the highest quality settings should be selected so your photo does not appear fuzzy or grainy.

Poorly Focused	Properly Focused	The person’s face should be the point of focus in the photo. You may have to adjust the distance or zoom to properly focus the person in the photo

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