Photo and video requirements
Photos and videos are a great way to bring a human touch to a profile on our website. For photos, digital images are preferred but we will accept and process both digital and hard copy photos for child and family profiles. Photos are typically processed and posted within three business days of receipt.
For videos, we currently only have the capacity to host them for child profiles and hope to expand this service soon to families. Child videos can be uploaded directly through our website when creating a child profile.
Please follow the guidelines below for the specific type of file you are submitting:
Family photo requirements
Photos aren’t required for family profiles but are strongly encouraged because they help bring a family’s profile to life. Family photos can only be viewed by registered professionals and are not made available to the general public or other registered families. We will never use a family photo in any other way on the website or in other AdoptUSKids materials without written consent from the family.
Only one photo per family can be published on the website. All members of a household, including pets, can be present in the photo. The only exception is children in foster care where the parent or parents pictured do not have legal guardianship.
Photos should reflect the current age of anyone pictured and meet the following requirements (see the sample photos below for reference):
- Be of high enough resolution and quality to produce a clear image.
- Be a vertical, portrait photo (longer in height than width).
- Have a correct aspect ratio (meaning it is not stretched in width or length).
Digital photo submissions for families
You can upload your family profile photo directly to our website from your profile page. Only JPG and JPEG files no larger than 2.5 MB are accepted.
If you’re having trouble uploading your photo, contact us toll-free at 800-901-6911 or email photos@adoptuskids.org.
Hard copy photo submissions for families
When mailing a photo prints of a child, attach a note to the photo (please don’t write on the front of the photo) with the following information:
- Names of everyone in the photo
- AdoptUSKids case number given at registration
- Your name, agency, and telephone number
- Return address information (photographs are returned only by request)
Mail your photo to:
AdoptUSKids Photos
701 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1230
Seattle, WA 98104
Child or sibling group photo requirements
Photos are required for child and sibling group profiles. Only one photo per child can be published on the website, or one photo per sibling group if you do not have individual photos of the children.
Photos should reflect the most current age of the child or children and meet the following requirements (see the sample photos below for reference):
- Be of high enough resolution and quality to produce a clear image.
- Be a vertical, portrait photo (longer in height than width).
- Have a correct aspect ratio (meaning it is not stretched in width or length).
Digital photo submissions for child profiles
We accept JPG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, BMP, and PDF files. We cannot process images embedded in the body of an email or those in a document using a program such as Microsoft Word. If you are sending a scanned photo, the image should be 150 dpi with width of 450 pixels (three inches). Please scan photos at 100 percent of the original photo size.
For individual child photos, name the digital file with the AdoptUSKids case number assigned when creating their profile (for example: 66014256.JPG).
For sibling group photos, name the digital file with the AdoptUSKids sibling case number assigned when you created the group profile (for example: S660139.BMP).
Email photos to photos@adoptuskids.org with the following information:
- Names of all children in the photo.
- AdoptUSKids case number that was assigned at registration.
- Your name, agency, and telephone number.
If you’re having trouble emailing a photo, check with your agency’s information technology department about any file size restrictions on email attachments. You can also call us toll-free at 800-901-6911 for assistance.
Hard copy photo submissions for child profiles
When mailing photo prints of children, attach a note to each photo (please don’t write on the front of the photo) with the following information:
- Names of all children in the photo.
- AdoptUSKids case number that was assigned at registration.
- Your name, agency, and telephone number.
- Return address information (photographs are returned only by request).
Mail your photo to:
AdoptUSKids Photos
520 Pike Street, Suite 1350
Seattle, WA 98101
Child video requirements
Accepted video formats
- MP4 (.mp4)
- Adobe Flash (.flv or .f4v)
- Microsoft Windows Movie Maker (.wmv)
- Microsoft Advanced Systems Format (.asf)
- Apple Quick Time (.mov)
Video requirements
- Aspect ratio: 4:3 (standard) or 16:9 (widescreen)
- File size (maximum): 100 MB
- Duration (maximum): 5 minutes
- Frames per second (fps): 29.9 or 30 fps
- Video resolution (preferred): 548 pixels x 411 pixels (standard) or 548 pixels x 308 pixels (widescreen)
- Maximum: 640 pixels x 480 pixels (standard) or 640 pixels x 360 pixels (widescreen)
- Minimum: 320 pixels x 240 pixels (standard) or 320 pixels x 180 pixels (widescreen)
If you have questions about video files, call us at 800-901-6911.