After an X user posted his arresting portrait taken for his passport photo and declared that the \u201cChinese passport photo lady on Elizabeth\u201d is the best portrait photographer in New York City, the tiny shop where he got the passport photo done has become a viral sensation. <\/p>\n
Tucked away in Chinatown, Eliz Digital is described as having a \u201ccult following\u201d by CNN,<\/a> which recently visited the store. Followers are so devoted that one customer comes to Eliz Digital every month to have her photo taken. <\/p>\n the best portrait photographer in ny is the chinese passport photo lady on elizabeth lol pic.twitter.com\/JDOrqIMl7f<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 me (@boltsfood) September 13, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n I\u2019m a woman of routine,\u201d says teacher Sam Shekian. \u201cI\u2019m going to keep going \u2014 January, February, March. And then it just became a thing, I can\u2019t stop now, how could I stop?\u201d <\/p>\n The store\u2019s owner and photographer-in-chief, Chunika Kesh, shoots with an entry-level Canon DSLR paired with a kit lens and a Speedlite fitted with an octagonal softbox diffuser, angled up toward the ceiling. When the ceiling is white, bouncing the flash can deliver surprisingly beautiful results \u2014 provided the photographer knows their angles and distances.<\/p>\n But taking great photos of customers is not all that Eliz Digital does: it also develops film and customers can get a disposable camera developed there for cheaper than normal. <\/p>\n @movewithanj<\/a> A good rec \u2013 Eliz Digitals in Chinatown for my film girls. #disposablecamera<\/a> #camera<\/a> #nycfilm<\/a> #chinatown<\/a> #nycrecs<\/a> \u266c original sound \u2013 ANJ | PILATES & NYC<\/a> <\/p>\n Meanwhile, analog photographer Laura Fuchs has made an Instagram series out of visiting Kesh, which started after she went to drop off film there for development and had two shots left on her roll. Fuchs will take Kesh\u2019s photo and vice versa. \u201cIt became kind of a tradition,\u201d Fuchs tells CNN. \u201cPeople love it, and they love her.\u201d <\/p>\n Part of the shop\u2019s appeal is likely its retro charm; one Google reviewer says \u201cit feels like you walked into a time machine,\u201d likening it to a store from the 1990s. Film photography seems particularly popular in New York City; this summer Photodom \u2014 a popular film photography store \u2014 opened in a shiny new location<\/a> in Bushwick. <\/p>\n Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos<\/a>.<\/p>\n