# Dressing for ID pictures



## Aaron in Allentown (Oct 26, 2007)

Do you dress up when you get a photo take for your driver's license or passport, or do you just go in wearing street clothes.

I work in a business casual environment, but I needed to stop on the way to work this morning to have a new driver's license picture taken. I wore a NBB, a dress shirt and a bowtie with khakis.

I took off the tie and blazer before going to work in order ot avoid the job interview cracks.

I was the only person in line at the DMV center wearing a tie. Everyone else was in a t-shirt or something similar.

To me, your license creates an impression of you, so you should make an effort to look decent on it.

When I renewed my passport two years ago, I wore a suit to get my picture taken. Even though my previous passport demonstrated a worldliness through the visas and stamps in it, I had a scruffy beard and scraggly hair in the picture, plus I was wearing a shirt with obvious holes in the picture, which was taken while I was a college student. It was a relief to be rid of the picture, though.

So, do you wear a tie when you're going to have your picture taken for an ID?


----------



## Acct2000 (Sep 24, 2005)

I'm wearing a tie on my driver's license, but that's what I happened to be wearing the day I got over to the state office to renew my license.


----------



## JayJay (Oct 8, 2007)

Aaron in Allentown said:


> So, do you wear a tie when you're going to have your picture taken for an ID?


Yes. I started doing this when I was a teen as I found that treatment from police and others was different compared to being dressed in street clothes.


----------



## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

I just have the picture taken in whatever I happen to be wearing at the time. I've never really thought ahead to something like this.

Cruiser


----------



## Andy (Aug 25, 2002)

I try to always wear a necktie and jacket for my driver's license and passport photos!


----------



## TheWardrobeGirl (Mar 24, 2008)

Never know who is going to see it...I always try to look nice and smile  (I normally take HORRIBLE pictures but just happen to look better in my passport picture than I do in real life - too bad I can't hang on to that one forever!!)


----------



## Rossini (Oct 7, 2007)

Look smart; a tie is nice but not essential.



TheWardrobeGirl said:


> ...I always try to look nice and smile


You are not allowed to smile, or display any kind of toothy grin, in a passport picture. Tens of thousands of passport photographs are rejected. It is worth reading the rules which, I think, are internationally-aligned.

The photographs must be: 
• identical; 
• in colour, not black and white; 
• taken within the last month; 
• taken against a light grey or cream background; 
• 45 millimetres (mm) high x 35 millimetres (mm) wide (however, please do not trim your photographs to meet this condition); 
• fit into the template, with your eyes positioned in the area marked by the shaded band; 
• undamaged, for example; not torn, creased, or marked; 
• free from shadows; 
• taken with your eyes open and clearly visible (with no sunglasses or tinted glasses, and no hair across your eyes); 
• free from reflection or glare on your glasses, and the frames must not cover your eyes (where possible, we recommend that you remove 
your glasses to avoid the possibility of rejections); 
• free from 'Redeye'; 
• of you facing forward, looking straight at the camera; 
*• with a neutral expression, your mouth must be closed (no grinning, frowning or raised eyebrows); *
• of you on your own (no babies' dummies, toys or other people visible); 
• taken of the full head, without any covering, unless it is worn for religious beliefs or medical reasons; 
• taken with nothing covering your face; 
• free from copyright (for example, do not send school photographs as these are produced under copyright).

https://www.ips.gov.uk/passport/index.asp


----------



## TheWardrobeGirl (Mar 24, 2008)

Rossini said:


> Look smart; a tie is nice but not essential.
> 
> You are not allowed to smile, or display any kind of toothy grin, in a passport picture. Tens of thousands of passport photographs are rejected. It is worth reading the rules which, I think, are internationally-aligned.
> 
> ...


Wow, news to me! I am smiling from ear to ear in mine...my passport is at the end of its life cycle though, so the rules may have changed since I had mine done...I guess mine snuck through the cracks...(for the amount of time I spent in braces and retainers, I like to show off my smile every chance I get :icon_smile_big...

I used to laugh because I used to do a lot of international travel where I would take the overnight flights...by the time I landed I usually looked like a mess and almost EVERY time I showed my passport, the person checking would take a double take, then chuckle and say "nice pic!" (probably rare that someone actually looked better in their picture than in real life)


----------



## Rossini (Oct 7, 2007)

^ on that note, I do think it is very worthwhile to let a professional photographer take your ID photos. It ends up infinitely better than a booth or a pharmacist with a dedicated camera. Since passports last 10 years or so, if you're worried about how you look in such photographs, it's well worth the extra bit of cash.


----------



## Preu Pummel (Feb 5, 2008)

Everytime I had a passport/visa made it was impromptu, pulled from some task in mid-day, unable to prep or choose, and thrown in front of aggressively snapping cameras in shops or offices. Everytime I did wear a tie and dress shirt, because I always wore those at work. Everytime I looked awful, because everywhere I worked did last minute, super quick passport/visa work. I should redo my passport now to make up for bad photos.

DMV - always go in dress shirt and tie when doing licenses. Most people just don't care, but I think you should portray yourself as you feel best. T-shirts are never best.


----------



## cdavant (Aug 28, 2005)

Another rule. ALWAYS GET TWO SETS OF PHOTOS. Keep set #2 somewhere away from your passport. If your passport is lost or stolen abroad you can have another one issued at an embassy or US consulate but you must furnish a new set of photos and it can be hard and expensive to get that done. Friends traveling with us in Italy had their passports lifted in Positano and had to go to Naples to get replacements. They almost had to go back the next day because it took forever to find someone to take passport photos.
I get mine done at Walmart for around $10. I figure a tie won't hurt and even if you're traveling in chinos and polo maybe it could help. Like the fellow said in his tuxedo going in for his prostatectomy "If you gonna be impotent, you might as well look impotent."


----------



## TheWardrobeGirl (Mar 24, 2008)

Rossini said:


> ^ on that note, I do think it is very worthwhile to let a professional photographer take your ID photos. It ends up infinitely better than a booth or a pharmacist with a dedicated camera. Since passports last 10 years or so, if you're worried about how you look in such photographs, it's well worth the extra bit of cash.


There is a place right next door to where I had to file for my passport that took pictures...if I ever get married, I want to track the passport picture guy down to be my photographer - to this day, he is probably the only person to ever take a good picture of me!!


----------



## Jovan (Mar 7, 2006)

For my passport...


----------



## eagle2250 (Mar 24, 2006)

Aaron in Allentown said:


> Do you dress up when you get a photo take for your driver's license or passport, or do you just go in wearing street clothes...


Boy was this a timely post. You just reminded me my drivers liscense expires tomorrow. I think I'll go with an open collar OCBD...after all, it's just a drivers liscense picture(?). Thanks for the reminder!


----------



## Aaron in Allentown (Oct 26, 2007)

My local AAA branch did my passport photos for free. I was wearing a rosette from a posh hereditary society, but it got cropped for the actual passport.


----------



## rodngun762 (Apr 5, 2008)

Jovan said:


> For my passport...


Looks good, I wore a coat and tie for mine as well.

However, you should probably sign your passport- technically isn't it invalid if not signed?


----------



## Jovan (Mar 7, 2006)

I hadn't yet signed it when the picture was taken. Besides, I didn't want to blank out yet another thing for internet use.


----------



## Jim In Sunny So Calif (May 13, 2006)

I just had my drivers license renewed and wore a checked shirt and a knit tie. I mentioned to the young lady at the counter that my hair, as indicated in my license, is no longer brown.

She: What color is it?
Me: How about distinguished gray?
She: I don't have a code for that.

As she was about two feet away from me and worked for the DMV, I suggested she figure it out. I was almost sorry that I mentioned it.:icon_smile:

Cheers, Jim.


----------



## Liberty Ship (Jan 26, 2006)

I have always smiled and dressed in a suit and tie. I figure this will be the one on the wanted poster and the one they put on television world wide if I ever become a news item. I want people to think, "he would never have done that!" and be willing to help me when I'm on the run.

I have even had people comment, "great picture!" when checking my I.D.


----------



## ChriO (Feb 23, 2006)

Now that's foresight. Please tell us more about your intended change of career. - And please reassure us that it has nothing to do with faking high end clothing. We won't look kindly upon that. :icon_smile_big:

I made the mistake of not wearing shirt and tie for my last ID picture and cringe every time I look at my identity card.


----------



## Runfellow (Jun 9, 2008)

It happened to be a coincidence that the last time I took my DL pic I was wearing a suit jacket, but of course my lapel was messed up so now I look like a total doofus on my ID. It's quite annoying, as it would have taken approximately two seconds for the lady to say something, and because she didn't, I'm stuck with a horrible pic until 2011.

And the DMV is well-known for its excellent customer service, too...


----------



## TheWardrobeGirl (Mar 24, 2008)

Runfellow said:


> It happened to be a coincidence that the last time I took my DL pic I was wearing a suit jacket, but of course my lapel was messed up so now I look like a total doofus on my ID. It's quite annoying, as it would have taken approximately two seconds for the lady to say something, and because she didn't, I'm stuck with a horrible pic until 2011.
> 
> And the DMV is well-known for its excellent customer service, too...
> -BC


That sucks - Lesson learned! I always ask if there is anything in my teeth, nose, on my face or any other random things that look out of place that I might want to fix prior to the picture being snapped


----------



## JayJay (Oct 8, 2007)

JayJay said:


> Yes. I started doing this when I was a teen as I found that treatment from police and others was different compared to being dressed in street clothes.


I should point out that I actually started wearing the tie and jacket sort of by accident. Without any planning, I happened to be in tie and jacket when my license was made when I was a teen. Many people made nice comments about my photo, including police during traffic stops, so I continued the practice of a tie and jacket.


----------



## S. Kelly (Jan 19, 2008)

I wear glasses, so for years, I had my license picture taken without them. I did this by wearing my prescription sunglasses as my only eyewear. One time they made me wear my Ray Bans. THAT was a good license picture that got a ton of comments. I like driving the RMV people crazy.
My latest has me in my police uniform, I figured that would be different. I think the next should be a patch madras or seersucker picture, with appropriate tie.


----------



## Aaron in Allentown (Oct 26, 2007)

Of course, it's possible to deliberately look unprofessional in a photo ID:


----------



## Jovan (Mar 7, 2006)

My driver's licence has me in a western shirt... next time suit and tie for sure.


----------



## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

The last time I was renewing my Driver's License I put hair color as "Brown" on the form. The lady behind the counter looked at me and said "Sweetie, I don't think your hair has been brown in quite some time".

Feeling a bit embarrassed I told her to change it to "Grey". 

She laughed and said "Wrong again" and proceeded to put "Bald" on the form. Getting old is a pain in the butt. :icon_smile_big:

Cruiser


----------



## Acct2000 (Sep 24, 2005)

She's lucky you had a sense of humor. No jury would have convicted you if you had backhanded her.

I would probably have laughed, too. However, when you're dealing with the public, your job as a government employee does not give you the right to insult people who HAVE to deal with you to get things they need.


----------



## Cruiser (Jul 21, 2006)

forsbergacct2000 said:


> She's lucky you had a sense of humor. No jury would have convicted you if you had backhanded her.
> 
> I would probably have laughed, too. However, when you're dealing with the public, your job as a government employee does not give you the right to insult people who HAVE to deal with you to get things they need.


She wasn't being insulting. I live in the South and I think our interactions down here are much different than in other parts of the country. I know a lot of my friends from up North had trouble adjusting when they first moved down here, but they generally changed over time. I have always been amazed at how "literal" some folks are, especially those from the Mid-West, like my ex-wife. There is a sense of humor down here that she just never "got".

Cruiser


----------



## Jim In Sunny So Calif (May 13, 2006)

Cruiser said:


> Getting old is a pain in the butt. :icon_smile_big:
> 
> Cruiser


Sometimes the 'golden years' seem more like 90 miles of bad road, but so far they beat the alternative.

Cheers, Jim.


----------



## Bracemaker (May 11, 2005)

A folically challenged friend was coming through passport control in Israel some months back (his wife was standing behind so overheard the conversation) when the officer examined his 9 year old photo and (rather rudely I thought) enquired 'were you wearing a wig when this was taken?'.
His wife has lived out on the tale since...
So, ties, yes, rugs, er, no.


----------



## TheWardrobeGirl (Mar 24, 2008)

Cruiser said:


> The last time I was renewing my Driver's License I put hair color as "Brown" on the form. The lady behind the counter looked at me and said "Sweetie, I don't think your hair has been brown in quite some time".
> 
> Feeling a bit embarrassed I told her to change it to "Grey".
> 
> ...





Bracemaker said:


> A folically challenged friend was coming through passport control in Israel some months back (his wife was standing behind so overheard the conversation) when the officer examined his 9 year old photo and (rather rudely I thought) enquired 'were you wearing a wig when this was taken?'.
> His wife has lived out on the tale since...
> So, ties, yes, rugs, er, no.


OUCH!! Very funny though - the gentlemen in the above stories are good sports!


----------

