Why I Hesitate to Say Yes to Passport Photos

People ask me this more than you'd think.

"Can you help me take a passport photo?"

I get why.

If you're a professional portrait photographer, surely a passport photo will look nicer too, right?

Here's the thing though. It doesn't really work that way.

(And if you're one of those who've seen me hesitate before answering, and you’re about to give me the side eye, hear me out first.)

ID or passport photos aren't trying to be expressive. They're trying to be consistent. Face the camera. Neutral expression. Even lighting. No shadows. Ears showing. Plain background. That's it. The whole point is that everyone looks the same kind of "correct", not interesting.

Honestly? They're not that hard to get right. Most people could take a decent one with their phone if they simply followed the rules. And here's where the conflict begins for me.

A portrait, to me, isn't just "Here's what this person looks like. It's "Here's who this person is." Those sound like the same thing. They're really not.

An ID photo exists so a border officer or some government system can confirm you're you. A portrait exists so another human being looks at it and forms an impression of you. One's about recognition. The other's about representation.

When I'm shooting a portrait, I'm thinking about light, expression, posture, and all the little things that make someone come across as confident, warm, thoughtful or approachable.

With an ID photo, almost none of that is even allowed. It's stripped away on purpose so everyone fits the same template. If I do it properly, my version shouldn't look much different from one taken anywhere else. In fact, that's exactly the point. A "better" passport photo isn't necessarily one that looks better. It's one that complies better.

It's not that passport photos are beneath me. They're not. They are important and should be done right. It's just that they ask me to switch off almost everything I think makes a portrait actually work, which is counter-intuitive for me.

And this, is the little debate that goes on in my head, every single time.

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Looking for something beyond an ID photograph? Learn more about how I approach Portrait Sessions.