passport photos

I went to have my passport photo taken today. My passport is due to expire, and rather than go through the effort (and detail required) to have a whole new passport, I thought I'd actually be organized enough to get the few things I need for the renewal. One of these was the photo.

My friend Christine told me that the little post office around the corner does passport photos for about $10., which was half what Black's charges. So I went there. Had my picture taken by an elderly man who had set up the photo area like a Karsh studio. The lights, the bounce-foil umbrella, the white board to hold on my lap to deal with the shadows under my chin (fleetingly worried that this might be just my chin(s)).

And the result: I look less like a terrorist/escaped convict and more like a disgruntled housewife. Sad, but true. The photographer said, "Try to put more softness in your eyes", since I clearly was forbidden to smile--now that we are all suspect if we look pleasant & happy.

Unfortunately, I don't think, unless you're a trained model, that looking pleasant while forcing a solemn expression somewhere between grim and unhappy, can do the trick. Oh well, at least it's done and I can get on with the next step in the process...

Now I just need to find my birth certificate. Where did I put that thing???