pictures for med apps!

[4success]

i was just wondeirng.. what kind of pictures are they looking for? i heard some peopel say it needs to look professional/ formal.. and other ppl just saying that it can be any piture as long as ur'e not holding a beer bottle or doign something crazy.. any ideas?

thanks!

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[Captain Fantastic]

Submit some sort of headshot. I took some photos of myself with my digital camera and had prints made. They'll do. No need to shell out the $$$ for a sitting with a professional photographer.

 

[Jolie South]

Submit some sort of headshot. I took some photos of myself with my digital camera and had prints made. They'll do. No need to shell out the $$$ for a sitting with a professional photographer.

that's what i'm doing. I don't think it matters too much what you wear cause you'll only see the top of the collar anyways.

p.s. cvs does passport pictures for like 8 bucks. They give you 6 and if you need more you could always make a reprint for like 30 cents.

 

[kidthor]

You can get some pretty cheap quasi-professional ones done at Target or JC Penny... I got cheap ones done at Target and they're decent, but definitely not amazing!

 

[Haemulon]

Agreed. Just look nice and smile. They are primarily for ID purposes. But still, you want to be conservative and avoid trying to get the wrong kind of attention with your picture.

 

[Lokhtar]

Good idea: buttoned up shirt and a smile
Bad idea: mooning the camera with a bong in your hand


Really, just got to a place where you get your passport picture, make sure you shave/groom yourself, and get a couple taken for $5. No need to worry about it.

 

[lacrossefiend73]

Or, just have a friend take a headshot of you w/ a blank wall behind you or something. I had a headshot from my job. Then you can upload the picture to the Walgreens website and they can print wallet size photos for you. Super cheap and quick.

 

[Law2Doc]

Good idea: buttoned up shirt and a smile

If you are a guy I would recommend throwing on a tie. (Since it's from the chest up, you can be wearing jeans/shorts and just throw on a nice shirt/tie for the photo.) You are applying to a profession, and so looking professional isn't a bad idea. Photo's needn't be studio quality. Just go to walmart, walgreens, CVS etc and have them snap a passport photo of you. If you are really cheap, you can probably try on a tie at walmart or Target get the photo taken in it, and then put it back on the rack.

 

[166035]

x

 

[alwaysaangel]

I just used a picture that I already had - cropped down. The one I used is actually in the premed picture thread somewhere. It was me and my boyfriend on Valentine's Day a couple years ago. I cropped my bf out, cropped it down so it was just a headshot and you couldn't tell how low the dress was, and used that for every application I sent. I printed them out on my own photo printer.

So use whatever you're comfortable with -but like others have said - you don't have to go get something professional done - and with as expensive as this process is - cheap is better.

I did what I did simply because I tend to not be very photogenic - so instead of having new pics taken I chose to use one I already had where I looked decent.

 

[Lokhtar]

If you are really cheap, you can probably try on a tie at walmart or Target get the photo taken in it, and then put it back on the rack.

Haha, that's classic.

 

[alesdu1]

i put on my suit and went to sears to get it done. i wanted it done somewhat professionally cause i figured it'd look bizarre if I had this application that i spent all this time on, and then some shoddy photograph attached to it.

 

[LikeClockWork]

I just used my fraternity composite picture. Suit, tie, smile and all that.

 

[FootballFan14]

I gave them a pic of me while hiking. So I was kind of sweaty and had a bandanna around my head and wilderness in the background but nothing crazier than that. Nothing incriminating or over the top, just a cropped head shot of a photo I already had- it just happened to be the pic I liked best of me. Plus it wasn't overly mug shot-ish. Ultimately as long as you are not unprofessional, I don't think there's anything wrong with casual. The med school that decides to reject me because my hair isn't styled in my ID photo (I doubt there is one- I don't think they care) is not a school I want to go to anyways.

 

[Tensyle]

hhahaha when the OP said "med apps" i thought he/she meant that the website mdapps was now hosting pictures along with profiles!

 

[nick_carraway]

I had my GF take a photo of me with a shirt + tie and cropped it, repeated the image over a 4 x 6 sheet with Photoshop and uploaded it from home to Long's for printing. It cost like $0.13 for one sheet of 8 and I picked up 3 sheets an hour later. Walmart and other stores have a similar uploading feature available.