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Who said that identity documents have to be sterile and lifeless? There are enough of those within the bureaucracy already. So why not spice things up a bit? With, say, a humorous photo?
The students over at North Farmington High School, Michigan, have been successfully doing it since 2014. And they're not the only ones.
To remind you that you don't need to look like a violent offender in your official "mugshot", Bored Panda put together a list of IDs with the funniest pictures. From ridiculous facial expressions to extravagant haircuts, a little party never hurt nobody!
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#1
The perfect ID photo doesn’t exi…
Babsevs 3 years ago
It's *almost* like some bored civil servant lined them up just so during the finalisation of the id! ;)
GoddessOdd 3 years ago (edited)
I think so too... it's too perfect to be an accident, don't you think? Maybe this is the civil servant's hobby 🥳🥳🥳
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To learn how we all can look at our everyday life from a different perspective — whether it's our ID photo or something else — we contacted the author of Lazy Creativity and creator of an online community for anyone looking for resources to become a more creative person, Kyle Bernier.
He told Bored Panda that our inner and outer critics can really limit our creative thinking. "Because one critic isn't enough, we've got two," Bernier said.
"The inner critic plays on your doubt, insecurity, and negative self-talk. The outer critic plays on your external fears, such as physical or resource limitations. Sometimes you're lucky enough to only have one critic speaking to you at once. Other times, you have two critics coming at you at the same time. That's especially 'fun.' These critics can instill fear and anxiety into your creative process and can derail current projects or ideas or can prevent you from acting on new ideas."
#3
That'sEndorable 3 years ago
LOL! Me, too! I was going to make a comment about it looking like a police photo.
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third molar 3 years ago
Seriously you are going to identify a faker with this id? - thats what the cat's thinking
#4
The school id camera had built in face cropping. Apparently it's still working on detecting faces on t-shirts.
#5
My grandpa went to get his passport photos done but pressed the wrong button.
Cory Watts 3 years ago
Yeah because when you get your passport photo they let you pick the hair you want.
Another obstacle to tapping into our imagination, according to Bernier, is gatekeeping. "Beware of gatekeepers as you try to explore new creativity, as they will do whatever they can to make you feel weird about exploring your new interest," he said.
"They started somewhere too and weren't always the high and mighty holders of knowledge and expertise they are now. They were noobs at it once too, and now that they've put in the time to learn more about it, they feel the need to defend their interest from others. That can be extremely discouraging when you've finally worked up enough courage to try something new, only to find resistance within the community you’re trying to enter."
#6
Cristian Gonzalez 3 years ago
The baby be like;"What the hell is that and why is dad having a blanket on his head?"
#7
The State Department Nailed My Girlfriend's Passport
Joe D 3 years ago
Now all I can think of is Jon Belushi in "Animal House".....
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Al B. Wright 3 years ago
Sadly for her, she now has to deal with the looks she'll get from border guards at customs for the next 10 years!
#8
Me looking like 4 different people on 4 valid ID cards of mine
doggo lover 3 years ago
I was thinking the same thing. The bowl cut was a little to much in the top left
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Emmydearest 3 years ago
⬅️ bowl-cut guy from Stranger things ⬆️ frontman of Maneskin ➡️I don't know but he looks good ⬇️ a young Grindelwald
Abby Parker 3 years ago
I was thinking the exact same thing about the first and last one! So glad it’s not just me 😀
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#9
Man from New Zealand allowed to wear pasta strainer on head for driver licence photo, stated it was for religious purposes.
Nathaniel 3 years ago
The Pastafarian religion. It is the one religion that makes absolute sense!
Roadkill The Brave 3 years ago
It never went anywhere! My sister is ordained in the church.
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Jesse Young 3 years ago
It doesn't have to be worn at all times, just times of religious importance or whenever he feels like it.
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Al B. Wright 3 years ago
Pretty sure this became a thing for a while, that also spread to Australia. You could get away with putting practically anything on your head for a licence photo.
Jesse Young 3 years ago
If they're going to allow it for some people, they need to allow it for all. That's what it's really about.
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And the third issue Bernier thought was worth pointing out is benchmarking. The creative likes to think of us humans as creatures of comparison; it's hard not to be one these days. But this mindset isn't always helpful.
"We're always comparing ourselves to others in the room. That's called benchmarking. For some people, this can bring out the competitive spirit and motivate them to rise above their peers. For other people, it's deflating and can take the wind out of their sails before even getting started. Your work is unique because you made it, so it doesn’t need to stack up to anyone else’s work."
#10
Apparently, Wells Fargo doesn't bother to check the ID photos you send them.
#11
On the topic of ridiculous id photos, my brother likes to make a sport out of it as well
Cristian Gonzalez 3 years ago
I seen him before on the mustache side of the facial hair contest.
#12
My photo in my college card
Vorknkx 3 years ago
My college ID photo was taken just after a 4-hour journey on a hot August day. Imagine what my face looked like.
GoddessOdd 3 years ago
My current driver's license photo was taken after I ran about half a mile, in 92℉ heat, in a torrential downpour. I am soaking wet with my long hair plastered to my body and water running down my face.
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#13
C E 3 years ago
Not sure how I feel about planning to drive high. actually, pretty sure you shouldn't. For all of our sakes, stay home & enjoy! Hope we live in a different city.
WoodenLion 3 years ago
somebody downvoted you. i took it away. no reason to down your comment.
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GoddessOdd 3 years ago
I would like it better if you were also wearing the blue strainer on your head.
UpQuarkDownQuark 3 years ago
On the one hand that’s really funny! 😂 On the other, if you drive high I hate you, I hope you get caught, and I hope you lose your license. 😠
Somewhat counterintuitively, Bernier thinks the first step to fueling our creativity is allowing ourselves to be bored. "Our thoughts are consumed by things we need to get done, anxious thoughts, or plans we've made. It's go go go all week. Our minds rarely have a break to just be. But when we're bored, our mind has the opportunity to wander," he explained.
"What's fascinating is that when we're bored, our mind has the space to think more creatively. We begin thinking about projects we can do or creative ways of looking at our worlds."
#14
My Friends Work Id Photo
MintyKitty! 3 years ago
No, just in desperate need of a the flash setting on photos
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GoddessOdd 3 years ago
I would love to see what people make of this photo when they try to compare. Are they suspicious, or just puzzled, or fine with it?
#15
I have a long-standing battle with my buddy for the most ridiculous photo id. My wife suggested I wear my mother's hot pink bathrobe and "Gary Busey" my hair for my new driver's license photo, so I did.
blobby_grrl 3 years ago
you should listen to your wife more often. thats a pretty cracked idea
Wandaluzt 3 years ago
It was posted a year ago on Reddit. You're not talking to the poster.
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Cristian Gonzalez 3 years ago
His wife probably was laughing and giving him thumbs up while his photo is taken by the look of his face.
#16
One of the best fake ids I’ve ever seen
GoddessOdd 3 years ago
Wait... how can you tell it's a fake? Looks like a 31 year old for sure.
#17
Guy provided 2 forms of ID at my work. I guess this is the difference between having your photo taken on a friday and on a monday.
ThatRandomGuy 3 years ago
POV: Your boss wants chat with you vs your boss wants to meet with you
"If you're the type of person who has a difficult time justifying being bored, gently remind yourself that by doing so, you're setting yourself up for a creative mindset by letting your mind wander and develop ideas that it may not otherwise be able to with the stressors of your daily life interfering," Bernier added.
He's not alone on this. In a radio interview with the station LRT Opus, Lithuanian musician Kabloonak said that boredom is what really drives his ideas—once you get rid of all distractions and set aside some time to actively do nothing, the mind engages itself. Just let it do its thing, he advised, and it will surprise you with interesting discoveries.
#18
So I had my student id taken this morning and this how it turned out.
GoddessOdd 3 years ago
I am old, so this one made me think of every 1970s college activist mug shot I've ever seen.😀
Mama Penguin 3 years ago
Looks like one of those cold case murder TV documentaries with grainy footage from the 80s.
Boris Long-Johnson 3 years ago
Obviously it’s not deliberate but she looks like Brenda Spencer when she was arrested.
#19
#20
Attempted to take baby passport photos...
BarBeeGirl 3 years ago
This why in Canada you don’t need a passport photo until you’re over 10 (or at least that’s how it was when my daughter was young)
#21
Sam Tiller 3 years ago
"mommy? Can you withdraw 1000 dollars from your bank account so everyone thinks I'm loaded?"
Bernier believes it's also important to focus on the journey, not its destination. "If you put all your stock into how something turns out, you are missing out on the most valuable part of the process, which is the making," he said.
"The end result can be wonderful, but it isn’t as important as the process itself. In this instance, the journey is more important than the destination. It’s not about what you make, more that you make. If you're not happy with how your work turned out, that's okay because you've at least gained something (e.g. knowledge, skills, etc.) from the process."
#22
Since it was requested, I only have my buddy's college ID from the 80s. Yep, our id photo battle has been going on for decades!
Riley Warrick 3 years ago
This reminds me of that one scene in "Revenge of the Sith"... I know, it was made way before the 80's, but still!
#23
While training on a new inmate id system in 1998, I decided to make my educational attempt a keepsake for my grandkids. Hopefully they remember that I had a sense of humor.
GoddessOdd 3 years ago
Some of my favorite BH episodes featured Jethro Bodine, Double Naught Spy.
#24
My nephew got his passport photo taken
#25
Katie Lutesinger 3 years ago
Ah yes, the inspiration behind popular children's picture book "Bubba The Cat Goes To School". Or so I'm assuming.
Remember, you don't need to achieve whatever it is you're trying to do in one big leap. When your motivation is at a low point, try to make small progress; it can put you in a productive rhythm.
"It's taking micro-steps toward creativity," Bernier said. "If you're working on a project, small progress is breaking things down into very small and manageable actions. The act of making progress and creating, no matter how small, can have a huge impact on your morale and sense of productivity. Small progress can involve thinking about an idea and jotting down a couple notes, making a to-do list, or deciding what your next step is when your motivation comes back. Those are just a few examples. The important part is that you’re doing something related to your idea that could count as a step forward."
#26
#27
Featherytoad 3 years ago
These are hilarious but, how do they get away with doing it. Do they swap out the photo later.
Someone Somewhere 3 years ago
I am a Environmental sciences major at the Oscar Grouch Institute.
#28
#29
Benjamin Palmer 3 years ago
Every bowel movement is awkward in front of a camera...
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GoddessOdd 3 years ago
I just wonder if you get suspended or expelled if they remove the "member in good standing" part.
#30
Katy McMouse 3 years ago
I went to a college called Seton HILL. People always confused it with another school called Seton Hall, a much larger university that had a nationally recognized name. There was one student at my college that somehow got hold of a Seton Hall id with his picture on it (or someone who looked like him). He would try to use this id around campus and when people realized he had an id from Seton Hall, they would usually point this out. This student would then proceed to act distraught, asking whoever noticed his card if he was currently enrolled at Seton Hall. Inevitably, the answer was always no, he was currently on Seton Hill's campus, which would lead him to start acting seriously distraught and panicky because "his parents left him at the wrong school". We had a small campus, so this joke only worked for so long, but it was fun while it lasted.
That'sEndorable 3 years ago
Would be even funnier if he was 6'10" (Seton Hall is famous for basketball.)
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#31
#32
#33
Kendall Andrews 3 years ago
Me too!! Stunned to see NCC represented here AND with multiple alumni in the comments.
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#34
the shrimp whisperer 3 years ago
he looks like he's high but he's also just making a funny face on purpose and i love it
#35
#37
Cynthia Carter 3 years ago
Wish I could get back the 2 hours every other evening I sat under the hood dryer with my hair in rollers. Time frame was about 1967-1973 when modern curling irons and blow dryers appeared and I was liberated.
#40
doggo lover 3 years ago
It looks like he was actively swinging that chain when the photo was taken…Hope the photographer is ok
#41
I came across this photo of an ID from a nearby junior college.
#42
#43
#44
#46
Stone Mountain park isn't too strict about your ID photo. Here's my kid's. (x-post r/marvelstudios)
#48
#49
#51
ᶜʰᵃᵒᵗⁱᶜ ˡᵉᵍᵃˡ 3 years ago
I think this is kinda sick(if she agreed) but if he forced it then yeah pack ur lisence in his suitcase and drop kick 'em out the door lol
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What do you think ?
Yoga Kitty 3 years ago
If you start to look anything like your ID picture it is high time you take a holiday!
Adam (they/he) 3 years ago
This was at cross country team photos one year. Only the seniors get individual photos and one coach said to treat it seriously, like it was your drivers license photo- my friend whips out her drivers license to show the coach her photo- she purposely had the funniest expression, I can’t even begin to describe- coach just looks at her so resigned while we laughed
Funhog 3 years ago
About 10 years ago I had a cat that was diagnosed with diabetes. Vet prescribed insulin that I could get filled at the pharmacy. Had to create an account at the pharmacy for my cat, who was 8 years old. Well, one of the times when I was picking up the insulin, I also purchased a DVD (R rated, so 18 years or older to purchase). The clerk mumbled something about being prompted to enter a DOB into the register when she scanned the DVD.. then, she just looked at my cat’s ID card and answered herself saying, “oh, I’ll just use this one [DOB].” Turns out that the register accepted my cat’s DOB to purchase an R-rated DVD.
Aubrie Allen 3 years ago
I moved back to the town I grew up in and the Rec center issued me a card and wouldn't take a new picture, so it has a picture of me when I was 12 years old, when I was 30.
Jennifer .S 3 years ago
When I got my student ID I ended up zoning out the second it was taken, so my gaze was slightly off centre and distant in the photo. I ended up looking like a dead body that someone leaned against the wall
Yoga Kitty 3 years ago
If you start to look anything like your ID picture it is high time you take a holiday!
Adam (they/he) 3 years ago
This was at cross country team photos one year. Only the seniors get individual photos and one coach said to treat it seriously, like it was your drivers license photo- my friend whips out her drivers license to show the coach her photo- she purposely had the funniest expression, I can’t even begin to describe- coach just looks at her so resigned while we laughed
Funhog 3 years ago
About 10 years ago I had a cat that was diagnosed with diabetes. Vet prescribed insulin that I could get filled at the pharmacy. Had to create an account at the pharmacy for my cat, who was 8 years old. Well, one of the times when I was picking up the insulin, I also purchased a DVD (R rated, so 18 years or older to purchase). The clerk mumbled something about being prompted to enter a DOB into the register when she scanned the DVD.. then, she just looked at my cat’s ID card and answered herself saying, “oh, I’ll just use this one [DOB].” Turns out that the register accepted my cat’s DOB to purchase an R-rated DVD.
Aubrie Allen 3 years ago
I moved back to the town I grew up in and the Rec center issued me a card and wouldn't take a new picture, so it has a picture of me when I was 12 years old, when I was 30.
Jennifer .S 3 years ago
When I got my student ID I ended up zoning out the second it was taken, so my gaze was slightly off centre and distant in the photo. I ended up looking like a dead body that someone leaned against the wall
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