Most long-time residents of Parks Reserve Forces Training Area know it as the Photo Lab. The lab part of the photo facility no longer exists. The Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Defense regulations mandated a transition from chemical to digital processing in the mid-1990s. The darkrooms are now office space and the bulky film processing machines and chemicals have been replaced by computers and digital printers.
To ensure each Soldier is provided with a quality photo, Soldiers must plan and schedule an appointment as early as possible. To schedule an appointment for a DA Photo and/or Command Photo:
Send at least three Date-Time Groups which you are available to attend via email: DA PHOTO LAB GROUP MAILBOX: usarmy.parks.imcom-central.mbx.da-photo@mail.mil
DA photographers are not allowed to enhance or change the photograph. They cannot digitally make the Soldier thinner or take wrinkles out of their uniform.
Once the Soldier approves the photo, it is then sent to the Department of the Army Photograph Management Information System. DAPMIS receives the official DA photo directly from the Army’s worldwide photo labs and is specifically designed to eliminate DA photo-accountability problems, such as lost, incorrect or damaged hard copy photos. According to Army regulations, the DA photo is valid for five years.
