Can I record or livestream Parris Island graduation?

The depot posts graduation video through its official Facebook page and MCCS's Parris Island Recruit Families page after ceremonies, and streams when it can.

What should I do with my graduate's photos?

Back them up the same day, note the unit and the date, and turn the best ones into numbered keepsake cards the whole family can share.

— Parris Island guide · Photos

Parris Island graduation photos.

What to know about cameras, video and pictures at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, the shots worth getting, and what to do with them afterward. Checked in September 2026.

— What the base says

Cameras, video and recordings at Parris Island.

The depot posts graduation video through its official Facebook page and MCCS's Parris Island Recruit Families page after ceremonies, and streams when it can.

— Shots worth getting

Ten photos you will want forever.

The moment they are released to you
The first hug, and keep shooting
A close up in uniform
With a drill instructor or training leader, if they will stand for it
The whole family in one frame
With the grandparents
With their battle buddy or shipmate
Holding the certificate
A selfie, both of you
The walk back to the car

— Photo tips

Seven habits that pay off later.

Arrive early and choose your spot before the crowd fills in. A clear line of sight beats a close one.
Hold the phone upright for portraits. Tall photos fill a keepsake card best, wide ones are for the whole scene.
Take more than you think you need, and keep shooting after the first hug. The second and third minutes are the honest ones.
Ask a relative or a stranger to take one of the whole family together. It is the photo everyone forgets to get.
If the ceremony is streamed or recorded, screenshot a few frames later. You will not be filming and hugging at once.
Write down the platoon, flight, company or division and the date the same day. Nobody remembers it in five years.
Back the photos up that night, before anything happens to the phone.

— Older photos

Looking for pictures from years ago?

How can a veteran get their old Parris Island platoon photo or find their platoon?

MCCS Recruit Photo still has platoon pictures going back decades, even when the yearbook is gone. Email sc.recruitphoto@usmc-mccs.org or call 843-228-1555 with your name, platoon number and the month and year you graduated. Your own service record, which lists the platoon, can be requested free from the National Personnel Records Center at vetrecs.archives.gov. Source

— Hiring a photographer

Family portraits are a different job.

Some families book a local photographer for portraits around graduation weekend. If you do, remember that everyone who comes on base follows the same ID, pass and gate rules as any other visitor (see the Parris Island guide), so sort out access with them before the day. Either way, the photos your own family takes are the ones that end up on the wall.

Then turn them into cards.

Every photo from Parris Island becomes a numbered keepsake card, front and back, with the unit, the base and the date. You get a video and one page the whole family can open. Graduated a while ago? It is not too late.

See your first 3 cards free Back to the Parris Island guide

— Sources

Checked in September 2026 against these official pages. CardMyService is not affiliated with the Department of Defense or any branch.