1. An apparatus for acquiring biometric information of an individual, the apparatus comprising: a light source, directing a visible light beam towards an iris of an eye at a first angle that avoids a light-sensitive portion of the eye's retina, the visible light beam illuminating the iris for biometric acquisition and matching, the visible light beam having an incident intensity level that (i) would cause discomfort to the eye if directed at the light-sensitive portion of the retina, and(ii) is sufficient to illuminate striations of the iris for the biometric acquisition at a reflected intensity level that exceeds that of visible light reflected from the cornea due to other light sources; and a sensor, acquiring iris biometric data from the illuminated iris for the biometric matching.