Photography has its application in various sectors, the most important among others being in the crime scene investigation. Incorporating photography into the crime case helps investigators to understand the actual scenes of the incident.
What is the Importance of Photography in Police Work??
The first-ever forged document as evidence was presented in the courtroom in 1851 and since then, photography in police work became an essential tool for identification and scene analysis of crime cases.
The time required to photograph the elements of the crime investigation mainly depends on the complication of the case and the environmental factors associated with the scene.
The scenes that are captured at different stages of the investigation should be presented with altering the information in the photograph. Additional enhancements such as cropping, brightness, contrast, and color processing are acceptable. All the enhancements made should be described in the paper as to why they were needed in the first place itself.
As per the guidelines mentioned by SWGIT- “Documenting image enhancement steps should be sufficient to permit a comparably trained person to understand the steps taken, the techniques used, and to extract comparable information from the image.”
The images captured had to be shown in order, ensuring that none of the photos have been intentionally removed. For the purpose of photography in crime scenes, usually, professional ones are hired as they are aware of various settings of the camera and that they can adjust the lighting as per required for a particular situation.
Well, the photographs themselves don’t serve the evidence however they do help in providing visual documentation of the scene and locations which can be compared for the further investigation process.
In order to ensure proper accurate photographic documentation, an individual needs to keep in consideration the following points:
The listed points are as dictated by ifflab-
- Securing the Incident Scene
- Evaluation of Conditions
- Shooting the Scene
- Photographing the Victims
- Photographing Critical Victims Later
- Capturing the Evidence
- Evidence Markers
- Re-shoot for New Evidence
- Imaging and Lighting Techniques
- Be Quick in Shooting
FAQs
What is photography in criminology?
Police photography also referred to as forensic imaging or crime scene photography is incorporated into a crime scene or an accident to produce a replica of the scene which can prove helpful in further investigation of the case.
What is the meaning of police photography?
Police Photography is defined as ‘’ an art or science which deals with the study of the principles of photography, the reproduction of photographic evidence, and its application to police work.’’
What is the first use of photography in police work?
The first use of photography in police work was done by Alphonse Bertillion who utilized it in his Anthropometry system as a supplementary identification.
Conclusion
So this was all about the importance of photography in police work. The effectiveness of photography has aided police officers to analyze some of the most crucial evidence of criminal cases that would have otherwise taken a long time to come to a conclusion. Equipping photography has been a major stepping stone for the crime investigation branch as it joins different elements of the criminal case and brings the suspect close to arresting.
Follow us on our social media handles to get daily updates on such interesting topics.
