The Importance of Crime Scene Photography
The Importance of Crime Scene Photography
A crime scene tells a story and the evidence there can retell the how and when the crime was committed, who committed it, why and perhaps what items have been taken. One of the first things an officer should do once he arrives at the crime scene is to secure it as quickly as possible. Investigating crimes and documenting the scene involves several steps and taking photos is part of the process.
A picture is worth a thousand words and it is especially true in crime scene photography. Photographs and crime sketches are the most effective and simplest way to represent a crime scene. They are most useful in supplying significant bits and pieces with exact measurement of the site where the crime has occurred. However, photographs provide accurate measurements and distances among objects, which is lacking with sketches. No matter how well an investigator can verbally describe a crime scene, photographs can tell the same story better and more easily as it freezes time and records the evidences.
The purpose of crime scene photography is to provide a true and accurate record of the crime scene and physical evidence present by recording the original scene and related areas. It provides investigators and others with a permanent visual record of the scene that can be analyzed or examined for later use. It’s also very beneficial in court hearings and trials as it provides the judge as well as the jurors with a permanent visual record of the scene and evidence that was collected from it. Regardless if a scene has been videotaped, still photographs are a must at every crime scene. Although videotaping does record everything, photographs can demonstrate certain things such as direct comparison. Actual size photographs can be used to compare fingerprint and shoe prints photographed at the scene against the suspect.
The equipment used in photographing a crime scene is very important in achieving
A crime scene tells a story and the evidence there can retell the how and when the crime was committed, who committed it, why and perhaps what items have been taken. One of the first things an officer should do once he arrives at the crime scene is to secure it as quickly as possible. Investigating crimes and documenting the scene involves several steps and taking photos is part of the process.
A picture is worth a thousand words and it is especially true in crime scene photography. Photographs and crime sketches are the most effective and simplest way to represent a crime scene. They are most useful in supplying significant bits and pieces with exact measurement of the site where the crime has occurred. However, photographs provide accurate measurements and distances among objects, which is lacking with sketches. No matter how well an investigator can verbally describe a crime scene, photographs can tell the same story better and more easily as it freezes time and records the evidences.
The purpose of crime scene photography is to provide a true and accurate record of the crime scene and physical evidence present by recording the original scene and related areas. It provides investigators and others with a permanent visual record of the scene that can be analyzed or examined for later use. It’s also very beneficial in court hearings and trials as it provides the judge as well as the jurors with a permanent visual record of the scene and evidence that was collected from it. Regardless if a scene has been videotaped, still photographs are a must at every crime scene. Although videotaping does record everything, photographs can demonstrate certain things such as direct comparison. Actual size photographs can be used to compare fingerprint and shoe prints photographed at the scene against the suspect.
The equipment used in photographing a crime scene is very important in achieving