A website that is devoted to the application
of photography in the fields of
forensic anthropology and medico-legal investigation
What is Forensic Photography?
When we apply the fundamental principle of photography, we can say that forensic photography is the art of reproducing an exact image of something like an event or an injury, among other things. This definition holds true when we apply the fundamental principle of photography. Because of this, we are able to record the information that cannot be kept for an indefinite amount of time, such as a crime scene, injuries discovered during an autopsy, or forensic medical examination for cases involving living people who have been the victims of physical violence, torture, or other similar things. Photography is an essential component of the process that forensic investigators follow in order to create a visual record of the evidence gathered during their investigations. As a consequence of the fact that photography has been integrated into the judicial system, forensic photography can now be presented in court as a valid piece of evidence.
Forensic Photography
When we talk about forensic photography, we always refer to a crime scene. However, we often forget that forensic photography is also practiced during autopsies, clinical examinations, human remains analysis, and other types of medical investigations that are involved in both civil and criminal cases.
I would say that: In my opinion, it is important to make a distinction between photographs taken at the scene of the crime and photographs taken for the purposes of a medico legal. They are complementary to one another and contribute to the achievement of the same goal, despite the fact that they accomplish their work in very different ways.
Crime Scene Photography
The taking of photographs at a crime scene serves the purpose of providing a view of the location, people, and physical evidence that was involved, such as in the case of a homicide, a traffic accident, burglaries, explosions, or any other crime that was committed against people or property. This perspective ought to be one that is accurate, exhaustive, and objective.
Medico-legal Photography
The purpose of an autopsy, clinical examination, examination of human remains, or any other type of medical investigation that is involved in civil or criminal cases is to present a picture that is accurate, complete, and objective of the individuals involved as well as the evidence.
My Concept About Forensic Photography
The role of Forensic Photography is the art of reproducing a faithful, precise image, and recording information that cannot remain indefinitely during a forensic investigation.A forensic photographer acts as the eyes of the justice system, and forensic photography attempts to reproduce, through a photograph, what the eye sees. Every photograph needs to be able to be interpreted in a way that leaves no room for ambiguity and should not be used to try to influence or manipulate people's feelings.
The benefit of this is that it is able to record details with precision, which the human eye may not have necessarily captured. Last but not least, a high-quality image can be helped along by a good camera, but it is the photographer who determines whether a picture is good or bad. As you probably already know, a good picture is worth more than a thousand words. This is something that comes up quite frequently in the photography workshops that I teach because I believe it to be an important concept.
I would like to share with you a quote that was said by Alphonse Bertillon, who is considered to be one of the pioneers in the field of judicial photography. In his book titled "La Photographie Judiciaire," which was published in 1890, Bertillon wrote the following on page 46 of the third chapter:
Photography as a recording tool
Judicial photography is also involved in all criminal and civil matters, where it is vital to maintain an accurate, complete, and unbiased view of the place, things, and people. The details of these, unknown to all but scrupulously recorded by photography, can acquire vital importance.