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• If you go out for a meal

  The speaker will pick up a glass and look for fingerprints, or pick up cutlery and notice fingerprints
• The speaker's wife cannot see the fingerprints that the speaker can see
• Proactive photography


  Using photography as an enhancement at the crime scene or in the laboratory, such as enhancing blood on clothing, enhancing injuries using UV, or recording latent marks using a laser
• Nearly all evidence types have to be recorded in a photographic medium if they are going to be presented at court
• Responding to calls in the ops room

  1. Crime scene managers or officers dealing with investigations call the ops room

  2. The ops room takes the call and assigns the appropriate jobs, which could include a murder, sexual offenses, or high-speed video for firearms people
• Composing the image in the mind when arriving at a crime scene

  Assessing what needs to be captured and how to get the scene across to the jury in the minimum number of photographs
• The camera is often irrelevant, it's about understanding light and what needs to be seen in the image
• Types of evidence


  Often require particular wavelengths, such as 440-460 nm for body fluids, UV for different marks, and green laser for other marks
• Searching for evidence at a crime scene

  Use a sequential pattern of searches using different wavelengths, which can yield 40-60% more marks than just using powder
• Every crime scene is completely different, so an open mind is required
• Technology has decimated the numbers of photographers employed by police forces, as everyone has a camera now
• Just owning a camera does not make someone a photographer, there is a big difference in how the speaker would perceive and capture a scene compared to someone with limited training
• Using wide-angle lenses can distort perspective and give a false impression when trying to recreate a fatal accident scene for a jury
• Shooting property in the horizontal

  Allows the placement of lights to better capture small details, compared to the vertical which is limited to camera height
• There is no second chance to capture critical evidence, so these photographic techniques are essential
• The speaker's mindset when at a crime scene is focused on the task of reporting the evidence, not on any shock factor
• There is a sense of satisfaction in knowing the effort put into a case has contributed to the outcome