Fundamentals of Forensic Photography

Chapter 4 Light and Lighting

Effectively utilizing light will create an image that will give forensic investigators the ability to analyze details of a scene and evidence. Light has a specific size and output to illuminate subjects. Most lights are adjustable or have the ability to control brightness, thereby providing the forensic photographer an ability to control how objects are illuminated. The light that illuminates an object will come from a specific direction relative to the object’s surface(s). Supplemental lights can be added to the single directional light source to support and expose additional details of the scene or object. The following information will explain and demonstrate a variety of lighting methods and how the style affects ...