Photography, Videography and Scene Mapping
What this domain tests
Photography, videography, and mapping questions test systematic coverage, scale placement, exposure, and creation of a measurable record.
Core rules and concepts
- Capture overall, medium, and close-up views; include a scale in close-ups and place it in the same plane as the evidence.
- Keep the camera axis perpendicular to the subject to reduce perspective distortion; use fill flash or diffusers to control shadows.
- Record image number, date, time, location, subject, and scale in a photo log; preserve original files and do not crop or alter them.
- Video walkthroughs should be slow, narrated, and continuous; document lighting and camera path.
- Mapping methods include baseline, triangulation, rectangular coordinates, total station, and photogrammetry; sketches record measurements and reference points.
Worked example
A bullet hole is in a wall. You shoot a wide room view, a medium view with the wall corner, and a close-up with an ABFO #2 scale level with the hole; then you measure from two fixed corners. Reasoning: the scale and offsets allow later reconstruction; a scale tilted out of plane would misrepresent size.
Traps
Leaving the scale out of close-ups; placing the scale on a different plane; relying on digital zoom; deleting original files; failing to photograph the scene before collection; having no photo log.