Digital Photo Logs

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Steve Everist
Site Admin
Posts: 551
Joined: Sun Jul 03, 2005 4:27 pm
Location: Bellevue, WA

Digital Photo Logs

Post by Steve Everist »

How are agencies that are capturing latent prints digitally dealing with the issue of photo logs?

The information specific to the camera is included in the meta data, however I'm interested in if you're logging information regarding light sources, filters, etc... that wouldn't be in the meta data (or are you doing this at all)?
Steve E.
wkpetroka
Posts: 25
Joined: Tue Jul 05, 2005 5:49 am
Location: Charlottesville, VA

Post by wkpetroka »

Steve,

We are logging the information on a .pdf photo log similar to the one at KCSO. The sequential image number assigned by the camera is used as an identifier, not a user assigned number such as 1 or S1, SE1.

Wade
Steve Everist
Site Admin
Posts: 551
Joined: Sun Jul 03, 2005 4:27 pm
Location: Bellevue, WA

Post by Steve Everist »

Wade,

Do you mean that you've created a log that's kept as a PDF that you print out and hand-write, or are you using a PDF form that you can enter text directly into the form on the computer and then print it out afterwards?

If that's the case, are you storing a computer copy of the form and/or and printed hard copy?

What kind of info are you logging?

As far as the identifier goes, you know how we've done it here which will obviously change when we substitute sheets of negatives for digital images (with their own numbers).
Steve E.
areitnau
Posts: 40
Joined: Wed May 30, 2007 4:27 pm

Post by areitnau »

We are using a simple MS Word document where we document the camera, latent number, file number, and lighting/wavelength/filters/etc that help examiners know what techniques were used in capturing the photo. The digital images metadata log recordes all of the pertinent info about camera settings, but the log records the external information for every photo for the case file.

Andy
Andrew Reitnauer MSFE, CSCSA, CPO, F.F.S.
Technical Lead Scientist
Washington DC DFS
Owner, Delta Forensics
www.delta-forensics.com
Kasey Wertheim
Posts: 161
Joined: Sun Jul 10, 2005 6:55 am

Post by Kasey Wertheim »

Steve Everist wrote:Do you mean that you've created a log that's kept as a PDF that you print out and hand-write, or are you using a PDF form that you can enter text directly into the form on the computer and then print it out afterwards?
PDF form - text is entered and saved with the digital case file.
Steve Everist wrote:What kind of info are you logging?
He could tell you,... but... ;)

Mostly items of interest not contained within meta-data. Image names, lighting type, etc.

-Kasey
Andrew Schriever
Posts: 72
Joined: Fri Jan 20, 2006 4:16 pm
Location: Las Vegas

Post by Andrew Schriever »

For those not interested in keeping separate logs, you can edit the metadata for your images to reflect any additional information that is not normally recorded. You can do it for each individual image, or you can batch edit a group of photos that require the same information. This information is searchable so you can also include information that will allow you to find a specific set of photos easily based on information that you input.

Personally I usually dont record information beyond what is recorded when I capture the image.
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