I feel silly admitting this, but I never really considered using my knowledge of photography to improve my fire scene photos. I guess the reason is that shooting fire scenes didn't really seem like "photography" to me. When I shot for fun, it was often with film, using a manual, mechanical camera. It was a slow and deliberate style of shooting. In comparison, the camera I used for shooting fire scenes, with all its buttons and whatnots, sometimes felt more like a computer than a camera to me. Furthermore, there was work to be done at the fire scene. It didn't seem like there was time to be fussing about with camera settings. The photos in Auto mode seemed "good enough." That started to change several years ago after I listened to a podcast.
Driving all over the state looking at fires, I listen to a lot of podcasts. While scrolling through through my library one day, I noticed an episode from the B&H Photography Podcast on crime scene photography. The guest was a retired detective and crime scene photographer from New York Police Department's Crime Scene Unit. The detective discussed the training that crime scene techs would go through. He talked about how lens choice, proper depth of field, focus, and composition were important to the quality and ultimately the usefulness of a forensic photograph. He brought up points that I hadn't considered before. Listening to that podcast gave me ideas about how I could improve my fire scene images. It inspired me to learn more and to do better. Since then, I have read books and articles on forensic and crime scene photography. I've attended trainings and seminars, and I've learned new methods and techniques. I've branched into macro photography, 360 panoramas, and 3-D photogrammetry as well.
The camera is the fire investigator's most important documentation tool. It is the one tool that is used on every single fire scene. The photographs that we take are an extremely important part of our work product. The photos will supplement our written reports and will help the reader understand our processes and our conclusions. Whether that reader is a supervisor, a client, an attorney or a jury, we should strive to make our findings as clear as possible. This means clean and precise writing and well executed photographs. When we create a report, the photos will stand out. This can be a good thing or it can be a bad thing. While camera technology has made it easier to capture nice looking and well exposed photos, it has also raised expectations. People expect high fidelity images, especially in a professional report. If the subject is not sharp, if the depth of field is too shallow, if the image is grainy or splotchy, people will notice.
Knowing how to get the best out of your camera equipment can help you to meet those expectations and deliver professional looking results. Knowing your camera can help you be more efficient as well. Once I started focusing more on my fire scene photography I realized that "fussing around" with camera settings at the scene saved me time. If I could get the exposure right at the scene, I wouldn't have to use editing software later. If I paid attention to depth of field and focus more, I'd have less failed shots. Now, since I know how my camera works, when a photo doesn't turn out I can look at my settings and fix it quickly. Of course it took a little time for me to figure out. There was certainly a learning curve when it came to figuring out all those buttons and dials. But when it came down to it, fire scene photography is photography. The fundamentals of exposure, lighting, and composition were the same. The camera just had some handy dandy extra features thrown in!
I've learned a lot through this process. It's been fun, enlightening, and sometimes frustrating. Most importantly, I believe it has improved my work. Throughout this process, I often found myself wishing there were more resources for investigators like me who want to learn best practices for forensic imaging and how to apply those practices to fire scene investigation. I guess that's why I'm writing this blog. While I continue to learn and improve as a fire scene photographer I want to share what I've learned with you. I hope that I can be a resource for you and make your journey easier.
Cheers,
Darren
