LESSON 1

PHOTOGRAPHY – DEFINITION AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

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Photography
Literal definition:

The word photography is a derivative of two Greek words phos which means “light” and graphia
meaning “write”. Therefore photography best translates to “write with light”.

Modern definition:

Photography is an art or science which deals with the reproduction of images through the action
of light, upon sensitized materials, with the aid of a camera and its accessories, and the chemical processes
involved therein.

Technical/Legal definition:

Modern photography may be defined as any means for the chemical, thermal, electrical or
electronic recording of the images of scenes, or objects formed by some type of radiant energy, including gamma
rays, X-rays, ultra-violet rays, visible light and infrared rays.

Sir John F. W. Herschel coined the word photography when he first wrote a letter to Henry Fox Talbot
in 1856.

Police Photography
Police Photography is an art and science which deals with the study of the principles of photography,
the preparation of photographic evidence, and its application to police work.

Forensic Photography
Forensic photography is the art and science of photographically documenting a crime scene and evidence
for laboratory examination and analysis for purposes of court trial.

Forensic was derived from the Latin word “Forum” which means “a market place” where people gathered
for public discussion.

When used in conjunction with other science it connotes a relationship to the administration of justice.
It sometimes used interchangeably with the word legal.

Basic Components of Photography

1. Light
2. Camera - a light tight box designed to block unwanted unnecessary light from reaching the
sensitized material.
3. Lens - is the light gathering mechanism of the camera that collect the reflected light coming from
the object to form the image.
4. Sensitized material (Film & Photo paper) – composed of a highly sensitized chemical compound
which is capable of being transformed into an image through the action of light and with some
chemical processes.
5. Chemical process - is the process necessary for reducing silver halides into a form so as a latent
image and a positive image be made resulting to what we call as photograph.

History of Photography
The camera obscura (from Latin, meaning “darkened room”) is a device in a shape of a box or a room
that lets the light through a small opening on one side and projects it on the other.

1839 is generally known as the birth year of photography. William Henry Fox Talbot explained a process
he had invented (calotype) at the Royal Society of London.

Louis Jacques Mande Daguerre made a demonstration in Paris “Daguerreotype” in collaboration with
Joseph Nicephore Niepce. With Talbot’s calotype, the fixation was only partial while Daguerre’s daguerreotype,
images were made permanent with the use of hypo.

In 1947, Edwin H. Land introduced “Polaroid” the one-step photography.

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 LESSON 2
PHOTOGRAPHIC RAYS – ITS NATURE AND CHARACTERISTICS
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Light
Light is one of the known form of radiant electromagnetic energy which travels in wave motion. This
form of energy travels at a speed of about 186,000 miles per second in air, but they differ wavelength and
frequency. Wavelength is the distance from the crest (highest point) to the wave to the next succeeding crest
while frequency is the number of waves passing in a given point in one second. The product of the two is the
speed of travel.

The Webster Dictionary defines light as a radiant electromagnetic energy that can be seen by the naked
eye. The scientific definition of light is the aspect of radiant energy of which a human observer is aware through
the visual sensations which arise from the stimulation of the retina of the eye.

The energies that are capable of being recorded on sensitized materials are the x-rays, ultraviolet rays,
visible light, and infrared rays. They are sometimes referred to as the four photographic rays of modern
photography. The wavelength of x-rays is from 01 to 30 nanometers, ultraviolet rays from 30 to 400 nn, visible
light from 400 to 700 nn, and infrared rays from 700 to 1,000+nn. Actually the wavelength of infrared rays
extends beyond 2,000 nn but the longest wavelength that the present sensitized materials (films) could record
is only up to this limit.

Light energy has several effects on an object. It is either reflected, absorbed, transmitted or converted.
The varying combinations of this reflectance and absorption are what gives is the wide variety of colors which
we are able to perceive, at times, other light are neither reflected or absorbed but is transmitted through the
object. This transmitted light passing through the object and allows a viewer on the other side of the object to
perceive these light waves.

The final effect a radiant energy may have on an object is to be converted to another wavelength. This
conversion is known as luminescence. There are two types of luminescence: the fluorescence and
phosphorescence.

Fluorescence is the ability of an object to convert one wavelength to another as long as the active energy
source is irradiating the object.

Phosphorescence is the object not only converts the wavelengths while being irradiated but continuous
to reflect the new wavelengths for a period of time after the energy source is removed.

White Light
When all the wavelengths between 400 – 700 nanometers are presented to the eye in nearly equal
quantity, we get the sensation or perception of colorless or white light. If a narrow beam of white light is allowed
to pass through a prism it will bend the light of shorter wavelength more than those with longer wavelength
thus spreading them out into the visible spectrum. These are the colors of the rainbow – red, orange, yellow,
green, blue, indigo, violet.

If we divide the wavelength of visible light (400-700 nn) equally into three (from 400 to 500 nn., from
500 to 600 nano., and from 600 to 700 nn.) we will produce blue, green and red colors. These are known as the
three primary colors of light as differentiated from the three primary colors of pain, dyes and coloring matters
which are the blue, yellow, and red.

Additive Color Mixture

If we get three projectors with beams of lights projecting individually blue, green and red and have the
three means overlap over the other, we will note that the portion where the blue and green lights merged over
the other, it will produce a cyan color, the green and red lights a yellow color, and the red and blue lights a
magenta color. At the center where the blue, green and red light were combined in proper ratio, we see white
light. In this aspect, cyan, yellow, and magenta are known as the three secondary colors of light. For practical
purpose, white is the presence of all color while black is the absence of all colors or the absence of light.

Bending of Light
When travelling in open space, light travels straight line. However, when light comes in contact with an
object, it may be bended in the following manner.

Reflected - once the light hits a mirror and it bounce back.

Transmitted - when the light hits a transparent glass which would allow the light to pass through its
medium.

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 Absorbed - when the light hits a dark colored object and prevents it from either bouncing or passing
through.

Refraction – the bending of light when passing from one smooth/shiny flat surface to another

Diffraction – the bending of light when it hits a sharp edge of an opaque object

Kinds of Objects as to How They Behave to Light

1. Transparent objects – allows sufficient visible light to pass through them that the object on the other
side may be clearly seen.

2. Translucent objects – allows light to pass, however diffuse it sufficiently that objects on the other side
may not be clearly distinguished.

3. Opaque objects – so greatly diffuse the light that recognizing the object on the other side is very difficult
if not impossible.

Sources of Light
1. Natural light source – those coming from nature like the sun, moon, stars, other heavenly bodies,
lightning, fire, etc.

a. Bright sunlight – a lighting condition where objects in open space cast a deep and uniform or
distinct shadow.

b. Hazy sunlight – objects in open space cast a transparent shadow.

c. Dull sunlight – objects in open space cast no shadow.

1. Cloudy bright – objects in open space cast no shadow but objects at far distance are clearly
visible

2. Cloudy dull – objects in open space cast no shadow and visibility of distant objects are already
limited.

2. Artificial light source – light sources of this category are man-made and is divided into the
continuous radiation and the short duration.

a. Continuous radiation – are those that can give illumination continuously. The common light
source of this kind are the fluorescent lamp, incandescent lamps, photoflood lamp, gas lamp,
etc.

b. Short duration (Flash unit) – a flash unit gives a brief of flash produced by a burning metallic
wire (flash bulb) or an electric discharge through a gas-filled tube (electronic flash).