Photoshop CS3 for Forensic Professionals: A Complete Digital Imaging Course for Investigators
by George Reis, 2007. Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana. 252 pages. (http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470114541.html)

Photoshop has evolved into the ultimate photographic Swiss Army knife. The result is that it is often difficult to find one’s way through all the blades and tools. George Reis has done a superb job of distilling down Photoshop CS3 to the tools and techniques useful to forensic photographers.

Photoshop CS3 for Forensics Professionals is far more than a how-to book, it is a carefully laid out introduction to forensic photography. The book begins by leading the reader through an overview of how photographic evidence is seen through the eyes of the court, a view that is unique to those working in this specialized field. Great care is taken to explore all the necessary Photoshop presets and related applications of Camera Raw and Bridge, assuring that the reader is in a position to proceed informed. This is crucial because Reis delves into the importance of photographic accuracy, using real world exercises, which are provided in an accompanying CD. These include, but are not limited to, examples of color correction, precise image sizing control, nondestructive sharpening and enhancement techniques, workflow control, and perhaps most important, metadata and documentation of images.

Reis also devotes space to the proper presentation of evidence. He provides templates, as well as custom scripts, to modify the standard contact sheet functions in Photoshop. Additionally, he explains the use of PDF, and provides the reader with a host of options for delivering courtroom presentations.

There is significance to the use of “CS3” in the title, since the book covers the extended utilities found in the analysis menu, which greatly extend the measurement options in Photoshop. Time is spent examining frame averaging, and scripts to assist in this process are supplied in the CD.

Photoshop CS3 for Forensics Professionals is very readable. It’s sprinkled with notes, hints, and screen grabs that make this book easy to navigate and understand. All in all, this is a volume that should be on the shelf of every biomedical and forensic photographer.

Gabriel Unda, FBCA
ggunda@ucdavis.edu