It's DONE. No more arguements about the admissibility of digital
photo please... You might as well be talking about gramophones and
steam engines. We have moved beyond that question several years ago...
Furthermore... I will say that: MOST law enforcement agencies in the
US have long since adopted digital photography as the NORM. Film has
become the exception and most law enforcement agencies are not using
dark rooms on a regular basis any more.
The common misconception that the public has about digital photography
vs film is that they think digital images are somehow more easily
manipulated than film negatives. This misconception completely
overlooks the obvious fact that the physical evidence on the scene is
even MORE easy to manipulate. You can always move pieces of evidence
on the scene BEFORE you take the picture. You can paint blood on the
walls and drag the body to a different corner of the room and THEN
take the photo. In the end... It all boils down to the credibility of
the detectives on scene and the chain of custody of images. (Digital
or film.) The final question is: Does the photo fairly and accurately
represent what the detectives saw on the scene saw that day?
If you think film is somehow more reliable than digital imagery I
suggest you go to your local movie theater and watch any movie with
special effects. I remember watching Jurassic Park on FILM and seeing
dinosaurs running around eating people. (I am pretty sure that did
not really happen.) In todays world film can easily be manipulated
too. Film scanners and film recorders are inexpensive and plentiful.
Even if you do still believe that film is somehow better for recording
evidence than digital cameras... Good Luck. Like it or not... Film
cameras, labs and even film is rapidly going away. Most of the major
manufacturers of film cameras such as Nikon and Canon have announced
slowing down production of film based products. Kodak has drastically
cut back on film production. It will not be long before film cameras
are simply not economically feasible to support any more. (Sorry to
see it go...)
Ultimately it's not the negative or the digital file that get's
questioned... It is the claims being made by the law enforcement
officials on scene. Most of the time... The pictures are just visual
aids. Not proof. Remember: It's easier to plant a gun in the
victim's hand than it is to attempt to retouch the photo.
As for the appropriate use of Panoscan cameras for Law Enforcement
applications... I will just say that no law enforcement agency has
ever purchased a Panoscan system without trying it first. (These
agencies are not just looking on our web site and pushing the "buy
now" button.) Most agencies that are looking into a system like the
Panoscan have already used a digital camera to stitch images. Many
agencies actually take a real Panoscan camera onto a real scene and
test it before making a decision. The decision to purchase our camera
system is based on practical field trials. No Panoscan customer has
ever requested a refund nor complained after the sale that our product
was mis-represented in any way.
I cannot get into specifics about how each particular agency is using
our camera. (And there are now hundreds.) But I can say that most
are using the camera on a regular basis and they are getting
convictions in real courts all over the world. Panoscan has cameras
being used for law enforcement applications in the US, Korea,
Australia, China, The Netherlands and more every day...
Sincerely,
Ted Chavalas
Panoscan Inc.
Message: 4
Date: Thu, 10 Jan 2008 03:30:11 -0800 (PST)
From: Luke wonderly
Subject: Re: Panoscan and Police Depts.
To: email@hidden
I wouldn't want to bet, or risk MY life on ANY kind
of digital photographic evidence.
ANY (including Panoscan) proprietary program can be hacked, and
manipulated
right down to sub pixel level. It just leaves too MUCH room for DOUBT.
And yes, I AGREE - police need much more help in our real world
than a Panoscan camera.
My own city where I live (Bakersfield CA) purchased one - but they
really don't
need it . . . . they just shoot everybody to death . . . .
all the time.
Just had to pipe in.
No Wu-wei on this.
Kindest regards,
Luke
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