Surface/Subsurface Visualization
Aerial photographs and maps show the surface of the ground and things resting or happening on it at Superfund, dumps, industrial and other environmentally relevant sites. Aerial photos taken at different times show what was happening when each photo was exposed. But beyond this, the goal of environmental forensic photointerpretation must be to use that information to inform experts and attorneys about what happened between aerial photo dates, and to correlate industrial, dumping and other processes and patterns on the surface through time with underground contamination. The first step in...
Read MorePhotointerpretation
Eugene Avery, a pioneer in the education of scientists in the use of aerial photographs and other remote sensing methods in their field, makes a distinction between photo reading and photo interpretation in his textbook Fundamentals of Remote Sensing and Airphoto Interpretation available at Amazon: “Photo interpretation is defined as the process of identifying objects or conditions in aerial photographs and determining their meaning or significance. This process should not be confused with photo reading, which is concerned with only identifications. As such, photo interpretation is both...
Read MorePhotogrammetry
Photogrammetry has been defined by the American Society for Photogrammetry and remote sensing “as the art , science, and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through processes of recording, measuring, and interpreting photographic images and patterns of recorded radiant electromagnetic energy and other phenomena,”. In forensic and mapping sciences, as well as archaeology, photogrammetric techniques are used to make inferences about the 3-dimensional world from numerous types of photographs (aerial, digital, satellite, police...
Read MoreImage Processing
According to John C. Russ in his classic text The Image Processing Handbook, image processing is usually done for two purposes: 1. “improving the visual appearance of images to a human viewer, and 2. “preparing images for measurement of the features and structures present. Image enhancement is especially important in criminalistics in order to facilitate the identification of an individual in a blurry photograph or video capture, but is also important in civil forensic to identify the exact location or dimensions of objects in photographs of an accident or fire scene. Enhanced...
Read MoreDigital Surveying & Mapping
Surveying and mapping technologies are evolving at a rapid pace. Global Positioning Systems (GPS) software and hardware, reflectorless and robotic total stations, and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) have transformed mapping science. For example, the Geodimeter 600 DR from Trimble/Spectra Precision can record 3-dimensional coordinate data automatically. In fact, traditional surveying methods are being replaced because digital technologies record and process data at lower costs, and data are compliant with photogrammetric and GIS software. As a result, it is possible to quickly produce...
Read MoreDigital Animation
Attorneys and expert witnesses use computer animation in legal arguments for visual reenactment or reconstruction. This can substantially strengthen arguments to either juries or judges. We work closely with attorneys to design animations that summarize rich 3-Dimensional perspectives. Forensic animations help make presentations clear and compelling, and can be used in both civil and criminal litigation. Many cases can benefit from animation. We also believe that if animation evidence is determined to be appropriate, its evidentiary value depends on accurate 3-d information that is rendered...
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