Image Enhancement & Clarification
With the presence of smartphones, closed-circuit televisions (CCTVs) and social media, images often appear in court as evidence. When it comes to litigation, you need to present facts with as much clarity as possible. If your photo is blurry or underexposed, you may want to enhance it for more substantial evidence. At Primeau Forensics, we offer forensic image enhancement and video enhancement to support admissible evidence.
WHAT IS IMAGE ENHANCEMENT?
Image enhancement or image clarification is any process intended to improve the visual appearance of an image (Standard Guide for Forensic Digital Image Processing). Furthermore, images enhanced or clarified for the courtroom assist the trier of fact in making determinations about the subjects or events contained within them. In addition, images extracted from video recordings are also frequently enhanced for use in the courtroom.
IMAGE TYPES AND CLARITY CONCERN
Images used in court can cover a range of types, and the image enhancement experts at Primeau Forensics have experience working with various forms. For example, such forms include:
- CCTV video frames.
- Smartphone or mobile phone photos.
- Posts from social media.
- Bodycam or dash-cam video frames.
- Digital camera images.
Depending on the image’s type and circumstances, your photo might have any range of quality concerns. For example, when you capture images from CCTVs or body cams, you must contend with fast motion and pixelation from zooming. Other issues include:
- Blurriness.
- Under or overexposure.
- Low lighting.
- Lossy compression.
With expert training and the most current software, our experts can handle your image quality concerns while retaining authenticity.
IMAGE ENHANCEMENT PROCESSES WE OFFER:
VIDEO DEINTERLACING
Deinterlacing converts interlaced video into a non-interlaced or progressive form. For example, we commonly see interlaced video signals in analog television, HDTV in 1080i format, some DVDs, and a smaller number of blu-ray discs.
FRAME AVERAGING
We use frame averaging techniques to obtain better statistics. For example, such statistics include image data or signal-to-noise ratio. Increasing the dwell time per pixel remains the primary way to improve these qualities. However, this may result in image artifacts, like charging.
IMAGE STABILIZATION
Image stabilization sharpens images by compensating for slight shakes or vibrations in the camera. Generally, these vibrations occur when capturing photos by hand.
PIXEL INTERPOLATION (ZOOM)
Photo interpolation increases the number of image pixels to allow for printing enlargements. And as a result, these enlargements boast higher quality than the original.
DEBLURRING
Deblurring removes blurred artifacts from images. Generally, blurred images result from camera shake or a similar phenomenon.
SHARPENING
Image sharpening enhances the appearance of digital images. In fact, almost all lenses benefit from at least a small amount of sharpening.
REDUCE COMPRESSION ARTIFACTS
Compression artifacts are noticeable distortions of media caused by the application of lossy compression. Our processes reduce the JPEG compression amount in images.
IMAGE NOISE REDUCTION
Image noise refers to the pixels showing different intensity values instead of true pixel values. Moreover, the noise removal algorithm removes or reduces noise from the image.
RESTORE OVEREXPOSURE
Overexposure describes the process of exposing film to too much light. And as a result, the photograph becomes too bright. In digital photography, where there is no film, overexposure refers to extremely bright or washed-out images.
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TRUST A PROFESSIONAL FOR IMAGE ENHANCEMENT
Photo editing software is readily available on smartphones and computers, and it may feel tempting to handle image enhancement on your own. However, you should always trust a professional.
Image enhancement experts have the necessary training and tools to fix an image for clarity. If you attempt to enhance an image on your own, you risk damaging the pixels and affecting the presented information. With proper forensic practices, experts will clarify an image without altering the subject. The image will also stay authentic, allowing it to be admissible evidence in court.
EXPERT WITNESS SERVICES
Is your image edited in litigation? Expert Witness Services are available for image enhancement services by Primeau Forensics. In addition to trial preparation and testimony, expert witness services include a forensic report of all testing performed. This formalized report outlines our conditions, methodology, and opinions.
Furthermore, Primeau Forensics’ procedures assist the trier of fact to make determinations about the images used as evidence. Our experts also anticipate all possible direct and cross-examination questions when we prepare for testimony.
In conclusion, our image forensic analysis services have been successfully admitted in over 25 court cases in 10 states through digital image forensics. Not to mention, they have also been used in several international cases.
