I. General Information

1. Course Title:
Criminal Justice Photography

2. Course Prefix & Number:
CRJU 2118

3. Course Credits and Contact Hours:

Credits: 4

Lecture Hours: 4

Lab Hours: 0

4. Course Description:

A primary facet of criminal investigation is founded in recording of evidence and the crime scene for trial via still and video photography.  This course of study will take the student through various investigative endeavors which create photographic tasks similar to actual crime scenes and criminal investigations which require photographic documentation.

5. Placement Tests Required:

6. Prerequisite Courses:

There are no prerequisites for this course.

9. Co-requisite Courses:

There are no corequisites for this course.

II. Transfer and Articulation

2. Transfer - regional institutions with which this course has a written articulation agreement:

Bemidji State University, June 2009, Criminal Justice

III. Course Purpose

1. Program-Applicable Courses – This course is required for the following program(s):

Criminal Justice, AAS
Criminalistics, AS

IV. Learning Outcomes

1. College-Wide Outcomes

College-Wide Outcomes/Competencies	Students will be able to:
Analyze and follow a sequence of operations	Follow current steps in crime scene photography

2. Course Specific Outcomes - Students will be able to achieve the following measurable goals upon completion of the course:

• Identify the cardinal rules of crime scene photography
• Describe the three basic photographs needed at every photographed sight.
• Discuss proper chain of custody requirements
• Describe the differences that exist between a “normal” and “non-normal” scene 

V. Topical Outline

Listed below are major areas of content typically covered in this course.

1. Lecture Sessions

1. Introduction
• Course Content
• What is a Photograph
• Creative Elements
2. Composition and Cardinal Rules
• Camera use basics
• Cardinal rules of Crime Scene Photography
3. Basic Exposure
• The Proper Exposure Triangle
• Shutter Speed as a Motion Control
• “Normal and Non-Normal Scenes”
• Bracketing
4. Focus, Depth of Field, and Lenses
• Lenses
• Focus
• Depth of Field
5. Electronic Flash
• Manual Flash Mode
• Automatic and Dedicated Flash Exposure Modes
• Fill in Flash
• Bounce Flash
6. Crime Scene Photography
• Long Range Photographs
• Midrange Photographs
• Close-up Photographs
• Photo documentation
7. Special Photography Situations
• Accident Photography
• Required Officer Protocol at Dynamic Scenes
8. Digital Imaging Technologies
• Digital Imaging Concepts
• Storage and Management of Digital images
9. Digital Image Processing of Evidentiary Photography
• Best Practices and Guidelines
• The Imaging Process
10. Legal Issues Related to Photographs and Digital images
• Criteria of Photographs and Digital Images as Evidence
• Legal Implications of Digital Imaging
• The Purpose of Crime Scene Photographs