Taking photos at the scene of a car accident is very important for you. They help your vehicle accident lawyers to prove what happened and can end up being vital when it comes to negotiating an insurance settlement if you suffered an injury.
The good news is that it is not at all difficult to take very good photographs at the scene. You just need to follow some simple advice that is going to be presented in the following paragraphs.
You Can Shoot Photos With Any Camera
We often see people not taking photographs because they think their camera is not good enough. What you should remember is that your goal is just to preserve the evidence. You are not after awards.
All this basically means that any device capable of taking pictures is enough for immortalizing vital details of the car accident. Smartphone cameras these days are sophisticated and they even have a great flash that shoots during low light conditions.
When you do not have a phone with a camera, you can even use a disposable camera. These are often available in stores and you can take advantage of the opportunity.
Capture As Many Details As You Can
You might not know what photos to take and this is completely understandable since in many cases it might not be so obvious. Because of this, the general rule of thumb is that you should take as many photographs as you can. However, when storage capacity is limited, you need to carefully choose images. Even so, there is a pretty good possibility you can still take many pictures.
The most important ones you should take are those of:
- Your vehicle and all the damage it shows.
- Skid marks.
- All the other cars that were involved, together with the damage that they sustained.
- The site of the accident. This should include details like the parking lot, intersection, traffic signs, and so on.
- Vehicle parts and all the other debris that is present on the road.
- Visible bodily injuries for everyone involved.
- Weather conditions.
Take Pictures From Different Distances And Angles
Various photos are needed and you should take them from a minimum of 3 different distances and angles. In close-up photos, start with a distance of around 1 to 5 feet from what you photograph. Then, take a medium distance photograph from around 12 feet away. Finish the set with a panoramic photo or a long distance one from a minimum of 20 feet (just make sure it is safe for you to do so).
An extra very useful tip to remember is to keep one common landmark in most of the photographs. This helps a lot in demonstrating scale and distance. Also, you do want to be aware of weather conditions and sunlight. These can influence photographs, especially when thinking about those that show vehicle damage.
When you can, use some different intensities for your flash. Also, take photos with flash and without flash. Last but not least, when some time is available, experiment with camera features and settings. It might be possible for you to take some wide-angle photos or use innovative options capable of better capturing accident details.
