This document discusses the importance of dental photography and provides guidance on techniques and equipment. It begins by explaining that dental photography is valuable for documentation, patient education, and self-education. It then covers key aspects of dental photography including camera settings like ISO, shutter speed, and aperture. Types of lenses, flashes, and backgrounds are also reviewed. Guidelines are provided for a standard set of photos for treatment planning. Methods for shade selection and analyzing color features are also outlined. The conclusion emphasizes that mastering these techniques allows for more advanced documentation and treatment planning.

1. Done by:
Dr. Inas Ayoub Elalam
DENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY
1

2. INTRODUCTION
Good photography lies at the heart of absolutely every area of esthetic
dentistry. The correct use of the clinical camera is an invaluable
way for the practitioner not only to document what is being done in terms of
pre-treatment and post-treatment photographs of cases, thereby
maintaining excellent clinical records, but also to improve patient
education and enhance his or her self-education.
2

3. IMPORTANCE OF DENTAL PHOTOGRAPHY
• Human memory is terribly short. So, patients easily forget what they looked like
before they started treatment which sometimes puts the practitioner at
substantial legal risk.
• All practitioners learn by seeing clinical photographs in books and journals.
Viewing their own patients in this same way frequently improves their dental
abilities.
• Increase the patient level of requested treatment & patient Communication.
• It is an excellent supplement to traditional dental charting.
• To be used in treatment planning.
• Communication Dental technician.
• Marketing
3

4. CAMERA DEVELOPMENT FROM HUMAN EYE PHYSIOLOGY
4

5. CORRELATION BETWEEN EYE AND CAMERA
5

6. UNDERSTANDING EXPOSURE TRIANGLE
• Understanding the three main element of exposure &
knowing how to adjust them will helps you to get the
best out of your camera & to take great photographs.
• They consist of:
1. ISO
2. Shutter Speed
3. Aperture
6

7. ISO
• The level of sensitivity of your camera to available light.
• It is typically measured in numbers, a lower number representing lower
sensitivity to available light, while higher numbers mean more sensitivity.
• More sensitivity comes at the cost though, as the ISO increases, so does
the grain/noise in the images.
• Examples of ISO: 100, 200, 400, 800, 1600.
7

8. DIFFERENT ISO LEVEL
8

9. SHUTTER SPEED
• The length of time a camera shutter is open to expose light into the camera
sensor.
• Shutter speeds are typically measured in fractions of a second, when they
are under a second.
• Slow shutter speeds allow more light into the camera sensor and are used
for low-light and night photography, while fast shutter speeds help to
freeze motion.
• Examples of shutter speeds: 1/15 (1/15th of a second), 1/30, 1/60, 1/125.
9

10. 10

11. But, lowering shutter speed will make a hazy photo if the object or camera are not
fixed!!!
11

12. WHAT IS THE SOLUTION IN CASE OF THAT???
• Use a flash
• Or increase iso sensitivity
• Or fixe both camera by using tripod and the object
• Or decrees focal ratio ( to be discussed)
12

13. 13

14. Aperture
• A hole within a lens, through which light travels into the camera body.
• The larger the hole, the more light passes to the camera sensor.
• Aperture also controls the depth of field, which is the portion of a scene that appears to be
sharp.
• If the aperture is very small, the depth of field is large, while if the aperture is large, the
depth of field is small.
• In photography, aperture is typically expressed in “f” numbers (also known as “focal
ratio”, since the f-number is the ratio of the diameter of the lens aperture to the length of
the lens).
• Examples of f-numbers are: f/1.4, f/2.0, f/2.8, f/4.0, f/5.6, f/8.0.
14

15. 15

16. UNDERSTANDING DIGITAL CAMERA MODES
• Digital Camera Modes allow photographers to control the parameters
of an exposure, specifically, Shutter Speed, Aperture and ISO.
• While certain modes can fully automate the camera exposure, there
are other modes that let the photographer manually control some or
all parameters of the exposure.
16

17. • Here are the four main types of camera modes that can be found in most
digital cameras today:
1. Program (P)
2. Shutter Priority (Tv) or (S)
3. Aperture Priority (Av) or (A)
4. Manual (M)
17

18. PROGRAM MODE
• In “Program” mode, the camera automatically chooses the Aperture and
the Shutter Speed for you, based on the amount of light that passes
through the lens.
• This is the mode you want to use for “point and shoot” moments, when
you just need to quickly snap a picture.
• The camera will try to balance between aperture and shutter speed,
increasing and decreasing the two based on the intensity of light.
18

19. SHUTTER-PRIORITY MODE
• In “Shutter Priority” mode, you manually set the camera’s shutter speed
and the camera automatically picks the right aperture for you, based on the
amount of light that passes through the lens.
• This mode is intended to be used when motion needs to be frozen.
• If there is too much light, the camera will increase the lens aperture to a
higher number, which decreases the amount of light that passes through
the lens.
19

20. APERTURE-PRIORITY MODE
• In “Aperture Priority” mode, you manually set the lens aperture, while the
camera automatically picks the right shutter speed to properly expose the
image.
• You have full control over subject isolation and you can play with the depth
of field, because you can increase or decrease the lens aperture and let the
camera do the math on measuring the right shutter speed.
• If there is too much light, the camera will automatically increase the shutter
speed, while if you are in a low-light environment, the camera will decrease
the shutter speed.
20

21. MANUAL MODE
• As the name suggests, “Manual” mode stands for a full manual
control of ISO, Aperture and Shutter Speed.
• In this mode, you can manually set both ISO, the aperture and
the shutter speed to any value you want – the camera lets you
fully take over the exposure controls.
21

22. CAMERA SENSOR SIZE
• Sensor size is important in photography because it has an impact upon
image quality. If you have two cameras with the same pixel count, but one
has a physically larger sensor than the other, the one with the larger
sensor will usually produce better quality images.
22

23. UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPT OF MAGNIFICATION
• Magnification - or more precisely, the magnification ratio - is
simply the relationship between of the size of the (in-focus)
subject's projection on the imaging sensor and the subject's
size in reality.
• Suppose that we're photographing a small child, 1 meter in
height. Imagine that the height of the child's projection onto the
sensor is 1cm. The magnification ratio is 1cm/100cm, or 1/100.
23

24. FOCAL LENGTH
• The focal length tells us the angle of view—how much of the scene will be
captured—and the magnification—how large individual elements will be.
• The longer the focal length, the narrower the angle of view and the higher
the magnification.
• The shorter the focal length, the wider the angle of view and the lower the
magnification.
24

25. TYPE OF CAMERA FLASH
• Built-in & Pop-up Camera Flash
• Dedicated Camera Flash
• Macro Or Ringlight Camera Flash
• Twin Flash
• Hammerhead Camera Flash
25

26. 26

27. This picture is taken with point flashes
(lateral flashes or twin flashes) (A). This
kind of flash and its orientation prevent
extensive reflection on the tooth surface.
This is an ideal technique for
documentation and image color
determination.
27

28. With a true ring flash (C) or a pseudo-ring
flash (the point flashes as close as possible to
the objective) (B), the light is directly
reflected by teeth toward the lenses,
flattening the image and making the
reflecting surface greater. Therefore, it is
ideal to highlight the surface and texture.
28

29. LENSES
29

30. TYPES OF LENSES
• Kit Lenses
• Telephoto Zoom Lenses
• Macro Lenses
• Wide Angle Lenses
30

31. KIT LENSES
• These days the lens that is offered as a package with the
DSLR is generally called the ‘kit lens’. It is generally an
entry level quality zoom lens.
• They are usually a fairly general purpose lens designed
for everyday shooting.
31

32. TELEPHOTO ZOOM LENSES
• Zoom lenses are the most popular DSLR lenses at
present and come in a range of configurations and
levels of quality.
• Obviously the benefit of zooms are that you do not
need to physically get closer to your subject to get
a tighter framing of the image.
32

33. 33

34. MACRO LENSES
• These lenses are specifically designed for shooting
objects up close. Many lenses and cameras come with a
‘macro’ setting but true macro lenses will produce
images that are life size and that enable you to get in
incredibly close from the subject you’re shooting.
34

35. WIDE ANGLE LENSES
• As their name suggests, these lenses
enable their users to take shots with a
very wide perspective.
• They are useful for landscapes and
for getting in nice and close to
subjects still fitting a lot of them in.
35

36. CURRENT BEST APPROACH FOR DENTAL
PHOTOGRAPHY
• The best practice for most people begins with the purchase of the equivalent of a
35-mm–type digital SLR camera.
• SLR body made by either Nikon or Canon provides very good results.
• Macro lens, typically one with a focal length around 100 mm.
• A ring flash, dual point flash or a twin light source
• cheek retractors and mirrors
• visual contrast and can use black-out sticks in close-up shots to eliminate the
out-of-focus background of the mouth.
36

37. 37

38. A black background (1) is suitable for discrimination of dentin and enamel shades,
analysis of shape, and study of white and opalescence features. The absence of light
inside the oral cavity makes the mouth background black or similar to black. This is
what we find most of the time.
38

39. A white background (2) allows differentiation between translucent masses and study
of the amber, orange, and reddish properties of teeth. When maxillary incisors in
occlusion cover the mandibular incisors, the background turns white; this is a
common situation.
39

40. A neutral gray background (
3) promotes discrimination
of tonality (Hue).
Other colors (4) generally
are used for artistic and
graphic purposes; they do
not have a true utility in the
study of color. The red
background makes teeth
appear bluer than they
actually are.
40

41. PHOTOGRAPHY FOR TREATMENT PLANNING
• American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry (AACD) recommended a standard set of 12 pictures for its
accreditation examination.
• The first picture should be a full-face picture, taken with the patient looking straight into the camera, with
the interpupillary line parallel to the lower border of the frame, and the facial midline parallel to the vertical
border of the fame. Framing should include from just below the chin to just above the hairline.
41

42. • All the other photographs are taken at a fixed magnification ratio of the equivalent of a 1 : 2 on 35-mm film
and full-frame digital SLR cameras with aperture of f/22 or higher to provide acceptable depth of field.
• The next pictures are a series of three pictures of the patient smiling. The frontal view has the central
incisors in the middle of the picture parallel to the lower border of the frame and the facial midline parallel
to the vertical border.
• right and then left lateral smile views are taken, with the upper lateral incisor just above the middle of the
picture and the occlusal view parallel to the lower border.
42

43. • Occlusion recording:
43

44. CLOSE-UP IMAGES
• To see the detail in individual teeth, a close-up image should be taken at
1:1 magnification. The image is taken at f/22 in AP mode with the dual
flashes.
• To view translucency, a useful tool is “the Dental Contraster”. This tool
allows either the maxillary anterior or mandibular anterior teeth to be easily
isolated.
44

45. THE DENTAL CONTRASTER
45

46. SET OF DENTAL
PHOTOGRAPHS
46

47. SET OF DENTAL
PHOTOGRAPHS
47

48. SET OF DENTAL PHOTOGRAPHS
48

49. 49

50. SET OF DENTAL PHOTOGRAPHS
50

51. How to do a dental photography ? 51

52. 52

53. 53

54. 54

55. 55

56. 56

57. 57

58. 58

59. SHADE SELECTION FOR COMPOSITE RESTORATION
59

60. Once the color picture is transferred to the computer (F), several
programs are able to transform these images to gray scale mode to
create a black and white picture. This sort of image gives useful
information for analysis of enamel opacity and the overall Value;
color pictures distract us from this purpose.
60

61. An underexposed photograph is considered especially
useful for revealing the internal color features of teeth.
Before the picture is taken, the exposure is reduced to
approximately -0.7 /-1.3 exposure value (EV) to create an
underexposed image. Optionally, but not ideally, this can be
done on the computer, by decreasing the image brightness
by approximately 15% to 20%.
61

62. This image has been digitally modified to increase the
contrast (60%) and decrease the brightness ( 40% to 60%).
Color features appear immediately in a very noticeable way.
Color becomes so strong that soft tissues look swollen. This
is one of the most important images that we should know
how to obtain, to enable precise appreciation of color
characteristics.
62

63. SHADE SELECTION FOR COMPOSITE
RESTORATION
63

64. HALO
• The appearance of a slightly opacified
border at the incisal edge of the tooth,
framing the translucency, is attributable to
near total light reflection.
• The light entering the incisal edge is
reflected toward the inside of the tooth.
Little or no light is transmitted through in
this case, because of the angle of the lingual
surface at the incisal edge
64

65. HALO
• The yellow-orange color often apparent in this
halo is due to light reflecting from the dentin,
off the lingual surface of the incisal edge, and
through the labial incisal edge.
• The width of the halo varies with the angle of
the incisal edge. The halo creates contrast
between the shadowed (dark) oral cavity and
the bluish translucency in the incisal edge.
Without it, the incisal edge has less definition
and blends more easily into the background.
65

66. 66

67. 67

68. 68

69. CONCLUSION
• With an understanding of the techniques and
armamentarium for photography, today’s practicing
dentist can document and treatment plan cases in more
technologically advanced ways than ever before.
• Understanding these tools and techniques will also
prove to be invaluable for communications between the
dentist and the laboratory, other specialists, and the
patient.
69

70. THANK YOU
70