9781737126102 - See - Amanda Seay Book Extract

Contents VIII

CONTENTS

Preface

IV

1

My Art

1

2

Why Is Photography Necessary in Dentistry?

11

3

Dental Photography Equipment

51

4

Accessories

77

5

Understanding Exposure

107

6

Camera Settings

131

7

Clinical Photography

159

8

Artistic Shots

189

9

Portrait Photography

229

10

Shooting Lab Work

303

11

Editing

333

12

The Art of Observation

355

IX

Chapter 2

Why Is P hotography

Necessary

in Dentistry?

SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

It’s like building a house. If you only see the concrete slab and the final construction, you cannot appreciate how the house was engineered or how the process could be improved the next time.

As creators of someone’s smile, we need photos to guide us in our self-assessment and in our planning for future cases.

It‘s like building a House 32

CHAPTER 2 | Why is photography necessary in dentistry?

33

SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

Guide

34

Self

us

in our

assessment

35

SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

L AB COMMUNICATION I firmly believe that the quality of work you receive from technicians can be only as good as the information you deliver to them. Photo quality is important, but you also need to understand what information the technician needs to learn from the photo. To be clear, you must know what photos your technician needs from you in order to see your patient the way that you see them.

I live on the East Coast, and my technicians all live on the other side of the country. They don’t have the ability to meet my patients or me. The very best way for them to see my patients’ goals is through photography. They need the fine details, shade, contours, and context to accurately evaluate the clinical requirements.

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CHAPTER 2 | Why is photography necessary in dentistry?

39

Chapter 3

Dental P hotography Equipment

SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

FULL FRAME

56

CROP SENSOR

CHAPTER 3

|

Dental Photography Equipment

A crop sensor, as the name applies, refers to any sensor smaller than a full frame or 35 mm sensor. The crop sensor has a crop factor of about one and a half times that of a full frame. Why choose crop sensor? The main advantage is that it is cheaper when compared to a full-frame camera.

It is also smaller and lighter. The disadvantage is that you will be a little further from your subject to obtain certain shots because of the crop factor. This may be an issue with room size limitations. Crop sensors also have smaller pixel size, which means less detail (but that is significant only if you plan to greatly enlarge your photos).

And then there are cell phones. While the convenience is a big factor, the lens distortion and pixel size are not ideal for fine details or making large prints.

The bottom line is this: a camera is more than just sensor size, and you must decide which camera is better for your workflow. If you have a small space or will create large prints and billboards, then a full-frame sensor camera may be better. If you want to have several cameras in your office for your team to use to create effective documentation at an FULL FRAME

CROP SENSOR

affordable price, a crop sensor may be the way to go.

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SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

64

CHAPTER 3

|

Dental Photography Equipment

TWIN FLASHES

Twin flashes are two separate flash heads that can be mounted to the lens in the frontal direction, much like the ring flash, but with more versatility. They can be placed on extendable bracket arms to have more lateral light direction than frontal, thereby producing a more pleasing photo with shadows and highlights. They are more expensive, and the learning curve is greater, especially when you add bracket arms and other modifiers. A modifier attaches to the upper part of the flash unit. It’s used to soften or spread the harsh, concentrated lights that burst out of the flash, creating a more even and flattering light on the subject.

65

Accessories Chapter 4

SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

Metal retractors What are the benefits? They are the easiest to place. They sterilize without any changes in appearance. They have an open area where contrasters or mirrors can be inserted.

The downside is that they have limited side retraction. This means if you were taking a photo, you would be unable to retract the cheeks laterally all the way to the molar region in most cases.

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CHAPTER 4

|

Accessories

METAL

Pros •

open areas

•

passive

•

ease and comfort

Cons •

limited side retraction 81

Understanding Chapter 5

Exposure

SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

Notice how all the restorations are in focus at f/32.

When a using a narrower depth of field at f/4, you can see that only the centrals and laterals are in focus, and the rest are blurred out.

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CHAPTER 5

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Understanding Exposure

EXPOSURE In photography, exposure is the amount of light which reaches your camera sensor or film. It is a crucial part of how bright or dark your pictures appear. Whether you are a beginner or a professional photographer, you must understand this concept.

In photography, the most important camera settings are often called the exposure triangle.

The exposure triangle is a just a way of associating the three

use the same few settings to take every single one of your

variables that determine the exposure of a photograph:

photos in dentistry. It’s that simple.

aperture, shutter speed, and ISO. They work together

Aperture refers to the size of the circular hole in the lens that

to produce a photo that is properly exposed. If one

lets in light. It controls the amount of light that enters the lens.

variable changes, at least one of the others must also

The bigger the hole, the more light that reaches the sensor;

change to maintain the correct exposure. Each element

the smaller the hole, the less light. It is also responsible for

of the exposure triangle has a slightly different way

the depth of field. Depth of field (DOF) is the distance between

of manipulating light and, thus, the quality of the exposure

the closest and farthest objects in a photo that appears

that results. Learning to balance all three of these to achieve

acceptably sharp. Since your camera can only focus sharply

your desired result is a fundamental skill, a technical skill, that

at one point, in a photograph with a narrow DOF, only a small

you must learn. The good news is that dental photography,

slice of the image is in focus. Conversely, with a large DOF,

as it pertains to lips, teeth, and portraits, requires you to have

much more of the scene is sharp. You choose the point of focus

only a handful of settings every single time. You can literally

desired and create the effect that suits your style.

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Chapter 7

Clinical

P hotography

SEE. Art Esthetics Dental Photography

172

|

Clinical Photography

AF T ER

B EFORE

CHAPTER 7

173