Digital photography and its use in the busy dental practice is ever increasing. Correct choice of equipment will save many hours of staff time and expense and is essential if consistent images are to be achieved. Modern digital cameras and associated macro lenses and ringflash, can last 5–10 years if handled carefully, and therefore is a good investment as an additional facility within the practice. There are many uses of photography in dentistry, from documentation to quality before and after images of dental treatments.
Clinical Relevance: This article will keep practitioners updated on the photographic equipment and uses within dentistry, and help to make informed decisions regarding photography in their practices.
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“While working at a camera shop in New York City in 1952, Lester Dine was approached by a dentist with a question. ‘How do I get my camera to light inside my patient's mouth?’ The flash the dentist was holding on top of his camera couldn't pinpoint light inside the mouth of his subject and every other method the dentist experimented with also proved fruitless. From that conversation and with a little tinkering and a lot of ingenuity, Lester Dine created the ring flash, a circular flash attached to the end of a camera's lens. By combining the ring flash with a lens capable of accurately capturing a close-up/macro subject, the first camera system designed specifically for intra-oral photography was born. From this creation, the world of dental photography grew and in a short time revolutionized the way dentists communicate with patients. The creation of the ring flash put the patient in the dentist's shoes and allowed them to see what the dentist could see in the most relatable form possible, an actual picture of the inside of their mouth.
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