There are so many complicated aspects of dental photography, so I love it when I can share a simple tip with dentists that will make huge improvements in their dental photos.

The simple tip that I would like to share with you is to make sure that your patient is on the same plane as the camera when the picture is taken. Even though it may seem simpler to leave the patient laying horizontally in the dental chair and take the picture from above, bright operatory lights will eliminate large amounts of detail in the picture that the lab technician needs.

What do we suggest?

Take the time to raise the dental chair higher and tilt the chair forward so that the patient is in an upright position at the same height as the photographer. This will vastly reduce unwanted reflections. Also, it is helpful to have the patient turn their head toward the camera to ensure even lighting over their entire smile.

If you found this tip helpful, share it with your dental colleagues! If you’d like to learn more ways to quickly improve your dental photography, click here, or go to ShadeWave.com.

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About the Author

Founder of Dental Learning Centers® and ShadeWave, Dennis has been in dental technology since 1990. He is recognized as one of the early pioneers and experts at teaching digital photography, cosmetic imaging and case presentation in dentistry.

Dennis is the developer of ImageCentrik Dental Software, camera shade devices and several dental cameras. He has lectured at numerous locations and trained 1000’s of dentists world-wide.

Dennis is faculty Director for Dental Learning Centers and CE at Sea, and has several published articles, in the Journal of Dental Technology (JDT) and Contemporary Esthetics.