Digital and conventional dental radiography: a practical clinical manual

Edited by:
  • I. Ahmad
(Ed) UK: Quintessence price £52, pp234 ISBN 1867154365

At a time when everybody is discussing digital photography, Irfan Ahmad has published a book mostly dealing with conventional photography; not with 'normal' dental photography, but with high-end techniques to achieve high-end results.

In Section 1 he begins with some common remarks on lighting, close-up photography and visual perception and also talks about the equipment, mentioning digital cameras. The fact that he does not show a single camera in this technical part proves that he is more interested in principal questions — emphasising lighting techniques — than in technical details.

Section 2 is the main part of the book. In seven chapters (130 pages) the author discusses different photographic setups. Topics include facial compositions, natural dentition, anterior and posterior prostheses, periodontal and surgical procedures, dental pathology and dental laboratory. Clear drawings show the setup in principle; clinical pictures show the results of these efforts. Unlike other authors, Ahmad recommends supporting the camera using a tripod during clinical photography. Lighting is performed with two light sources (or one light combined with a reflector) and usually two flashes with diffusors, placed at an angle to the object to produce shadows and a three-dimensional effect.

Using this technique the author gets outstanding results: crisp pictures with high plasticity. But the technique is limited to anterior teeth. Only a few pictures of posterior teeth are shown. How the flashes are fixed remains unclear. In some cases they seem to be attached to the camera using a large bracket; in other cases they seem to be supported by tripods.

In one chapter the author shows in numerous cases how details like cracks or preparation margins are emphasised. His goal is to achieve a picture that is perfect from a photographic standpoint, not to get quick reproducible results.

Section 3 deals with image management, referring to conventional and digital images and editing and presentation techniques. This chapter is rather short and gives only an outline of these problems.

I would recommend Ahmad's book to all dentists and dental technicians who are advanced dental photographers and who are willing to spend far more effort than the usual point and shoot procedure. It is not a book dealing with all the basic techniques of dental photography or the latest developments of digital photography. It is a book showing how to get outstanding pictures if you have a passion for dental photography.