3D Scanning vs Photogrammetry
Photogrammetry builds a 3D model from photographs. It needs many of them, taken well, with a scale reference in frame, and hours of processing before you know if it worked.
A structured-light scanner measures directly, with stated accuracy, and shows coverage on screen before you leave the scene.
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3D scanning or photogrammetry for forensic work?
Scanning for evidence, bodies and scenes that need stated accuracy and a result confirmed on site. Photogrammetry for very large outdoor areas by drone, where range matters more than resolution and processing time is acceptable.
How they compare
Compared on what each demands at the scene and delivers afterwards.
| 3D scanning (Artec Leo, Spider II, Ray II)Direct measurement by structured light or laser. | PhotogrammetryModel computed from overlapping photographs. | |
|---|---|---|
| How it measures | Direct — pattern or laser | Indirect — computed from images |
| Accuracy | Stated: 0.05–0.1 mm handheld, 1.9 mm at 10 m tripod | Depends on images, references and software |
| Scale | Inherent | Needs references in frame |
| Lighting | Brings its own; works in darkness | Needs good, even light |
| Know it worked | On screen, at the scene | Hours later, after processing |
| Choose this when | Evidence, bodies, vehicles, rooms: wherever accuracy must be stated and confirmed. | Large outdoor areas by drone where range beats resolution. |
Artec Metrology Kit is a photogrammetry system for high-accuracy reference points on large objects — a complement to scanning, not a substitute for it.
Where photogrammetry is the right choice, and where it is a risk
Photogrammetry reconstructs shape from overlapping photographs. Done well — hundreds of images, even light, textured surfaces, scale bars in frame — it produces good models, and by drone it covers areas a tripod scanner cannot. Its weakness at a forensic scene is that you do not know whether it worked until hours of processing later, and by then the scene has been released. Plain, dark or shiny surfaces defeat it; poor light degrades it; accuracy depends on the references and the software rather than on a stated device figure.
A structured-light or laser scanner measures directly. Artec Leo shows coverage on its screen as you scan; a gap is filled before you leave. Accuracy is a stated figure — up to 0.1 mm for Leo, 0.05 mm for Spider II, 1.9 mm at 10 metres for Ray II — that an expert cites in court. Scale is inherent. Darkness does not matter.
Artec's own photogrammetry product, Metrology Kit, exists for a specific job: precise reference points across large objects, used alongside scanning to hold global accuracy. That is the right relationship between the two methods — complementary, not competing.
See dark, plain and shiny surfaces captured with stated accuracy, no references required — book a demo.
Book a demoQuestions practitioners ask
Is photogrammetry cheaper?
The camera may be. The cost is in operator skill, processing time, and the scenes where it fails and cannot be re-shot. Stated-accuracy scanning is what makes the result defensible.
Can scanning and photogrammetry be combined?
Yes. Artec Metrology Kit provides photogrammetric reference points that scans register to, holding accuracy across very large objects.
Does scanning work on plain or dark surfaces?
Yes. Structured light and laser do not rely on surface texture. Leo's HD Mode is designed for dark and low-reflectance surfaces.
When is a drone the right tool?
For very large outdoor areas — a crash site along a kilometre of road, a search area — where coverage matters more than resolution. Ray II covers 130 metres from a tripod for most scenes.
Tell us about the work you do
A forensic application specialist will come back with the device that fits it, the accuracy to expect at that scale, and how the data reaches your existing workflow.