Still cameras and video systems record light reaching a sensor. Night vision and full-spectrum setups add additional light behavior and extra review concerns. The camera records an image; the investigator must explain how the image may have formed.

Dust, insects, lens flare, reflections, breath vapor, compression artifacts, motion blur, rolling shutter, low-light noise, infrared bloom, and camera straps or fingers can all look strange in photos or video.

Save originals, note camera position and lighting, compare adjacent frames, document who was in the room, and test suspected reflection or shadow paths before treating a visual as unresolved.