Image Authentication - Nikon D300 User Manual

Image Authentication

(User's Manual – D300S page 308; D300 page 324)
Image authentication is a method used in conjunction with
Nikon software to guarantee that an image has not been
modified in any way.
With film, one can easily detect whether a printed image has
been modified from the original. All one must do is look at
the original transparency or negative. However, with digital
photography and programs like Photoshop, one can modify an
image in amazing ways.
Many law enforcement agencies would like to use digital
imaging to save lots of money on film and processing costs
but have been hampered by this ability to modify digital
images so easily. Some courts have refused digital images as
evidence for this reason.
Some major editorial houses, like large newspapers and
magazines, have been embarrassed when one of their
photographers modified a news image and was later caught.
Clearly there is a need to prove that a digital image has not
been modified from its original form. Nikon has answered
that need with the Image authentication feature of the Nikon
D300(S) and other DSLR cameras. Working in conjunction
with Nikon's Image Authentication software, the D300(S) can
stamp images with an electronic "seal" that allows an agency
to prove that an image printed from the camera has not been
modified, or if so, where.
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