One would think that police sketches have to be good

[ArqArturo]

Now, I'm not the best on drawing people, in fact I tend to avoid it, mostly because there's just a lot I need to work on, but, I don't think this police sketch is good (http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/gwinnett/stories/2009/05/13/strube_family_afraid.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_new stab), but maybe I'm wrong (wouldn't be surprised if I am).

[TASmith]

As this is a murder case I don't want to make fun, but that is an odd picture. They should try it again with another artist.

[freiheit]

No, it's really bad lol but I don't think a lot of artist invision a career in the police :p not to mention, drawing from a vague description isn't very easy. I think having a really well drawn portrait with a couple of features off might also throw off the search while this one keeps the search broad, people have to look at the distinctive features instead of the quality of the art.

[ArqArturo]

As this is a murder case I don't want to make fun, but that is an odd picture. They should try it again with another artist.

Yeah, that's what kinda put me off too. But I think, especially for a murder case, a better attempt to identify the perp is necessary.

[Justin.]

they should outsource.

[Arshes Nei]

Considering the description was like this Police said a suspect wearing a wig and mustache approached the young mother in the parking lot of a busy shopping center in Snellville. The pair argued momentarily and then the suspect shot Strube once in the head.

Nothing really wrong with it, my experience in seeing police sketches is they're more or less around that kind of drawing. They're not done to make a fancy portrait but make features a person will identify with.

Also looks like this was a small town Snelville GA?

Court sketches have a bit more... "flair" but considering the reference is right in front of them...well...

[Baron Impossible]

At least he bothered to complete it - http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-453724/Revealed-The-police-e-fit-Madeleines-abductor-thats-egg-parting.html

And it was of a human... http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=155355&catid=3

And before anyone else posts it...

http://img268.imageshack.us/img268/8696/75657962.jpg

[JJacks]

The sketch artists job is just to put together whatever features the witness can describe, not to make a great portrait. Witnesses have a hard time recalling features and can be vague with their descriptions. Therefore the artists has to be vague in his/her sketch as to not draw in features that were not described by the witness.

[ArtZealot]

Now, I'm not the best on drawing people, in fact I tend to avoid it, mostly because there's just a lot I need to work on, but, I don't think this police sketch is good (http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/gwinnett/stories/2009/05/13/strube_family_afraid.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_new stab), but maybe I'm wrong (wouldn't be surprised if I am).

All jokes aside, i really think i may know who the guy in the sketch is:
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lVtLA1CxXZA

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pWAYA4SzNfo

[LORD M]

Sometimes, I feel they would be better off with a potatoe man doll then a lousy artist for such an important job.

http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/rro/lowres/rron653l.jpg

[Dave_]

So where do we send our portfolio's to?

http://www.nbc.com/The_Office/images/episodes/season3/3022/off_3022_09.jpg

[Arshes Nei]

Sometimes, I feel they would be better off with a potatoe man doll then a lousy artist for such an important job.


I don't think you understand the job then.

[ChristianWeeks]

Just wait, they are going to arrest a guy that looks EXACTLY like that hahaha

[Straight Edge Ryan]

well the guy should be easy enough to find, apparently he has a cone head

[artmessiah]

And before anyone else posts it...

http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb65/mfarrar84/rapist-sketch.jpg


Hah-Lar- Ree-Uss!!! :tihi:

[central]

@ Baron Impossible ROFL ... like freiheit said I think it's better to have a broader depiction of the perp to go by. Witness id isnt 100% reliable afterall, especially when it's from memory.

[Gavage]

I didn't realise they still actually used sketches for that kind of thing. They always seem to show computer-generated ones on the news here. Not that the quality of those is any better, they end up looking like a sort of eerie collage.

[the_jos]

There is something to remember when looking at police sketches.
First of all the person drawing doesn't have any reference except the description given.
Second the people giving the description ain't trained at looking at facial features at an artistic way, so they can only roughly describe it.
Third, in a stressful situation people won't even look well at the subject at all.

Now if you have to draw someone while having only vague references, your picture will be off. And that's not a real problem, you just try to draw as closely to the features people do remember well.

The pictures are ment for people who know the person well.
They might see the general face somewhat match and it's enforced by the eye or the nose being very close to it.
I made a drawing of my cat Nelson a couple of months ago. People will say it's kinda off.
But the people who know my cat immediately know it's Nelson.
And that's not only because I drew him, it's because of the general picture.

[Crush]

I don't know what police artists are paid, but I doubt it's a lot of money, that could be part of it. If they wanted really high quality drawings I'm sure they could find someone to do them easily enough, they probably just don't think they're worth paying a lot for.

[JJacks]

Well, there is more to their job than just drawing faces. I would imagine most of the work they get paid for is just getting information from a witness which can be very difficult. I can draw a good face but that doesn't mean I can be a police sketch artist.

[Mitze]

I think i saw on tv once a police artist saying the drawings are not meant to be good. Very vague and simple. A quick glance and you should be able to remember distinguishing features his spikey hair and mustache. anything more finished people would be thinking of a identical match.

[madster]

I think i saw on tv once a police artist saying the drawings are not meant to be good. Very vague and simple. A quick glance and you should be able to remember distinguishing features his spikey hair and mustache. anything more finished people would be thinking of a identical match.
That's just an excuse to try an make such crappy renderings acceptable. If there were any true standards applied to rendering talent, there would be NO ONE to do the job. Crappy as they are, it's better than a stick man with a wig and moustache, but if the lame-o excuse about "generic description" held any water, that's all these "Perp sketches" should need to be...

Most people going into law enforcement are not closet artists, just like most artists aren't closet officers...I'm sure ANY dept. would simply LOVE to have an actually talented police sketch artist, but it just doesn't work that way...

Also, in the "stop trying to excuse the crappy art as intentional dept.", let's not forget that the more modern police departments in this country are going to face recognition rendering software that gives them actual faces as generic features and skin colors that ARE assembled "Mr. Potato Head" style...


Just because something falls under the category of "Art," doesn't mean it falls under the category of "GOOD Art." Don't accept excuses and justifications for bad art. If it's bad, it's BAD. Pretending it isn't, and making truly thin excuses for it just perpetrates the lie.

~M

[Arshes Nei]

Umm well you do know you need a degree to be a police sketch artist depending where you're at?

Maybe before everyone just argues about the quality of the artwork actually look up the career to find out?

I think they're more worried about meeting the other requirements before being an "uber kewl artist"

http://education-portal.com/articles/Sketch_Artist:_How_to_Become_a_Professional_Sketch _Artist.html

http://ask.yahoo.com/20021016.html

http://drawsketch.about.com/od/developyourcareer/p/forensicartist.htm

[LORD M]

I don't think you understand the job then.

I have seen some really really bad police sketches. I remember one which was shown at Jay Leno, where the sketch of a murderer looked like an unsymetric lemon with eyes. It looked like a child had made it. THIS kind of example is what I meant with that they would had been better off with a potatoe man doll then a lousy artist for such an important job - a police sketch of a MURDERER should NOT look like something made by a first grader!

[ArqArturo]

Ok, from what I understand, a police sketch is not about detail, but about the main features of the perp's looks: Tattoos, haircut, any scars, etc.

So, in a way, as long as you get any main characteristics, the sketch goes, right?.

[Interceptor]

These are'nt artists making these.
From what my police officer friend told me is that the precinct will just pay for drawing workshop tuitions for whatever employees feel so inclined to take them. It's a tool that law enforcement uses to just help people visualize things a bit. They're not going to have someone sit down for hours on end to get a photorealistic image. it's not like inhouse artists at the station sitting around drawing all day. These are just officers who have some very crude training just to make things a tad easier.

[ArqArturo]

These are'nt artists making these.
From what my police officer friend told me is that the precinct will just pay for drawing workshop tuitions for whatever employees feel so inclined to take them. It's a tool that law enforcement uses to just help people visualize things a bit. They're not going to have someone sit down for hours on end to get a photorealistic image. it's not like inhouse artists at the station sitting around drawing all day. These are just officers who have some very crude training just to make things a tad easier.

Ah, that explains much.

[Arshes Nei]

These are'nt artists making these.
From what my police officer friend told me is that the precinct will just pay for drawing workshop tuitions for whatever employees feel so inclined to take them. It's a tool that law enforcement uses to just help people visualize things a bit. They're not going to have someone sit down for hours on end to get a photorealistic image. it's not like inhouse artists at the station sitting around drawing all day. These are just officers who have some very crude training just to make things a tad easier.

Exactly, but it does vary. Most of the people doing these aren't artists because you have to remember when you're doing the sketch it's not someone happy and telling you a story of a character idea for a movie.

A lot of people are traumatized by what happened to them, so you have to have have good people skills too. I mean it's a bit hard to try to draw a "portrait" when you have a rape victim breaking down in tears.

That's why I find the whole artistic merit of the whole issue ridiculous. You think the victim giving the description is concerned with a concept art style masterpiece, or getting the details out to the sketch artist so they can catch the person?

[Ashtonw]

These are'nt artists making these.
From what my police officer friend told me is that the precinct will just pay for drawing workshop tuitions for whatever employees feel so inclined to take them. It's a tool that law enforcement uses to just help people visualize things a bit. They're not going to have someone sit down for hours on end to get a photorealistic image. it's not like inhouse artists at the station sitting around drawing all day. These are just officers who have some very crude training just to make things a tad easier.

That's not true at least part of the time; my old art professor created sketches for the police occasionally.

[Interceptor]

I'm sure that's true. There are exceptions to anything. but if it was more standard practice, I'm sure a bunch of people on this site alone would be picking up soem extra cash doing that.