Comparing a crime-scene mark needs something to compare it to: a known, high-quality set of a person's prints. Capturing that reference set — often called ten-printing — is a discipline in its own right.
What's captured
A standard set records all ten fingers in two ways:
- rolled impressions — each finger rolled nail-to-nail to capture the full ridge detail across the curve of the finger,
- flat (or "slap") impressions — fingers pressed straight down, used to check the rolled prints are in the right sequence.
Ink versus live scan
The traditional method uses ink and a card: the finger is inked and rolled onto paper. It still works, but smudging, over- or under-inking and smearing can ruin a set.
Most modern capture uses live scan — optical or capacitive scanners that image the finger directly into a computer. Live scan gives instant quality feedback, avoids ink, and produces a digital record ready to search or transmit. This is the technology behind booking stations and civil enrolment.
Why quality is everything
A reference set is only as good as its clarity. Poor capture — smudges, gaps, wrong sequence — undermines every later comparison, which is why capture devices are held to certification standards and why operators are trained to get clean, complete impressions.
Standards make it shareable
Captured prints are stored and exchanged using the ANSI/NIST-ITL and related ISO/IEC standards, so a set taken on one system can be searched on another. Those standards are the backbone of every large fingerprint and biometric system — from police booking to border control.