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Identification Badge Photo ID Cards Photo ID Card

Photo ID Cards

Photo ID cards are the building blocks of security systems for organizations in today's world. The fundamental task of photo ID cards is to identify their holders by name and photograph.

To be printed onto a blank plastic card, an image must be converted into the series of bits intelligible to the computer running your card design software. Cameras exist today that capture what's in front of them as a continuous stream of still images; photographers can let this stream run until an image that is satisfactory comes across their computer's screen.

Getting a satisfactory image depends largely on having the person's face illuminated correctly. Natural lighting works best. Full spectrum lighting - such as that provided by halogen and most incandescent lights - also works well. Illumination that comes from flourescent lights does not contain a full spectrum of colors, and therefore distorts the colors of people's skin (often turning it purple). It is not advised.

It is also important to consider the resolution of your photograph. As a rule, photo ID card printers cannot resolve images into detail greater than 300 x 300 pixels. Therefore photographs containing more than 3 mpg of information will - at best - be wasted; at worse they will quickly fill the database storing them to capacity and - when compressed to the smaller image size ID card printers require - result in a picture that is blurred. A good resolution to choose for your camera is 640 x 480 pixels.

Beyond identifying cardholder's by their appearance and name, the benefits that ID cards bring an organization depend largely on their integration into a complete photo ID card system.

Image of Photo ID Cards The elements of a photo ID system includes: an ID card printer/encoder; a digital camera; a database; a computer; and card design software this computer can run. Getting the versions of these components that your organization requires depends on assessing its current and future needs accurately. These needs will vary with your number of employees, the level of security you need, the ID card dimensions you require, and your requirements for tracking people and transactions.

Getting the right system for photo ID cards also requires talking to an ID card representative who knows, inside and out, the range of products the industry provides. Photo ID systems can track something as simple as the card's expiration date, and something as complex as financial charges. A good system should be quick and easy to use, so that card holders are not kept waiting. It also provides the level of data management that your organization requires.


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Choose from a Complete System below, or fill out the Needs Analysis so we can design a system for you.
  Starter Photo ID System  
  Basic Single-Feed ID System  
  Basic Photo ID System  
  Entry Photo ID System  
  Standard Photo ID System  
  Secure Holokote System  
  Premium Photo ID System  
  Basic Duplex ID System  
  Standard Duplex ID System  
  Premium Duplex ID System  
  High Production ID System  

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