What made CSI: Crime Scene Investigation's labs different from real crime labs?
Most of the time, when you see a lab scene on TV, you probably don’t check if it looks like a real lab. Unless you really want shows to be as realistic as possible, you likely don’t notice if something is missing.
Production crews, set designers, and props teams all work to make sets look real. Some shows do this so well that you can’t tell if they filmed on location or on a set.
For example, in an interview with the Scripps Howard News Service, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation star William Petersen talked about how realistic the show’s crime labs looked and how costly real labs can be.
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"We have way more equipment and resources in Santa Clarita (where CSI is filmed) than 75 percent of the crime labs in the United States," Petersen said. He also added that the staffing is more complete than in real-life labs.
Real labs use many of the same tools and instruments shown on TV. But according to the article, many real labs have to keep using equipment until it wears out. The labs on CSI: Crime Scene Investigation are different because they don’t have to make sure their equipment meets legal standards.