Different types of prints:

1.) Patent prints- Fingerprints that are easily located because they are visible to the naked eye. A few examples are when people have have grease, paint, blood, or ink on their fingers that leave a visible print on a surface.

2.) Plastic prints- Are easy to locate but are less common than patent prints since they only occur when a person touches wax, butter, or soap and that leaves a 3D impression of the finger on the surface of those objects.

3.) Latent prints- These are the most common type of fingerprints and they take the most effort to locate since they are invisible. Latent prints occur when a person touches a porous or nonporous surface. The natural oils and residues on our fingers leave a deposit on surfaces that mirror the ridges and furrows that are on each of our fingers.