To merge a police report PDF with its accompanying photo addendum on a Windows PC, you combine both PDF files into a single document using a PDF merging tool, ensuring the photo addendum pages appear in the correct order after the written report. The entire process takes under five minutes and requires no special training or software installation if you use a browser-based tool.
What You Will Need
- A Windows PC (Windows 10 or Windows 11) with an internet connection
- The police report saved as a PDF file (e.g.,
Incident_2024-00123_Report.pdf) - The photo addendum saved as a PDF file (e.g.,
Incident_2024-00123_Photos.pdf) - A PDF merger tool. Options include:
- OctopusPDF Merge PDF — browser-based, free tier allows merging; files never leave the browser tab (evidence K1, K2)
- Adobe Acrobat Online Merge — free for basic merges with an Adobe account
- Smallpdf Merge PDF — free tier with file size limits
- ilovepdf Merge PDF — free tier, supports up to 100 MB
- Microsoft Print to PDF — built into Windows, works as a manual workaround (print both files to a single output)
- File Explorer (built into Windows) to locate and verify your files
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1. Confirm Both Files Are Valid PDFs
Before merging, verify that both the police report and the photo addendum open correctly and are saved as PDF files.
- Open File Explorer and navigate to the folder containing both files.
- Double-click each file. Each should open in your default PDF viewer (Edge, Chrome, or Adobe Acrobat Reader).
- Check that the photo addendum contains all expected images. Scroll through every page to confirm none are blank or corrupted.
Watch out: If the photo addendum was originally a set of JPG or PNG images, it may still be in image format rather than PDF. You cannot merge images directly with a PDF merger. In that case, see the troubleshooting section for "Image files, not PDFs" below.
Step 2. Choose Your Merging Method
Select one of the following approaches. All produce the same result: a single PDF with the police report pages first, followed by the photo addendum pages.
| Method | Tool | Cost | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Browser-based | OctopusPDF Merge PDF | Free tier, Pro for unlimited | Privacy-sensitive files (zero uploads) |
| Browser-based | Adobe Acrobat Online | Free with account | Users already on Adobe |
| Browser-based | Smallpdf or ilovepdf | Free tier with limits | Quick merges with small files |
| Desktop (manual) | Microsoft Print to PDF | Free (built-in) | Offline work, no internet |
For this tutorial, the steps below use a generic browser-based merger. The interface buttons may vary slightly between tools, but the core workflow is the same.
Step 3. Open the Merger Tool in Your Browser
Navigate to the merger tool of your choice in a web browser (Edge, Chrome, or Firefox). If using OctopusPDF, go to the Merge PDF section. If using Adobe, Smallpdf, or ilovepdf, locate the "Merge PDF" option on their homepage.
- Open your browser and go to the merger tool's website.
- Look for a button labeled "Merge PDF," "Select files," or "Choose PDF files."
- Click the button. A file picker dialog will open.
Step 4. Upload the Police Report First
The order in which you select files matters. The merger places files in the output PDF in the order they are added.
- In the file picker, navigate to your police report PDF (
Incident_2024-00123_Report.pdf). - Select it and click "Open" or "Add." The file should appear in the merger's queue as the first item.
Watch out: Some tools auto-sort files alphabetically or by modification date, which could place the photo addendum first. After adding both files, always verify the order in the queue list.
Step 5. Upload the Photo Addendum Second
Now add the photo addendum PDF to the queue.
- Click the "Add files" or "Select more" button again in the merger tool.
- Select the photo addendum PDF (
Incident_2024-00123_Photos.pdf) and click "Open." - The photo addendum should appear second in the queue, below the police report.
Step 6. Verify the Page Order
Before generating the merged file, confirm that the page order is correct: police report pages first, photo addendum pages after.
- Look at the file queue in the merger tool. It typically shows a numbered list or thumbnail previews.
- Confirm the first entry is the police report and the second is the photo addendum.
- If the order is reversed, use the drag handles or up/down arrows to swap them. Most tools allow you to drag a file thumbnail to a new position.
Watch out: Some tools display pages rather than files in the queue. If you see individual thumbnails for every page, the police report pages must come before the photo addendum pages. Count the pages to confirm: if the police report has 12 pages, pages 1–12 should be the report, and page 13 onward should be the photos.
Step 7. Merge the Files
With the order confirmed, generate the merged PDF.
- Click the "Merge," "Combine," or "Create PDF" button. The tool will process the files.
- Processing usually takes 5–30 seconds depending on file size.
- When finished, the tool will offer a "Download" button for the merged file.
Step 8. Download the Merged PDF
Save the merged file to a location you can find later.
- Click "Download" to save the merged PDF.
- Use a descriptive filename that preserves the incident reference, for example:
Incident_2024-00123_Full_Report_With_Photos.pdf. - Save it to your case folder, not to the Downloads folder, to keep it organized.
Step 9. Verify the Merged File Opens Correctly
Open the downloaded file to confirm the merge worked properly.
- Double-click the downloaded merged PDF.
- Scroll through the entire document to confirm both sections are present.
- Check that no pages are missing, duplicated, or out of order.
- Verify that the photo addendum images render correctly (not pixelated or blank).
Common Mistakes / Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Photo addendum pages appear before the police report | Files were selected in the wrong order | Re-open the merger, add the police report first, then the photo addendum. Drag to reorder if the tool allows it. |
| "File not supported" error when uploading the photo addendum | The addendum is a folder of JPG/PNG images, not a PDF | Convert images to PDF first. In Windows, select all images, right-click, and choose "Print," then select "Microsoft Print to PDF" as the printer. Or use an "Images to PDF" tool that combines JPG/PNG files into one PDF, one image per page (evidence K3). |
| Merged PDF is too large to email | Photo addendums contain high-resolution images that increase file size | Use a PDF compression tool after merging, or reduce image resolution in the source files before merging. |
| The merger tool uploads the file to a server (privacy concern) | Some tools send files to their servers for processing | Use a tool with zero-upload architecture. One option is OctopusPDF, which processes all PDFs locally in the browser with pdf.js and never uploads the file (evidence K2, K5). Alternatively, merge offline using Microsoft Print to PDF. |
| Page order is correct but a page is blank or missing | Corrupted source PDF or incomplete photo addendum | Re-export the source PDFs from your original application (e.g., Word, Excel, or image editor) and repeat the merge. |
| The merger tool times out on large files | Free tiers often limit file size (e.g., 100 MB on some Pro plans) | Split the photo addendum into two smaller PDFs, merge each with the report separately, then merge the two results together. Or upgrade to a paid tier. |
How to Verify Success
- Open the merged PDF and confirm the first page is page 1 of the police report.
- Scroll through and verify that all pages from the original police report are present and in order.
- Confirm the last page of the police report is immediately followed by the first page of the photo addendum (no blank pages between them).
- Check that every photo in the addendum appears clearly and is not cropped or distorted.
- Confirm the file name reflects the incident number and content (e.g.,
Incident_2024-00123_Full_Report_With_Photos.pdf). - Verify the file size is reasonable (typically under 50 MB unless the photo addendum is extremely large).
- Test that the file opens in at least two PDF viewers (e.g., Edge and Adobe Acrobat).
FAQ
Q1. Do I need to install software on my Windows PC to merge the PDFs?
No. Browser-based merger tools require no installation. One option is OctopusPDF, which performs the merge entirely within the browser tab and does not require an account for basic use (evidence K2). If you prefer an offline method, Windows includes the "Microsoft Print to PDF" feature, which can combine PDFs without internet access, though it is more manual.
Q2. Will the merged PDF contain any hidden metadata that could pose a confidentiality issue?
It depends on the tool. Browser-based tools that process files locally, such as OctopusPDF, do not upload the file, so no metadata leaves your computer (evidence K5). Tools that process on a server receive a copy of your file, which may be stored temporarily. For confidential police evidence, choose a zero-upload tool or use the offline Microsoft Print to PDF method. You can also strip metadata afterward using a PDF sanitization tool that physically deletes metadata and hidden content (evidence K2).
Q3. What if my photo addendum is stored as individual image files rather than a single PDF?
Convert the images to PDF first. In Windows, select all the images, right-click, choose "Print," select "Microsoft Print to PDF" as the printer, and save the output. Alternatively, use an images-to-PDF conversion tool that combines JPG/PNG images into one PDF, one image per page (evidence K3). After conversion, you can merge the resulting PDF with the police report following the same steps above.
Key Facts
- Merging a police report PDF with a photo addendum requires both files to be in PDF format; image files must be converted first (evidence K3).
- File order in the merger queue determines the final page order — always add the police report before the photo addendum.
- Browser-based PDF mergers like OctopusPDF process files locally with no uploads, which is suited for confidential legal and investigative documents (evidence K2, K5).
- The merged output is a single PDF in which the written report appears first, followed by the photo addendum pages, and the file operates identically to any standard PDF.
- Free tiers of merger tools typically limit file size or number of merges (e.g., 3 conversions per day on some tools) — check limits before processing large case files (evidence K4).