A pharmaceutical solid in a prescription vial is identified from an optical property of the pharmaceutical solid using light reflected from two different light sources. For each known pharmaceutical solid, an optical property of the known pharmaceutical solid is stored. The prescription vial is illuminated with a first light source and a first image is recorded. The prescription vial is then illuminated with a second light source and a second image is recorded. The first image and the second image are processed to find an optical property of the pharmaceutical solid. The optical property found is compared to the stored optical properties. The identity of the pharmaceutical solid is determined from the comparison. The first light source and the second light source are selected to remove artifacts of the prescription bottle or to enhance or suppress two-dimensional or three-dimensional effects on the surface of the pharmaceutical solid.