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Microscope photography captures images of microscopic material, used in various scientific fields. Early methods involved customizing photographic equipment, while digital photography allows for greater flexibility. Micrographs are used in forensics, geology, medicine, and electron microscopes examine material at higher magnifications.
Microscope photography is the science of creating and recording images of microscopic material. It is widely used in various fields of science, from forensics to archeology. Early methods of microscope photography involved customizing photographic equipment for use with microscope objectives. In the 21st century, advances in digital photography allow for greater flexibility in creating these images. Microscopic photography is also called photomicroscopy, and the result is called microphotography or simply microphotography.
Both photography and microscopy resulted from advances in optics and lens construction between the 17th and 19th centuries. Ingenious combinations of mirrors and magnifying glasses brought small details of an image into focus, just like the human eye does. In the proper arrangements, such lenses and mirrors could magnify the very distant, as in telescopes, or the very small. In the 17th, pioneering photographers learned how to permanently record images on metal or glass surfaces, called plates, through chemical processes. Scientists soon realized they could use photography to record the images they saw through their microscopes.
Early microscope photography recorded microscopic images directly on photographic plates. This was achieved by using adapter rings to connect the microscope to the camera lens. In some cases, the camera lens has been removed, allowing the microscope to function as the lens itself. In the 20th century, special cameras were developed for recording micrographs on photographic film. Standard photographic processing techniques of the time required immersion of film in developing chemicals, causing some delay before the image could be analyzed.
Digital photography techniques have changed both microscopy and microscope photography. Modern micrographs can visualize microscopic material in real time, while still under the microscope. Video recording and integration with computer systems is also possible, which can help when detailed analysis of an image is needed. Crime labs use these micrographs when searching for traces of evidence from crime scenes. This is probably the best-known use of photomicroscopy, thanks to television crime films.
Microscope photography has other applications, however, and has led to advances in a number of scientific fields. For example, geologists examine microscopic soil samples for evidence of weather and environmental conditions at various historical times. Medicine and immunology also depend on micrographs for the research, diagnosis and treatment of diseases. Electron microscopes use electrons rather than light to examine material, including cellular and molecular structures, at much higher magnifications than ordinary microscopes. The images created by electron microscopes are also called micrographs.
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