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Introduction to Imaging

Image quality is a function of several factors, from lighting to compression, from camera adjustments to optics and scene composition. This page describes these factors and how to use the Motif WebUI and other functions to assess and improve image quality.

Note

Your Motif software might appear slightly different to the that shown in the screenshots below due to version or configuration differences.

Quick Start Tips

Tip

  • Having a plenty of light is the most important aspect as this allows tuning more parameters of an imaging system than if you are limited in brightness
  • For most applications, placing the camera as far away from the probe/arena is the best practice
  • An aperture value of 4 is often the most preferable setting
  • No Gain should be used if possible
  • Diffused light (e.g. by pointing spotlights against reflective/white surfaces before the light reaches the arena is better than direct light)
  • If non-thermal non-visual IR light (850nm or 940nm) is used the use of a filter blocking visual light (>750nm) is recommended
  • Unfortunately there is no perfect lens that can do everything
  • Larger pixel sensors are best, but more expensive and result in less sensor resolution

Info

More information on how to optimism focus, depth of field, resolution and lighting.