Conclusions
Good
quality digital images of brain sections are produced
in different ways, depending on the size of the field
to be imaged:
- For
sections or fields over 25 mm in length or width, use
direct scanning of the tissue in a good quality desktop
scanner (e.g. the LaCie Silverscanner II), using the
Transparency mode.
- For
sections that are less than 15 mm in length or width,
a microscope is used with either a film camera (to make
35 mm slides for subsequent scanning) or a digital camera
(in our tests, the Kodak DCS 200 or the Leaf Lumina
Scanning Camera)
- For
sections between 15 mm and 25 mm, optimal results are
obtained using a camera (film or digital), a good series
of "macro" lenses (Leitz Summar or their equivalents
by Nikon, 24-80 mm), and an appropriate slide holder
and illuminator.
Images
obtained from the desktop scanner or the digital camera
had two advantages over those captured from film and subsequently
scanned:
- 1)
much less editing is needed to produce good final results,
and
- 2)
the electronic images were immediately available, thereby
avoiding the time-consuming processes of film development
and subsequent scanning.
For
brain sections, computer image files of 150 pixels per
inch, with a maximum dimension of 1050 pixels (stored
as PICT files, compressed by the "high-quality"
level of JPEG compression included in the PICT file creation
module of the Adobe Photoshop program), provide good economical
electronic storage and transmission, for on-screen viewing,
and for making good quality prints.
Main
Methods
Imaging
Large Fields
Imaging
Small Fields
