How to use your smartphone to capture and share microscopic images

Smart phone microscopic photography entails using the third through fifth fingers of the left hand to steady the hand on the left microscope eyepiece, holding the camera between the thumb and second finger of the left hand and second through fifth fingers of the right hand, to leave the right thumb free. By looking through the smart phone screen while focusing on the light in the ocular of the right eyepiece and slowly bringing the phone closer to the microscope, the view beneath the microscope lens will eventually fill the screen. The right thumb is free to focus the camera and capture the image. The camera's zoom function can remove vignetting (the circular frame around the image). Additional basic smart phone camera functions can be used to produce high-quality images suitable for use in presentations, posters, and publications. Successful smart phone microscopic photography is dependent on the ability to hold the camera steady and, while initially frustrating to learn, the technique can be readily mastered.

A video tutorial is available at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cfd9ViHBlR4

Read more:
Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Online - Smart Phone Microscopic Photography: A Novel Tool for Physicians and Trainees

Source: Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine