Diatoms

[Sabatini]

Hello
My humble diatoms captured yesterday.

Thank you and good hunting

IMG_20200718_145805.jpg (49.12 KiB) Viewed 4618 times

[Sabatini]

IMG_20200718_145849.jpg (45.3 KiB) Viewed 4617 times

[Hobbyst46]

The triangular ones are similar to my catch from the Mediterranean. Gentle cleaning preserved their shape. Harsh cleaning destroyed it.

[Sabatini]

Hobbyst46

Much appreciated for your attention.

That one is very nice, they are stuck on the red algae in groups. Sometimes they come off and I can see them complete.

IMG_20200719_103825.jpg (68.06 KiB) Viewed 4574 times

[KD Arvidsson]

Many different diatoms here, very interesting to see //KD

[Sabatini]

Many different diatoms here, very interesting to see //KD

I really appreciated your interest,

I'm still trying to get a better definition of them, I don't know if it's because of the achromatic lenses with low NA or my camera ... Or maybe the lack of experience of the microscopist... Or all of the above together.

[hans]

Nice variety, I have not found any diatoms yet.

... I don't know if it's because of the achromatic lenses with low NA or my camera ...

What camera? The images have a look like software may be doing some noise reduction that is also removing low-contrast detail. Are there any options/settings related to that?

[Sabatini]

Hans.
Thanks You ,I must update for a better camera , i don't think i can do much more whit it.
the images look way much better contrasted and with more details front the eyepieces.
Try capturing them with your own version of plankton net, they are very easy to do.

[Zuul]

the images look way much better contrasted and with more details front the eyepieces.

That comment is repeated on this forum and others all the time. Photomicroscopy is very unforgiving and requires certain techniques to be learned. (I’m no expert, but I am trying to learn, too!) The very detailed diatom photos you see are very often a “stack” of 10’s, or even 100’s, of photos taken at small increments of focus and combined in software.

Before you decide to upgrade your camera, make sure the camera you have is what is limiting you. The first thing to check is that no vibration is getting from the camera to the microscope. Are you using a remote trigger or timer? Does your camera have a mechanical shutter? (Moving mirror?) If it does, are you using a silent mode or electronic first curtain option to stop “shutter shock” from causing vibration?

[MicroBob]

Hi Sabatini,
to make the structure of the diatoms more visible I would suggest two things:

- The photos look highly processed with a painting like look. If this is present in the images straigt out of camera you might try this: Cameras tend to increase noise recuction etc. when the image is noisy. To reduce initial noise you can try to increase the lighting.

- You might try to clean the diatoms by incineration and mount them. If you are interested in this I could go into a bit more detail.

The first diatom in your second post was recently mentioned here in the forum. Apparently it is very fragile and rarely found in cleaned diatom material.

Bob

[75RR]

I'm still trying to get a better definition of them, I don't know if it's because of the achromatic lenses with low NA or my camera ... Or maybe the lack of experience of the microscopist... Or all of the above together. :D

A photo of your microscope showing how the camera is setup might lead to some useful suggestions.

Also you might want to try Oblique illumination.

http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/ind ... lique.html

[Sabatini]

Thank you all for all these sincere suggestions.

Zuul , I understand some of the staking process, and I have been able to enjoy reading here several and very interesting discussions on the subject about this procedure ,I find it a very interesting tool, which reveals very important details in microscopy work.

Indeed, I notice that my photos look like paintings or retouched with colors, but it is a procedure that the camera performs automatically.

Microbob, I will follow your instructions and try to increase the lighting.

I also had the opportunity to see your work on mounting diatoms by the incineration method.
Very impressive.

Thank you.

I think it's best for me to buy a better camer.

[Sabatini]

I'm still trying to get a better definition of them, I don't know if it's because of the achromatic lenses with low NA or my camera ... Or maybe the lack of experience of the microscopist... Or all of the above together.

A photo of your microscope showing how the camera is setup might lead to some useful suggestions.

Also you might want to try Oblique illumination.

http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/mag/ind ... lique.html

I'll study the Mathias arrow.
For oblique light I have sometimes used the Heine condenser but I have not achieved good results, it may be a lack of skill on my part. I find too many ghosting effects and double images annoying.

Thanks for the directions, I will keep trying and improving the work, I have the best guide and teachers here.