Densitometry

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Densitometry is the quantitative measurement of optical density in light-sensitive materials, such as photographic paper or photographic film, due to exposure to light.

Contents

Overview

Optical density is a result of the darkness of a developed picture and can be expressed absolutely as the number of dark spots (i.e., silver grains in developed films) in a given area, but usually it is a relative value, expressed in a scale.[ citation needed ]

Since density is usually measured by the decrease in the amount of light which shines through a transparent film, it is also called absorptiometry, the measure of light absorption through the medium. The corresponding measuring device is called a densitometer (absorptiometer). The decadic (base-10) logarithm of the reciprocal of the transmittance is called the absorbance or density. [1]

DMax and DMin refer to the maximum and minimum density that can be produced by the material. The difference between the two is the density range. [1] The density range is related to the exposure range (dynamic range), which is the range of light intensity that is represented by the recording, via the Hurter–Driffield curve. In the context of photography, the dynamic range is often measured in "stops", which is the binary logarithm of the ratio of highest and lowest distinguishable exposures; in an engineering context, the dynamic range is usually given by its decadic logarithm expressed in decibels.[ citation needed ]

Uses

According to the principle of operation of the densitometer, one can have:

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry is used in medicine to evaluate calcium bone density, which is altered in several diseases such as osteopenia and osteoporosis. Special devices have been developed and are in current use for clinical diagnosis, called bone densitometers.

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Camera Optical device for recording images

A camera is an optical instrument that captures a visual image. At a basic level, cameras consist of sealed boxes, with a small hole that allows light through to capture an image on a light-sensitive surface. Cameras have various mechanisms to control how the light falls onto the light-sensitive surface. Lenses focus the light entering the camera. The aperture can be narrowed or widened. A shutter mechanism determines the amount of time the photosensitive surface is exposed to light.

Exposure (photography) Amount of light captured by a camera

In photography, exposure is the amount of light per unit area reaching a frame of photographic film or the surface of an electronic image sensor, as determined by shutter speed, lens F-number, and scene luminance. Exposure is measured in lux seconds, and can be computed from exposure value (EV) and scene luminance in a specified region.

Light meter Device used to measure the amount of light

A light meter is a device used to measure the amount of light. In photography, a light meter is used to determine the proper exposure for a photograph. The meter will include either a digital or analog calculator which displays the correct shutter speed and f-number for optimum exposure, given a certain lighting situation and film speed. Similarly, exposure meters are also used in the fields of cinematography and scenic design, in order to determine the optimum light level for a scene.

Exposure value Measure of illuminance for a combination of a cameras shutter speed and f-number

In photography, exposure value (EV) is a number that represents a combination of a camera's shutter speed and f-number, such that all combinations that yield the same exposure have the same EV. Exposure value is also used to indicate an interval on the photographic exposure scale, with a difference of 1 EV corresponding to a standard power-of-2 exposure step, commonly referred to as a stop.

Image scanner Device that optically scans images, printed text

An image scanner—often abbreviated to just scanner—is a device that optically scans images, printed text, handwriting or an object and converts it to a digital image. Commonly used in offices are variations of the desktop flatbed scanner where the document is placed on a glass window for scanning. Hand-held scanners, where the device is moved by hand, have evolved from text scanning "wands" to 3D scanners used for industrial design, reverse engineering, test and measurement, orthotics, gaming and other applications. Mechanically driven scanners that move the document are typically used for large-format documents, where a flatbed design would be impractical.

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry Diagnostic test for bone mineral density testing

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry is a means of measuring bone mineral density (BMD) using spectral imaging. Two X-ray beams, with different energy levels, are aimed at the patient's bones. When soft tissue absorption is subtracted out, the bone mineral density (BMD) can be determined from the absorption of each beam by bone. Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry is the most widely used and most thoroughly studied bone density measurement technology.

Monochromator Optical device

A monochromator is an optical device that transmits a mechanically selectable narrow band of wavelengths of light or other radiation chosen from a wider range of wavelengths available at the input. The name is from the Greek roots mono-, "single", and chroma, "colour", and the Latin suffix -ator, denoting an agent.

Optical filter

An optical filter is a device that selectively transmits light of different wavelengths, usually implemented as a glass plane or plastic device in the optical path, which are either dyed in the bulk or have interference coatings. The optical properties of filters are completely described by their frequency response, which specifies how the magnitude and phase of each frequency component of an incoming signal is modified by the filter.

In photography, reciprocity is the inverse relationship between the intensity and duration of light that determines the reaction of light-sensitive material. Within a normal exposure range for film stock, for example, the reciprocity law states that the film response will be determined by the total exposure, defined as intensity × time. Therefore, the same response can result from reducing duration and increasing light intensity, and vice versa.

The science of photography is the use of chemistry and physics in all aspects of photography. This applies to the camera, its lenses, physical operation of the camera, electronic camera internals, and the process of developing film in order to take and develop pictures properly.

Densitometer

A densitometer is a device that measures the degree of darkness of a photographic or semitransparent material or of a reflecting surface. The densitometer is basically a light source aimed at a photoelectric cell. It determines the density of a sample placed between the light source and the photoelectric cell from differences in the readings. Modern densitometers have the same components, but also have electronic integrated circuitry for better reading.

Sensitometry

Sensitometry is the scientific study of light-sensitive materials, especially photographic film. The study has its origins in the work by Ferdinand Hurter and Vero Charles Driffield with early black-and-white emulsions. They determined how the density of silver produced varied with the amount of light received, and the method and time of development.

Bone density Amount of bone mineral in bone tissue

Bone density, or bone mineral density (BMD), is the amount of bone mineral in bone tissue. The concept is of mass of mineral per volume of bone, although clinically it is measured by proxy according to optical density per square centimetre of bone surface upon imaging. Bone density measurement is used in clinical medicine as an indirect indicator of osteoporosis and fracture risk. It is measured by a procedure called densitometry, often performed in the radiology or nuclear medicine departments of hospitals or clinics. The measurement is painless and non-invasive and involves low radiation exposure. Measurements are most commonly made over the lumbar spine and over the upper part of the hip. The forearm may be scanned if the hip and lumbar spine are not accessible.

In the theory of photography, tone reproduction is the mapping of scene luminance and color to print reflectance or display luminance, with the aim of subjectively "properly" reproducing brightness and "brightness differences".

Quantitative computed tomography

Quantitative computed tomography (QCT) is a medical technique that measures bone mineral density (BMD) using a standard X-ray Computed Tomography (CT) scanner with a calibration standard to convert Hounsfield Units (HU) of the CT image to bone mineral density values. Quantitative CT scans are primarily used to evaluate bone mineral density at the lumbar spine and hip.

Photographic film Film used by film (analog) cameras

Photographic film is a strip or sheet of transparent film base coated on one side with a gelatin emulsion containing microscopically small light-sensitive silver halide crystals. The sizes and other characteristics of the crystals determine the sensitivity, contrast, and resolution of the film.

Measuring instrument Device for measuring a physical quantity

A measuring instrument is a device to measure a physical quantity. In the physical sciences, quality assurance, and engineering, measurement is the activity of obtaining and comparing physical quantities of real-world objects and events. Established standard objects and events are used as units, and the process of measurement gives a number relating the item under study and the referenced unit of measurement. Measuring instruments, and formal test methods which define the instrument's use, are the means by which these relations of numbers are obtained. All measuring instruments are subject to varying degrees of instrument error and measurement uncertainty. These instruments may range from simple objects such as rulers and stopwatches to electron microscopes and particle accelerators. Virtual instrumentation is widely used in the development of modern measuring instruments.

Equidensitometry is the technique of measuring equidensities in a photographic deposit or photographic layer, such as photographic films and photographic plates.

Single photon absorptiometry is a measuring method for bone density invented by John R. Cameron and James A. Sorenson in 1963.

John A. Shepherd is an American physicist, professor of epidemiology and population sciences and director of the Shepherd Research Laboratory at the University of Hawaii Cancer Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is an expert in the use of dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) for quantitative bone and soft tissue imaging, and pioneered the use of 3D optical imaging of the whole body for quantifying body composition and associated diseases including cancer risk, obesity, diabetes, and frailty. In 2016, he was the President of the Board of the International Society for Clinical Densitometry.

References

  1. 1 2 Davies, Adrian (2005). The Focal Digital Imaging A-Z. Focal Press. ISBN   0-240-51980-9.