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I agree.  With a confocal image the scale bar is really the only useful
descriptor.  'Magnification' for confocals is more a function of the timing
of the acquisition electronics, and talking about it in ocular terms is
misleading.

Craig


On Fri, Aug 16, 2013 at 10:49 AM, Andreas Bruckbauer <[log in to unmask]>wrote:

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>
> So how does the manufacturer know the size of the pixel? I guess this will
> be calibrated at setup of the system with a target of known size for one
> objective and then stored somewhere in the parameters and hopfully
> regularly checked. Do they then just change it proportionally for the other
> objectives? Sometimes objective magnification can be a little bit different
> than what is written on the barrel, epecially when the lens has a
> correction collar, did anyone check this?
>
> We had the case that a journal insisted on us giving the magnification in
> the figure caption, so we gave the objective magnification and insisted on
> having the scale bar in addition to that.
>
> Andreas
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Guy Cox <[log in to unmask]>
> To: CONFOCALMICROSCOPY <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Fri, 16 Aug 2013 13:01
> Subject: Re: magnification
>
>
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> In a confocal image the magnification depends on the objective
> magnification and
> the area scanned on the sample.  There is of course an 'ocular' or
> transfer lens
> but that is not variable and thus is included in the calibration of the
> system.
> So when you 'zoom' in a confocal image you are just scanning a smaller
> part of
> the field of view.  The system should still always give you the correct
> magnification, but since this is a digital image the appropriate units are
> pixels per micrometre (or the converse, the size of a pixel).  Every
> confocal
> microscope will give you these figures.  You should check once in a while,
> of
> course, using a standard specimen such as a stage micrometer.
>
>                                                         Guy
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Confocal Microscopy List [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> On
> Behalf Of Nicola Green
> Sent: Friday, 16 August 2013 8:57 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: magnification
>
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> Hi
> This is probably a very foolish and basic question, but I am going to ask
> it any way and just apologise for my ignorance as a biological specialist
> using a confocal microscope.
>
> In microscopy I would generally multiply the objective lens magnification
> by the ocular lens (often 10x) to get the total magnification of an image.
> I want to know if this also applies for the confocal microscope or is the
> light path such that the objective magnification is the only one relevant?
> If I do need to include additional magnification what would these
> magnifications be, are they dependent upon the system being used (LSM 510
> META)  or is there a standard magnification?
>
> Thanks for your help in clarifying this for me.
>
> Regards
> Nicola
>
>
>