Brightfield illumination has been one of the most widely used observation modes in optical microscopy for the past 300 years. The technique is best suited for utilization with fixed, stained specimens or other kinds of samples that naturally absorb significant amounts of visible light. Images produced with brightfield illumination appear dark and/or highly colored against a bright, often light gray or white, background. This digital image gallery explores a variety of stained specimens captured with an Olympus BX51 microscope coupled to a 12-bit QImaging Retiga camera system and a three-color liquid crystal tunable filter.
Amphibian Skin
Bacteria
Bald Scalp
Bracken Fern
Cerebrum
Lycopodium
Ductus Deferens
Epididymis
Fern Spores
Frog Epithelium
Frog Muscle Tissue
Pigmented Skin
Hemlock Leaf
Horsetail Strobilus
Cerebral Cortex
Immature Testes
Keloid Scar Tissue
Cardiac Muscle
Cerebellum
Hyaline Cartilage
Graafian Follicle
Mammalian Kidney
Smooth Muscle
Mammalian Testes
Marchantia Liverwort
Oleander Leaf
Optic Nerve
Palmar Skin
Pine Needle
Pine Stem
Plantar Skin
Prostate Gland Old
Prostate Gland Young
Columnar Epithelium
Salamander Liver
Columnar Epithelium
Thyroid Gland
Zamia Stem
