Imaging

Imaging refers to the science of obtaining pictures or more complicated spatial representations, such as animations or 3-D computer graphics models, from physical things.

The science of photography is not quite a subset of imaging, because it includes attempts to construct images which have little relation to the physical (such as double exposures, lens effects, etc).

Imaging also includes activities such as:

Taking photographs using non-visible ranges of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Extracting images from living things, through techniques such as positron emission tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, near-infrared fluorescence imaging, computed axial tomography, EEG or MEG (this is called medical imaging).
Microscopy-based image collection techniques such as dark field imaging, staining, or working with devices such as electron microscopes, atomic force microscopes or scanning tunneling microscopes.
Writing computer programs to improve the quality of collected images, or to construct images which merge information from multiple sources. Note, though, that imaging is largely distinct from visualization.
Making a copy of the contents of a hard disk.

Imaging

See Also