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Protecting artworks from light exposure is a priority for their long term preservation. Conservators work closely with curators and scientists to establish exhibit guidelines that require low light levels and short exposure times.

Right: Master of Imola (artist), The Nativity with Six Dominican Monks, 1265/1274, miniature on vellum, National Gallery of Art, Rosenwald Collection

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At high numerical apertures of the microscope, depth of field is determined primarily by wave optics, while at lower numerical apertures, the geometrical optical circle of confusion dominates the phenomenon. Using a variety of different criteria for determining when the image becomes unacceptably sharp, several authors have proposed different formulas to describe the depth of field in a microscope. The total depth of field is given by the sum of the wave and geometrical optical depths of fields as:

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Paint used to illuminate manuscripts can sometimes become detached from the vellum. The conservator aligns and re-adheres fragile paint flakes with the help of a microscope. Photography and written documentation of the treatment ensure that future caretakers understand where fragile areas exist and how they have been cared for in the past.

Depth of fieldphotography

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This interchange of nomenclature can lead to confusion, especially when the terms are both used specifically to denote depth of field in microscope objectives. The geometric image plane might be expected to represent an infinitely thin section of the specimen, but even in the absence of aberrations, each image point is spread into a diffraction figure that extends above and below this plane. The Airy disk, a basic unit of the diffraction pattern produced by the microscope objective, represents a section through the center of the intermediate image plane. This increases the effective in-focus depth of the Z-axis Airy disk intensity profile that passes through slightly different specimen planes.

Axial resolution, like horizontal resolution, is determined only by the numerical aperture of the objective (Figure 2), with the eyepiece merely magnifying the details resolved and projected into the intermediate image plane. Just as in classical photography, depth of field is determined by the distance from the nearest object plane in focus to that of the farthest plane also simultaneously in focus. In microscopy depth of field is very short and usually measured in units of microns. The term depth of focus, which refers to image space, is often used interchangeably with depth of field, which refers to object space.

Where d(tot) represents the depth of field, λ is the wavelength of illuminating light, n is the refractive index of the medium (usually air (1.000) or immersion oil (1.515)) between the coverslip and the objective front lens element, and NA equals the objective numerical aperture. The variable e is the smallest distance that can be resolved by a detector that is placed in the image plane of the microscope objective, whose lateral magnification is M. Using this equation, depth of field (d(tot)) and wavelength (λ) must be expressed in similar units. For example, if d(tot) is to be calculated in micrometers, λ must also be formulated in micrometers (700 nanometer red light is entered into the equation as 0.7 micrometers). Notice that the diffraction-limited depth of field (the first term in the equation) shrinks inversely with the square of the numerical aperture, while the lateral limit of resolution is reduced in a manner that is inversely proportional to the first power of the numerical aperture. Thus, the axial resolution and thickness of optical sections that can be attained are affected by the system numerical aperture much more so than is the lateral resolution of the microscope.

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For further information on Illuminated Manuscripts, see the outline of a project on advanced imaging that identifies the materials used when pages like the one in this article was created.

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lluminated manuscripts were created in various sizes depending on their intended use. The choir pages, below left, were large so that a group could simultaneously view the pages from a distance. The palm-sized prayer book, below right, was produced for a wealthy patron to use for personal worship.

When considering resolution in optical microscopy, a majority of the emphasis is placed on point-to-point lateral resolution in the plane perpendicular to the optical axis (Figure 1). Another important aspect to resolution is the axial (or longitudinal) resolving power of an objective, which is measured parallel to the optical axis and is most often referred to as depth of field.

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Shallowdepth of field

World-class Nikon objectives, including renowned CFI60 infinity optics, deliver brilliant images of breathtaking sharpness and clarity, from ultra-low to the highest magnifications.

Conservators work with framers to build climate resistant enclosures that protect artworks from environment pollutants, fluctuating temperatures and humidity during exhibit. Sealed packages also ensure that works are protected during travel and display at other institutions.

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Depth of focus varies with numerical aperture and magnification of the objective, and under some conditions, high numerical aperture systems (usually with higher magnification power) have deeper focus depths than do those systems of low numerical aperture, even though the depth of field is less (see Table 1). This is particularly important in photomicrography because the film emulsion or digital camera sensor must be exposed or illuminated in a plane that falls within the focus region. Small errors made to focus at high magnification are not as critical as those made with very low magnification objectives. Table 1 presents calculated variations in the depth of field and image depth in the intermediate image plane in a series of objectives with increasing numerical aperture and magnification.

Left: Detail of Master of Imola (artist), The Three Maries at the Tomb with the Angel of the Resurrection, and Isaac Sending Esau Out to Hunt, c. 1275, miniature in tempera on vellum in an eight-leaf fragment from an antiphonary, National Gallery of Art, Gift of Mr. Ladislaus and Beatrix von Hoffmann

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Left to right: Detail of Easau's hand; Detail of Esau's head; The thin-white elongated brushstrokes used to create fingers on each hand are nearly identical in style and technique. Similar thin-white brushstrokes are applied to eyebrows and lips. Small, round white dots centered in each eye are also consistent.

Artists’ recipes can be found in books such as Cennino Cennini’s Craftsman's Handbook (Il Libro dell'Arte) written in 1390. Such texts describe raw materials and their sources and provide advice for how to make drawings, paintings and sculpture.   Illuminated manuscript designs are often drawn on the animal skin using leadpoint ruling lines and thin ink washes. A glue-and-chalk ground called bole is applied to vellum before laying gold or silver leaf. Paints are mixed using various pigments and binders. Recreating artists' paints using traditional methods helps scholars to recognize and understand the materials on the artworks themselves. Technical information can also provide valuable insight into an artist’s workshop techniques and relationships with other artists.

Knowing what materials and technique artists used helps conservators determine if objects are especially fragile or sensitive to light, moisture, or pollutants. Limiting the length of exhibitions for sensitive objects ensures that many generations to come will be able to experience their wonder.

Subtle details such as the eyes of the water bearer’s face and the white lines used to highlight the fingers were instrumental in helping attribute this leaf to the artist known as Master of Imola.

These values for the depth of field, and the distribution of intensities in the three-dimensional diffraction pattern, are calculated for incoherently illuminated (or emitting) point sources where the numerical aperture of the condenser is greater than or equal to that of the objective. In general, the depth of field increases, up to a factor of 2, as the coherence of illumination increases (as the condenser numerical aperture approaches zero). However, the three-dimensional point spread function (PSF) with partially coherent illumination can depart in complex ways from that so far discussed when the aperture function is not uniform. In a number of phase-based, contrast-generating modes of microscopy, the depth of field may turn out to be unexpectedly shallower than that predicted from the equation above and may yield extremely thin optical sections.

Illuminated manuscripts are hand-written books with painted decoration that generally includes precious metals such as gold or silver. The pages were made from animal skin, commonly calf, sheep, or goat. Illuminated manuscripts were produced between 1100 and 1600, with monasteries as their earliest creators. Wealthy patrons also wanted these illustrative works for personal libraries and encouraged the formation of private workshops that flourished in French and Italian cities between the 13th and 15th centuries. The decline of the illuminated manuscript tradition coincided with the ability to mass produce printed text and the increasing numbers of literate people who wanted secular as well as religious books.

In digital and video microscopy, the shallow focal plane in the target of the camera tube or CCD, the high contrast achievable at high objective and condenser numerical apertures, and the high magnification of the image displayed on the monitor all contribute to reducing the depth of field. Thus, with video, we can obtain very sharp and thin optical sections, and can define the focal level of a thin specimen with very high precision.

The human eye can normally accommodate from infinity to about 25 centimeters, so that the depth of field can considerably greater than that given by the equation above when one observes the microscope image through the eyepieces. On the other hand, a video sensor or photographic emulsion lies in a thin fixed plane so that the depth of field and axial resolution using those sensors are given by the parameters in the equation. In these cases, the axial resolution is defined by convention as one-quarter of the distance between the first minima, above and below focus, along the axis of the three-dimensional diffraction image produced by the objective.

Single manuscript pages are stored in protective window mats, shown above, so that their fragile painted surfaces are kept safe. The mats are placed in sturdy boxes in monitored storerooms that maintain an ideal temperature and relative humidity. A stable climate is especially important for illuminated manuscripts because animal skin readily expands and contracts in fluctuating humidity.

Curators and conservators often work together to examine an artist’s style, techniques, and choice of materials. Looking at artworks under a microscope can reveal minute details that cannot be seen with the unaided eye. Below are two works of art whose similarities in their brushstrokes reveal them to be painted by the same artist, known as the Master of Imola.

Left: Master of Imola (artist), The Nativity with Six Dominican Monks, 1265/1274, miniature on vellum, National Gallery of Art, Rosenwald Collection. Right: Flemish 15th Century (artist), Book of Hours, 1440 manuscript with 6 illuminated pages in red and brown ink and gouache and gold on vellum.