Microscopy, part 1

~I recently acquired a digital microscope (a Celestron LCD Digital Microscope), and I've been having fun with some amateur microscopy.  It has a base zoom of 10x, and objective lenses of 4x, 10x, and 40x magnification, along with a digital zoom of up to 4x (so at maximum combined digital/optical zoom, it has a magnification of 1600x).

Here are pictures taken with the microscope's built-in digital camera of the sample slides that came with the device:

Dicotyledon wood stem, 40x

Dicotyledon wood stem, 100x.  From here we can better see individual cells.

Dicotyledon wood stem, 400x.  The magnification is almost too strong at this level, and things start to get blurry.  But isn't it interesting how the cells of different shapes and sizes connect to each other?

Stem of cotton, 40x. Similar to the wood stem from before, but with large of hexagonal cells in the center.

Stem of cotton, 100x.  Let's take a closer look at those cells in the middle... 

Stem of cotton, 400x.  See the boundary between the larger cells in the lower-right and the smaller ones to the left?

 

Stem of cotton, 100x.  This image was taken near the edge of the stem.  Notice the much thicker outer layer that protects the delicate cells in the upper-left.

Stem of cotton, 400x.  Individual cells are packed against each other in this plant cut.

Mature pine wood, 40x.  The outer edge is rough and torn up at this magnification.

Mature pine wood, 100x. Notice the beautiful linear arrangement of plant cells, almost perfectly lined up.

Mature pine wood, 100x.  This is the same plant, but the image is taken at the edge of the sample to show how different the cells there are from he previous image.

 

Mature pine wood, 400x.  This is a closer view of the lined-up cells from before.

Mature pine wood, 400x.  A close-up of the protective outer edge.

Onion skin, 40x.  Notice how much more simple this image appears to be than the complex arrangement of cells from the previous images.  The cells interlock with each other like puzzle pieces.

Onion skin, 100x.  The cells aren't a single defined shape; instead, it appears that individual cells seem to have grown and expanded into wherever there was space to fill in gaps in the skin.

Onion skin, 1600x.  This is the maximum magnification of the microscope.  Is this a cell nucleus?

The same image as above, but seen through a green color filter that is built into the microscope.

Fly's leg, 40x.  Look at all of those tiny hairs.

Fly's leg, 100x with color filter.  A closer view of the hairs.  If you ever wonder why flies at rest are constantly grooming their legs, it's to keep all of this clean so they can be sensitive to the tiniest movement...like a gigantic hand trying to swat them.

Fly's leg, 400x with color filter.  This didn't come out too well; I need to experiment more with the various lighting and color settings of the microscope.  But you can see the follicles at the base of each hair, and how some of the follicles are missing hairs.

I hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into the microscopic world around us.  I'll be taking more pictures and videos in the future with the microscope, so stay tuned for more.~