PRODUCT: Auto-Montage
Free downloadable demonstration software
Create extended depth-of-field images of your own samples with our free downloadable demonstration software.
Auto-Montage Essentials is the basic version of the software, with exactly the features necessary to produce a high quality focused image.
Download and install the demonstration program
Follow these simple steps to install a special demonstration version of Auto-Montage Essentials on your own PC:
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Log in as "Administrator", or to a user account with Administrator privileges. |
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Download file: setup-AutoMontageEssentialsDEMO.exe to your PC. Click here for the download page |
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Run that program to install the demonstration version of the software. |
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Follow the on-screen instructions, clicking the Next> button to proceed through each stage of the installation sequence. |
When the installation has completed, you are ready to see for yourself exactly what Auto-Montage can do, using some images which we have already created for you. As this is a demonstration version of the software, certain functions will be disabled.
Download the example image sets
You may download some of these example image sets to learn about the features of Auto-Montage Essentials:
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Click here to download Arachnid.zip | 1.2Mb |
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Click here to download Colepod.zip | 0.7Mb |
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Click here to download SurfaceCoating.zip | 3.7Mb |
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Click here to download StringTree.zip | 1.9Mb |
Each self-extracting file comprises an Auto-Montage dataset file (".m") and a number of source images in TIFF format (".tif").
Please download Arachnid.zip now for use in the following example.
Getting started
Double-click on the Auto-Montage Essentials desktop icon to start using the software.
From the File menu, choose Open to present the File Open dialog box.
Find and open the file Arachnid.m, which you downloaded earlier.
The Source Images window shows the sequence of partially-focused images which will be used to construct the extended depth-of-field image.
Use the slider control at the bottom of this window to look at each source image in turn.
Notice how each image has a different part of the sample in focus.
At this magnification, no optical system can get all parts of a thick sample into focus at once.
From the Scan menu, choose Montage to present the Scan Montage dialog box.
Click on the Preview checkbox and choose Montage image to see the result of the Scan Montage operation.
Adjust the controls and watch the image change in real time. This makes it easy to obtain the best results for any type of sample.
Now click the Scan button to perform the Scan Montage operation.
The Montage Image window shows the extended depth-of-field image generated by Auto-Montage.
You will see that all parts of the image are now perfectly in focus.
Compare this Montage image to the partially-focused Source images from which it was created.
Because this is a demonstration version of Auto-Montage, the Montage image will be watermarked and cannot be saved.
Going further
Now download some of the other datasets, and repeat the same steps to see how well Auto-Montage performs on a variety of different sample types.
The sample datasets Colepod.m and
StringTree.m were captured using a stereo microscope,
so there is a slight lateral shift between each source image. This is due to an inherent property of binocular microscope optics as focus is adjusted.
To calculate and compensate for the shift, use the Scan Align function before creating your Montage image.
With this feature, Auto-Montage can use images created with almost any type of microscope.
The Depth Map window shows the depth within sample calculated by the Scan Montage function for all parts of the image.
If you have a pair of red/green or red/cyan 3D glasses, try the Scan Anaglyph function
to view the Montage image in spectacular 3D.
The Edit controls provide dedicated tools for minor corrections and improvements to perfect your Montage image.
The extensive built-in Help Library introduces you to yet more features of Auto-Montage, with detailed descriptions of every control and parameter.
From the Help menu, choose Introduction, then follow the links to learn how to get the best results from any sample in any situation..
Using your own images
If you have a digital camera that can be attached to your microscope, you may use our demonstration software to generate a completely focused image of your own sample, to see for yourself what Auto-Montage can do for your work.
Focus your microscope on the top of your sample, then capture an image using your camera and whatever image capturing software you currently use.
Now save that image to a file on your PC.
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You may save your source images in one of 3 common file formats: Windows Bitmap (".bmp"), TIFF (".tif"), JPEG (".jpg"). |
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Your filenames should all start with exactly the same name: eg. "Sample01.tif", "Sample02.tif", "Sample03.tif" .... |
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Your filenames should each end with a serial number which changes for each file, to show the order of images within the series eg. "Sample01.tif", "Sample02.tif", "Sample03.tif" ... |
Adjust the focus slightly, and capture another image. Save that image as "Sample02" (".tif", ".bmp" or ".jpg" as before).
Capture more images, adjusting the focus each time and saving as "Sample03", "Sample04" etc until you have focused all the way to the bottom of your sample.
Now start Auto-Montage as before.
From the File menu choose Open to present the File Open dialog box.
Change the Files of type control to Source Image Files and navigate to find the image files you have just created.
Select one of the images you saved (eg. your first image, "Sample01"), then click the Open button to read all of your images into Auto-Montage.
If your images were captured from a stereo microscope, use the Scan Align function to compensate for the slight lateral shift between each source image.
Now use the Scan Montage function to generate an extended depth-of-field image of your own sample,
to see your work completely in focus for the first time ever.
Because this is a demonstration version of Auto-Montage, the Montage image will be watermarked and cannot be saved.
