Combining the Red, Blue & Green Channels

The images is this example were taken by Robyn Rufner with a confocal laser scanning microscope attached to a regular flurorescence light microscope (LM) generated three images: a red, green and blue image of cell material. All three images (tiff files) were RGB color mode and had three channels. Even though there was a red, green and blue channels for each image; there was visible information on only one channel, the other two channels were not being used. Sometimes the generated images can be in the Index color mode and have one channel. Both situations will be presented in these instructions.

You will take these three individual endothelial cells images and combine them into one image. You can do this by combining them in the layers and using blending modes; or by combining them directly in channels. This demonstration is done by using layers which is the easiest way.