Automatic counting
One method of automatic counting uses the Adobe Photoshop (PS 2020)
software tool for the automatic counting of objects (Image
> Analysis > Select Data Points >
Custom > Object Counting). The image needs to be prepared
so that the software knows what to count. Using image processing tools
such as Contrast, Brightness, Exposure and Threshold, the counted
objects need to be exposed against the background. The best results are
achieved when the objects to be counted can be seen against a completely
uniform background. Then, using the Wand tool, the background is
selected and the selection inverted. The next step is to open the
Measurement Log and record the measurements. The software will
automatically count the selected objects.
Another automatic counting method is the one used for counting
microorganisms or cell structures – the Analyze Particles tool in the
open-source Java image processing software – ImageJ (Grishagin 2015)
and its and its extended version of Fiji (Schindelin et al. 2012).