# The LabCanvas Pixel editor: edit micrographs and photos inside your figure

> How to adjust microscopy images and photos in the LabCanvas Pixel editor: crop, levels, curves and exposure, false-colour lookup tables, healing and clone stamp, selections and masks, with an edit log for your methods section.

Published 2026-10-18 by LabCanvas team. https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/pixel-editor-microscopy-images

![The LabCanvas Pixel editor adjusting levels and curves on a six-panel figure of micrographs](https://www.labcanvas.com/shots/pixel.webp)

The **LabCanvas Pixel editor** edits the raster images in a figure, such as micrographs, gels and photos, without leaving the figure. It has crop, levels, curves and exposure, false-colour lookup tables, healing and clone stamp, selections and masks, and it keeps a log of every edit for your methods section. The edits flow back into the figure layer.

## What it is for

- **Micrographs**: crop to the region of interest, set levels so the signal fills the range, apply a lookup table.
- **Multi-panel figures**: apply the same adjustments to every panel so the images stay comparable.
- **Photos of setups and samples**: straighten, crop, correct exposure, remove dust from the background.

## Tools

| Tool | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| Crop and rotate | Frame the region of interest, straighten the image |
| Levels and curves | Set black and white points and the tone curve |
| Exposure | Brightness, contrast and exposure |
| Lookup tables | False-colour maps for single-channel images |
| Healing and clone stamp | Retouch photos of setups (not data) |
| Selections and masks | Limit an adjustment to part of a photo |
| Edit log | Every edit listed, for the methods section |

## How to adjust a micrograph for a figure

1. Place the image in your figure, right-click it and choose to edit it (or open the [Pixel editor](https://www.labcanvas.com/editor.html?mode=pixel)).
2. Crop to the region of interest.
3. Use **Levels** so the signal uses the full range without clipping.
4. Apply a lookup table if the image is a single channel.
5. Go back to the figure; the panel is updated. Copy the edit log into your methods.

## Image integrity

Scientific images are data. Adjust the whole image evenly, keep the original file, never remove or add features in a data image, and describe the processing. The edit log makes the last step easy. The [editorial guidelines](https://www.labcanvas.com/editorial-guidelines) explain how LabCanvas handles accuracy in its own content.

## Frequently asked questions

### Do I need to leave my figure to edit an image?

No. Right-click an image in the Figure editor and choose to edit it, or switch to the Pixel editor; the edits flow back into the figure layer.

### Which adjustments are there?

Crop, rotate, levels, curves, exposure, brightness and contrast, and false-colour lookup tables, plus healing, clone stamp, selections and masks.

### Is it acceptable to edit microscopy images for a paper?

Journals accept adjustments applied to the whole image (levels, contrast, colour maps) that do not hide or change features; retouching parts of a data image is generally not acceptable. Check your journal’s image integrity policy and report the adjustments in the methods.

### What is the edit log for?

It lists every edit applied to an image, so you can describe the processing in your methods section and repeat it on other images.

### Can I edit several panels the same way?

Yes. Apply the same adjustments to every panel so that the images stay comparable, as journals expect.

## Related links

- [Open the Pixel editor](https://www.labcanvas.com/editor.html?mode=pixel)
- [The Figure editor guide](https://www.labcanvas.com/blog/figure-editor-scientific-illustration)
- [Editorial guidelines](https://www.labcanvas.com/editorial-guidelines)
- [Free figure tools](https://www.labcanvas.com/tools)
- [Features of every app](https://www.labcanvas.com/features)