The foundation of imaging science as a discipline is the "imaging chain" – a conceptual model describing all of the factors which must be considered when developing a system for creating visual renderings (images). In general, the links of the imaging chain include:

1. The human visual system. Designers must also consider the psychophysical processes which take place in human beings as they make sense of information received through the visual system.
2. The subject of the image. When developing an imaging system, designers must consider the observables associated with the subjects which will be imaged. These observables generally take the form of emitted or reflected energy, such as electromagnetic energy or mechanical energy.
3. The capture device. Once the observables associated with the subject are characterized, designers can then identify and integrate the technologies needed to capture those observables. For example, in the case of consumer digital cameras, those technologies include optics for collecting energy in the visible portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, and electronic detectors for converting the electromagnetic energy into an electronic signal.
4. The processor. For all digital imaging systems, the electronic signals produced by the capture device must be manipulated by an algorithm which formats the signals so they can be displayed as an image. In practice, there are often multiple processors involved in the creation of a digital image.
5. The display. The display takes the electronic signals which have been manipulated by the processor and renders them on some visual medium. Examples include paper (for printed, or "hard copy" images), television, computer monitor, or projector.

Note that some imaging scientists will include additional "links" in their description of the imaging chain. For example, some will include the "source" of the energy which "illuminates" or interacts with the subject of the image. Others will include storage and/or transmission systems.

Subfields within imaging science include: image processing, computer vision, 3D computer graphics, animations, atmospheric optics, astronomical imaging, biological imaging, digital image restoration, digital imaging, color science, digital photography, holography, magnetic resonance imaging, medical imaging, microdensitometry, optics, photography, remote sensing, radar imaging, radiometry, silver halide, ultrasound imaging, photoacoustic imaging, thermal imaging, visual perception, and various printing technologies.

• Acoustic imaging
• Coherent imaging uses an active coherent illumination source, such as in radar, synthetic aperture radar (SAR), medical ultrasound and optical coherence tomography; non-coherent imaging systems include fluorescent microscopes, optical microscopes, and telescopes.
• Chemical imaging, the simultaneous measurement of spectra and pictures
• Digital imaging, creating digital images, generally by scanning or through digital photography
• Disk image, a file which contains the exact content of a data storage medium
• Document imaging, replicating documents commonly used in business
• Geophysical imaging
• Industrial process imaging
• Medical imaging, creating images of the human body or parts of it, to diagnose or examine disease
  • Medical optical imaging
  • Magnetic resonance imaging
  • Magneto-Acousto-Electrical Tomography (MAET), imaging modality to image the electrical conductivity of biological tissues^[2]
• Molecular imaging
• Radar imaging, or imaging radar, for obtaining an image of an object, not just its location and speed
• Range imaging, for obtaining images with depth information
• Reprography, reproduction of graphics through electrical and mechanical means
  • Cinematography
  • Photography, the process of creating still images
  • Xerography, the method of photocopying
• Speckle imaging, a method of shift-and-add for astronomical imaging
• Stereo imaging, an aspect of sound recording and reproduction concerning spatial locations of the performers
• Thermography, infrared imaging
• Tactile imaging, also known as elastography

Imaging technology materials and methods include:

• Computer graphics
  • Virtual camera system used in computer and video games and virtual cinematography
• Microfilm and Micrographics
• Visual arts
  • Etching
  • Drawing and Technical drawing
  • Film
  • Painting
  • Photography
    • Multiple-camera setup enables stereoscopy and stereophotogrammetry
    • Light-field camera (basically refocusable photography)
  • Printmaking
  • Sculpture
• Infrared
• Radar imagery
• Ultrasound
• Multi-spectral image
• Electro-optical sensor
• Charge-coupled device
• Ground-penetrating radar
• Electron microscope
• Imagery analysis
• Medical radiography
• Industrial radiography
• LIDAR
• Image scanner
• Structured-light 3D scanner

• Image development (disambiguation)
• Image processing
• Nonimaging optics
• Society for Imaging Science and Technology
• The Imaging Science Journal

• Harrison H. Barrett and Kyle J. Myers, Foundations of Image Science (John Wiley & Sons, 2004) ISBN 0471153001
• Ronald N. Bracewell, Fourier Analysis and Imaging (Kluwer Academic, 2003) ISBN 0306481871
• Roger L. Easton, Jr., Fourier Methods in Imaging (John Wiley & Sons, 2010) ISBN 9780470689837 DOI 10.1002/9780470660102
• Robert D. Fiete, Modeling the Imaging Chain of Digital Cameras (SPIE Press, 2010) ISBN 9780819483393

• Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science at RIT Research center that offers B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in Imaging Science.
• The University of Arizona College of Optical Sciences offers an image science track for the M.S and Ph.D. degree in optical sciences.
• Science de l'image et des médias numériques Bachelor of image science and digital media unique in Canada.
• Image Sciences Institute, Utrecht, Netherlands Utrecht University Institute for Image Sciences - focuses on fundamental and applied research in specifically medical image processing and acquisition.
• Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science - dedicated to using imaging to improve health-care and for advancing knowledge in the biological sciences.