File:Illustration of the optical transfer function and its relation to image quality.svg

Summary
Illustration of the optical transfer function (OTF) and its relation to image quality. The optical transfer function of a well-focused (a), and an out-of-focus optical imaging system without aberrations (d). As the optical transfer function of these systems is real and non-negative, the optical transfer function is by definition equal to the modulation transfer function (MTF). Images of a point source and spoke target are shown in (b,e) and (c,f), respectively. Note that the scale of the point source images (b,e) is four times smaller than the spoke target images.