Thermal Imaging Courses
Learn professional-level thermal imaging and reap its benefits in your work!
Whether you have never used a thermal camera before or already have some experience, our three-day intensive course will take your skills to the next level.
Photo above: Participants of one of the 2025 courses practicing imaging. A unique feature of our courses is the wide variety of animals present to participate with. Selection and care of animals involved is carried out with high standards of animal welfare.
In-depth knowledge and plenty of practical exercises
Captivating expert lectures
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Understanding thermal cameras. What do they actually measure and how?
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Common sources of error and how to prevent them
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Understanding animals' temperature dynamics. Which of the many changes in surface temperature distributions can be used in monitoring animal health and welfare?
Hands-on excercises
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Thermal cameras: a variety of models for you to try out, helping you select the model best suited for your work
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Animals visiting the course site for you to practice with: a dog, a cat, rats and a tortoise
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Analysis software: learning to to get the most out of your thermal images
Written course materials to take home
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Pdf guide "Thermal Imaging of Animals", containing the lecture slides and plenty of further information
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A diploma certifying that you have completed the course
Small groups for an optimal learning experience: The courses are organized for groups of 4 to 6 to maximize the benefits for each participant
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Plenty of one-on-one tutoring
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Details of content tailored to each participant's interests
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Suitable for various backgrounds: beginners as well as for those with experience
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Language options: normally, the language of the courses is English, but a Finnish-language course can be organised whenever there are enough participants wishing that
When?
Each course runs from a Tuesday to a Thursday.
The next courses will take place in March, April and/or May 2026.
The dates will be selected according to the participants' wishes. Each time there is a minimum of four people willing to participate, we will be in touch with each to find a week that works for everyone.
Where?
The courses take place in Helsinki, Finland. The venue is the conference centre of Hotel Presidentti, near the central railway station, easily accessible from the airport.
You can get a discount for your stay at the hotel, or you can utilise the variety of budget options for accommodation at walking distance.
If you are considering whether this might be for you, you are welcome to contact us, and we'll discuss further on how you might benefit from thermal imagingcourse in your work.
Click on the below to find out more about the course
Programme and Topics
Topics covered will include
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Currently available methods to use thermal imaging in determining causes of lameness (which leg, is it joint or paw/hoof/foot, which leg, etc.), detecting local inflammation (arthritis, mastitis etc.), nerve damage, thromboembolism, and more.
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Currently available methods to use thermal imaging in monitoring thermal comfort, temperatures of surfaces in the environment, detecting acute stress, monitoring animals in the dark, assessing vitality of newborns, and more.
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Currently available methods to use thermal imaging in data collection on thermoregulation, functioning of the autonomic nervous system, febrile reactions, and more.
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Understanding how thermal imaging works as a key to accurate imaging. What is infrared radiation, how does a thermal camera measure it, and how will this information help you prevent common errors? Thermal physics presented in an easily accessible, fun way!
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Common sources of error and how to prevent them. Opportunities and limitations in modern-day thermal imaging.
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How to select the right type of thermal camera for your needs?
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How to use the latest versions of free thermal analysis software to get more information out of the thermal images than meets the eye?
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Practical exercises with thermal cameras: How to plan for accurate imaging: what is the correct angle and height for the camera, and how to set the necessary parameters, from ambient and reflected temperature to emissivity? Learn to rapidly focus on a moving animal.
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How to use thermal images as a powerful tool to communicate with your clients in veterinary practice or animal physiotherapy, or visitors at zoos or animal shelters
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How to design rigorous protocols and criteria for extraction of data from thermal images
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How to utilise its visual potential in peer-reviewed publications and in public communication of science
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And much, much more
The programme at a glance:
Day 1 (Tuesday)
9:00 Lectures and demonstrations: Current uses of thermal imaging in animal health and welfare, and what is needed to succeed in them.
12:00 Lunch
12:30 Hands-on introduction to a range of different thermal cameras and to easy-to-use analysis software. Getting familiar with them in practice.
17:00 End of the classes for the day
Day 2 (Wednesday)
9:00 Preparations for a reliable imaging session: learning the checklist to avoid measurement errors
10:00 Hands-on exercises with thermal cameras and animals
12:00 Lunch
12:30 Hands-on exercises with thermal cameras and animals, continued
17:00 End of the classes for the day
18:00 Course dinner
Day 3 (Thursday)
9:00 Buidling on the exercises of Wednesday: Using analysis software to uncover more information in the images you took.
12:00 Lunch
12:30 In-depth discussions: How to tap the full potential of thermal imaging in your work, tailored to each participant's interests. How to prepare for future developments in the field.
17:00 End of the course
Venue and accommodation
The course will take place in Helsinki, Finland, at the conference facilities of Hotel Sokos Presidentti.
Located in the heart of Helsinki, this popular venue for conferences is surrounded by plenty of options for your free time. The Natural History Museum is right across the street, and there are several restaurants, shopping centres and art museums nearby.
For those participants working at zoos or other settings with wild animals, the day of practical excercises will take place at Helsinki Zoo.
The conference dinner on Wednesday evening will take place at the restaurant of the hotel.
Registered participants will get a discount on the room rates at Hotel Sokos Presidentti. Or, should you like to stay elsewhere, there are several hotels nearby, as well as other types of accommodation for different budgets, such as apartment hotels and Airbnb stays.
The hotel is easy to reach from Helsinki Airport by train. The train station is located within the airport, and at the centre of Helsinki, it is about 10 min walk from the Central Railway Station to the hotel, with taxis also available. If you arrive by ferry, there is a tram connection from the harbour to near the hotel.
Once you have registered and paid, we will send you detailed information on the hotel and a selection of other recommended hotels and other options for accommodation, as well as information on traffic connections and how to find your way.
Lecturer
Helena Telkänranta, PhD, is an internationally recognized, sought-after expert in thermal imaging of animals.
She has carried out thermal imaging research at the University of Helsinki, Finland and the University of Bristol, UK, and has published research papers on developing new methods to use thermal imaging in studying animals. She also is the Founder and CEO of the science communication and research company Arador Innovations Ltd.
Feedback from participants of earlier thermal imaging trainings:
"It exceeded my expectations."
"The presenter was approachable thorough and was very good at explaining both the physics and the practical/diagnostic applications."
"I learned so much and it was truly fascinating."
Thermal cameras
On the course, you will have the unique opportunity to try out a range of different thermal cameras. You will get hands-on experience on various thermal camera models, from a low-cost model worth a few hundreds of Euros, all the way to a high-resolution thermal video cameras worth tens of thousands of Euros.
The thermal camera models that you will use on the course are as follows: Hikmicro Eco-V, FLIR E60 and FLIR T560.
If your organisation already has a thermal camera and you would like to bring it along to learn more about that model specifically, you are welcome to do so.
Animals
A unique feature of our course is that we have a full day of practical excercises with four different species of animals - more than any other thermal imaging course we know of.
On the second day of the course, the lecture hall is furnished to welcome visiting animals: a dog, a cat, a tortoise and a group of rats. Each will spend approx. an hour and a half with us, providing you plenty of opportunity for hands-on learning and practice with thermal cameras.
The selection and care of the animals is carried out with high animal welfare standards. All the individual animals are already accustomed to visiting new locations, and crucially, are known to not show any signs of stress at such visits. All the animals are accompanied by their owner. The furnishings are designed for each species to provide food, water, enrichment, physical comfort and a resting place containing familiar scents from the animal's home. The order of the visits during the day is planned so that none of the animals will have to experience residual smells of species they may experience as predators: the first visitor is the tortoise, followed by the rats, the cat, and finally the dog.
Registration fee
The registration fee covers the following:
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The three days of lectures and practical exercises, including hands-on tutoring
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Tailored content to meet your interests
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The pdf guide "Thermal Imaging of Animals", containing the lecture slides and plenty of further information
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A certificate for completing the course
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Lunch on all of the three days
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Light breakfast and coffee/tea breaks with snacks on all three days
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Course dinner on Wednesday evening
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A discount on room rates at Sokos Hotel Presidentti
The registration fee for all of the above is 1,200 Euros + VAT when applicable.*
*) In most cases, VAT (value added tax) is not charged. It only applies when the fee is paid by a private person, not an organisation, or when the fee is paid by an organisation registered in Finland, which can then make a deduction it in its own taxes. The VAT rate in Finland is 25.5 %.
Payment options: invoice, credit card and PayPal. Terms of payment: Cancellation and refund: If a registered participant cancels their participation earlier than 30 days before the start of the course, the registration fee will be returned in full. If a participant cancels later than 30 days before but earlier than 72 hours before the start of the course, half of the registration fee will be returned. If a participant cancels later than 72 hours before the start of the course, they will not be refunded, but will receive the pdf's of course materials. Transferring a place on the course to another person: If a registered participant cannot attend, as an alternative to cancellation they can transfer their place to another person without extra cost.
If you are interested in potentially attending, please fill in your contact details below, and we will be in touch.
At that point, you will also have the option to book an online meeting with Dr Helena Telkänranta if your wish, to discuss your interests and how thermal imaging could be used in your work.
Contacting us or having an online meeting does not bind you to anything. You can decide whether to participate after you have received further information.
The organiser of the course, responsible for the content and the practical arrangements, is the research and science communication company Arador Innovations, and its thermal imaging research department Arador Health Science.