Skin Consultation · Observ 520x · Kensington

See what your skin is actually doing before we do anything to it.

The Observ 520x is a clinical skin imaging system that uses ten different light modes to show us what a visual assessment alone cannot. Sun damage that has not surfaced yet. Collagen loss beneath the skin. Vascular activity. Hydration levels. At Amer, it is how every skin consultation begins.

Book a consultation Why it matters ↓

13 Kensington Church St, London W8 4LF 45 minutes Dr Priyanka Chadha · FRCS (Plast)

A skin consultation at Amer Clinic Kensington

10Different light modes

2Layers imaged · epidermal & dermal

0Treatment to the skin · imaging only

45minAround 45 minutes

Why it matters

Redness

Rosacea

Inflammation

All three look like "redness"

The same symptom can have five different causes.

Getting the treatment right depends on knowing which one you are actually dealing with.

Take redness. It sounds straightforward but clinically it is anything but. Redness can be telangiectasia, rosacea, active inflammation, contact irritation, hypersensitivity or a compromised skin barrier. Each of those has a different cause, a different pathway and a completely different treatment approach. If you treat rosacea the way you would treat inflammation, or the other way around, you do not just get a poor result. You can make the condition significantly worse.

Brown spots follow the same logic. A spot that looks like sun damage might be melasma or seborrheic keratosis. Those three conditions respond very differently to treatment. Melasma in particular can be aggravated by certain light-based and heat-generating treatments that would be entirely appropriate for sun damage. The symptom looks the same. The pathology underneath is not.

A worked example

One visible symptom. Many possible causes.

01 · Looks like redness

Telangiectasia

02 · Looks like redness

Rosacea

03 · Looks like redness

Inflammation

Each of those has a different cause, a different pathway and a completely different treatment approach.

Redness can be

Telangiectasia Rosacea Inflammation Irritation Hypersensitivity Barrier disruption

Brown spots can be

Sun damage Melasma Seborrheic keratosis Post-inflammatory pigmentation

Each condition has a different cellular-level pathology. Surface assessment alone cannot reliably tell them apart. And treating the wrong one can actively worsen the skin.

This is why we invest in a deeper investigation. Not to add steps to a consultation, but because the right treatment and the right product selection both depend on understanding what is happening at a cellular level. Not just what is visible on the surface.

If you treat the symptom without understanding what is causing it, you are not really treating anything. You are guessing.

The Amer Approach

The scanner supports our skin experts. It does not replace them.

The Observ does not make clinical decisions. It does not tell us what to do. What it does is give our skin experts precise, objective information about what is happening beneath the surface, at the level where pathology actually begins. That makes their assessment more accurate and their recommendations far more specific to you as an individual.

A good analogy is the difference between a doctor examining you with their eyes and a doctor examining you with the right diagnostic equipment. The clinical expertise is still what drives everything. The imaging just means that expertise is being applied to a complete picture, not only the part of it that is visible.

A more accurate treatment plan

When we understand the true underlying cause and not just the visible symptom, we can choose the right treatments and the right products in the right order. That distinction matters a great deal in practice.

Progress you can actually measure

Your baseline images are saved and reviewed throughout your treatment journey. Over time they give us objective evidence of what has changed in your skin, not just how it looks on a particular day.

Honest conversations, not assumptions

When a patient and their skin expert are looking at the same images together, the conversation is different. The reasoning behind every recommendation becomes visible. Nothing is taken on trust.

Results proven over time

If a treatment plan is working, the evidence should be there in the skin. Serial imaging lets us track your skin scientifically over time and adjust the plan if something is not performing the way it should.

Book a consultation

The Technology

Ten light modes. One complete picture.

The Observ 520x images the skin under ten different illumination modes. Each one reveals something different about the health of the skin. Together they give us a clinical picture of the face that no visual assessment alone can provide.

The same face shown under different clinical light modes used by the Observ 520x

The same face, scanned under different clinical light modes

Daylight

Overall skin appearance under natural light. The baseline reference point.

Surface texture

Early fine lines, wrinkle formation, pore size and skin roughness.

Pigmentation

Uneven skin tone, melasma, sunspots and pigmentation below the surface.

Vascularity

Redness, inflammation, broken capillaries and signs of barrier disruption.

Parallel polarised

Surface-level pore structures, fine texture and emerging wrinkles.

Cross polarised

Dermal structures, vascular anomalies and deeper pigmentation.

True UV

Hidden skin abnormalities and fluorescence not visible under standard light.

Simulated Wood's light

Skin thickness, sebaceous activity and hydrolipid film integrity.

360 Light

Volume distribution across the face. Useful for planning and for tracking results over time.

360 Grey

Topographical signs of ageing with colour removed, making structural changes easier to read.

How we use it

A planning tool. Not a sales tool.

We do not use the Observ to show patients alarming images of everything that is going wrong with their skin. We use it to have a real conversation about what is actually happening, what is worth addressing now, what can wait, and what a realistic plan looks like from here.

The images become part of your clinical record at Amer. As you move through a treatment plan, our skin experts use them as a reference point, comparing your skin at each stage against where it started. If a treatment is working, you will see it. If something needs to change, we will see it too, often before it becomes visible on the surface.

If you are considering your first treatment at Amer, or you want a more considered and evidence-based approach to your skin, this consultation is the most useful place to start.

What to expect

What the appointment looks like.

The session is around 45 minutes. There is no obligation to book further treatment. This appointment is about giving you an accurate picture of your skin, not about generating a follow-up sale.

Conversation

It starts with a conversation about your skin history, what is bothering you and what you have tried before.

Imaging

The imaging itself takes only a few minutes. You sit in front of the device while it works through each light mode.

Review

Our skin experts then go through the images with you, explain what they are seeing, what is relevant to your concerns and what the options are, including realistic timelines for what to expect.

Book a consultation

Common questions

Frequently asked.

Yes. It is often the best starting point precisely because it gives both the patient and the skin expert an objective picture before any decisions are made about what to do next.

No. The Observ 520x uses controlled illumination for imaging only. It does not treat or alter the skin in any way.

It allows our skin experts to identify what is causing a concern rather than just responding to what it looks like. The same visible symptom can have several different underlying causes and the right treatment depends on knowing which one you are actually dealing with. The imaging gives us that clarity before any decisions are made.

Yes, and for many patients this turns out to be one of the most valuable parts of the process. Your images are stored in your clinical record and revisited at follow-up appointments. Progress is measured against your own skin at baseline, so what you see is real and specific to you.

A standard consultation relies on what a practitioner can see and feel. The Observ adds imaging data at both the epidermal and dermal layers, giving our skin experts a view of what is happening at a cellular level, not just on the surface. That changes which treatments and products are appropriate and why.

Clean skin is ideal. If that is not practical, arrive a little early and we can help you remove makeup beforehand. SPF and heavy skincare products can affect how certain imaging modes read the skin.

Book a consultation

Book a skin scanner consultation

A clear picture of your skin before anything else.

A 45-minute appointment with our skin experts at our Kensington clinic.

Location13 Kensington Church St
London W8 4LF

Concierge0208 050 8830

Email[email protected]

HoursMon & Fri · 9:30 – 18:00
Tue – Thu · 9:30 – 20:00
Sat · 9:00 – 17:00
Sun · Closed

Book Consultation