Introduction -- Definitions of near-field -- Evanescent wave penetration depth -- Surface -- Photon penetration skin-depth into metal -- Penetration depth of no-slip boundary conditions -- Equilibrium height (hm) for small particles under near-field forces -- Total Internal Reflection Microscopy (TIRM) -- Ratiometric TIRM imaging analysis -- Near-field applications of TIRM -- Near-wall hindered Brownian motion of nanoparticles -- Slip-flows in the near-field -- Cytoplasmic viscosity and intracellular vesicle sizes -- Optical Serial Sectioning Microscopy (OSSM) -- Point spread functions (PSFs) under aberration-free design conditions -- Point spread functions (PSFs) under off-design conditions -- Principles of OSSM -- Near-field applications of OSSM -- Three-dimensional particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) -- Near-wall thermometry -- Near-field mixture concentration measurements -- Confocal Laser Scanning Microscopy (CLSM) -- Principles of confocal imaging -- Microscopic imaging resolutions -- Confocal microscopic imaging resolutions -- Optical slicing thickness of confocal microscopy -- Confocal laser scanning microscopic particle imaging velocimetry (CLSM-PIV) system -- Near-field applications of CLSM-PIV -- Poiseuille flows in a microtube -- Microscale rotating Couette flows -- Moving bubbles in a microchannel -- Surface Plasmon Resonance Microscopy (SPRM) -- Surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) -- Dispersion of SPP -- Kretschmann's three-layer configuration -- Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) reflectance -- Surface plasmon resonance microscopy (SPRM) imaging systems -- Selection of a prism for SPRM -- SPR reflectance imaging resolution -- Near-field applications of SPRM -- History and uses of SPRM -- Label-free mapping of microfluidic mixing fields -- Near-field mapping of salinity diffusion -- Dynamic monitoring of nanoparticle concentration profiles -- Unveiling the fingerprints of nanocrystalline self-assembly -- Near-wall thermometry -- Reflection Interference Contrast Microscopy (RICM) -- Interference of plane waves -- Principles and practical issues of RICM -- Near-field applications of RICM -- Thin-film thickness measurements -- Electrohydrodynamic (EHD) control of thin liquid film -- Dynamic fingerprinting of live-cell focal contacts -- References.