> How about some kind of film or sensor that needs minutes of particle exposure from a far lesser powerful source? This makes sense only if the source is power

> How about some kind of film or sensor that needs minutes of particle exposure from a far lesser powerful source? This makes sense only if the source is powerful enough to penetrate what you want to image. That’s why we’re usin x-rays for this and not visible light. And a much less powerful x-ray source will deposit more energy in the hand/limb of the spectrum that does not penetrate. Hence relatively high-energy radiation delivers good images and minimizes the dose to the patient.