This thesis describes three projects, each of which addresses a limitation of current image processing technology. The projects comprise the development of software that provides a user friendly means of manipulating images on an interactive image processing system; the design of a prototype integrated circuit, and the subsequent design of a set of integrated circuits that perform rank filtering; and a way in which lighting can be used to rapidly acquire three dimensional information from a scene. These projects address the need for an easy to use image processing system, the need for a high speed means of filtering images, and the need in robotics applications for rapid three dimensional image acquisition. Conclusions are drawn from these developments, and suggestions are made for future work.