Imaging techniques have been widely implemented to study the dynamics of chip formation. They can offer a direct method and a full field measurement of the cutting process, providing kinematic information of the chip formation process. In this article, the state of the art of the imaging techniques reported in the literature has been summarized and analyzed. The imaging techniques have been applied to study the chip formation mechanism, friction behavior, strain/strain rate, and stress fields. Furthermore, the study of surface integrity has been advanced by deriving the thermo‐mechanical loading, subsurface deformation, and material constitutive model from the imaging technique. Finally, achievements in the area of imaging techniques have been summarized, followed by future directions for their application in the study of surface integrity.