1. A method for determining optimal features for classifying a pattern in an image comprising: separating each of a first plurality of images into a plurality of channels; determining a set of samples from the plurality of channels; for each channel, performing Independent Component Analysis (ICA) on the set of samples resulting in a set of independent components; creating a plurality of feature sets from the set independent components; and selecting one of the plurality of feature sets that is optimal for classification according to a metric.