A method for characterizing a particle (10 p) present in a sample, the sample lying between an image sensor and a light source, the image sensor lying in a detection plane (P 0), the method comprising the following steps: a) illuminating the sample with the light source, the light source emitting an incident light wave that propagates along a propagation axis; b) acquiring an image of the sample ( I 0) with the image sensor, the image comprising a plurality of elementary diffraction patterns, each elementary diffraction pattern corresponding to one particle; c) on the basis of the acquired image ( I 0), reconstructing a complex image ( A 10) representative of a complex amplitude of the exposure light wave on at least one reconstruction surface (P 10) passing through the sample, this reconstruction being achieved by implementing an iterative reconstruction algorithm, the algorithm comprising, in each iteration, updating a phase of the exposure light wave in the detection plane (P 0) or on the reconstruction surface (P 10); d) selecting a region of interest ( ROI i) of the complex image, the selected region of interest corresponding to a particle of interest (10 p,i); e) forming a complex image ( A 10,i) extracted from the region of interest ( ROI i) selected in step d); f) applying a propagation operator (h) to the extracted complex image ( A 10, i) formed in step e), so as to obtain, in at least one propagation plane, an elementary diffraction pattern ( A 0, i) of the particle selected in step c), such that the elementary diffraction pattern obtained is isolated from elementary diffraction patterns of other particles present in the sample; g) characterizing the particle of interest (10 p,i) depending on the elementary diffraction pattern ( A 0, i) resulting from step f). a) illuminating the sample with the light source, the light source emitting an incident light wave that propagates along a propagation axis; b) acquiring an image of the sample ( I 0) with the image sensor, the image comprising a plurality of elementary diffraction patterns, each elementary diffraction pattern corresponding to one particle; c) on the basis of the acquired image ( I 0), reconstructing a complex image ( A 10) representative of a complex amplitude of the exposure light wave on at least one reconstruction surface (P 10) passing through the sample, this reconstruction being achieved by implementing an iterative reconstruction algorithm, the algorithm comprising, in each iteration, updating a phase of the exposure light wave in the detection plane (P 0) or on the reconstruction surface (P 10); d) selecting a region of interest ( ROI i) of the complex image, the selected region of interest corresponding to a particle of interest (10 p,i); e) forming a complex image ( A 10,i) extracted from the region of interest ( ROI i) selected in step d); f) applying a propagation operator (h) to the extracted complex image ( A 10, i) formed in step e), so as to obtain, in at least one propagation plane, an elementary diffraction pattern ( A 0, i) of the particle selected in step c), such that the elementary diffraction pattern obtained is isolated from elementary diffraction patterns of other particles present in the sample; g) characterizing the particle of interest (10 p,i) depending on the elementary diffraction pattern ( A 0, i) resulting from step f).