Another old chestnut - learning some assembly allows you to read it, even if you don't ever need to write any. There is real value in understanding which instructions your compiler is emitting.
Beating the compiler is made easier if you can look at the compiler's answers.
Semiconductor manufacturing is very planar - it's made up of many layers on top of each other, with some interconnecting features or vias between layers. It's a best-case scenario for reverse engineering with photography.
I find the 20 minute on/5 minutes off Pomodoro cycle is great for getting me started into a problem. After 1 or 2 of these cycles I find I'm skipping the breaks and sustaining focused work for longer.
They are not trying to record high speed video. A camera may take a picture every millisecond, but it doesn't have to be one camera. They could be using multiple cameras interleaved in time...
It's a different problem domain too. A non-linear tape head/amplifier may help with recovering pulses but have unpleasant distortion for audio.