Nikon’s Small World competition, founded in 1974 to highlight “excellence in photography through the microscope,” just released this year’s best pics of super tiny worlds. The winning images of cells, intestines, feet, and bugs were elected through a panel of judges who evaluated the photos based on originality, technical proficiency, and visual impact. Check out Nikon’s full Small World gallery here and keep tapping to see the top 10.
1st Place: Grigorii Timin & Dr. Michel Milinkovitch
This photo shows the embryonic hand of a Madagascar giant day gecko. Spooky! Photo method: Confocal; 63X (Objective Lens Magnification)
This image depicts breast tissue showing contractile myoepithelial cells wrapped around milk-producing alveoli. Photo method: Confocal; 40X (Objective Lens Magnification)
3rd Place: Satu Paavonsalo & Dr. Sinem Karaman
This stunning photo shows blood vessel networks in the intestine of an adult mouse. Photo method: Confocal; 10X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Ever wanted to see a microscopic photo of a long-bodied cellar/daddy long-legs spider (Pholcus phalangioides)? Photo method: Image Stacking; 3X (Objective Lens Magnification)
5th Place: Alison Pollack
This image looks like an extraterrestrial bonsai, but it’s actually an image of a slime mold (Lamproderma). Photo method: Image Stacking, Reflected Light; 10X (Objective Lens Magnification)
This image shows what it looks like when unburned particles of carbon release when the hydrocarbon chain of candle wax breaks down. Photo method: Brightfield, Image Stacking; 2.5X (Objective Lens Magnification)
7th Place: Dr. Jianqun Gao & Prof. Glenda Halliday
This image peeks inside a human brain and shows neurons derived from neural stem cells (NSCs) looks like. Photo method: Confocal, Fluorescence; 20X (Objective Lens Magnification)
Ever wanted to know what the growing tip of a red algae looked like at 10 times magnification? Now you do. Photo method: Confocal; 10X (Objective Lens Magnification)
9th Place: Dr. Marek Sutkowski
This might look like a piece of modernist art, but it’s actually a 40-times magnified image of liquid crystal mixture (smectic Felix 015). Photo method: Image Stacking, Polarized Light; 40X (Objective Lens Magnification)
This, of course, is a fly under the chin of a tiger beetle. Photo method: Image Stacking; 3.7X (Objective Lens Magnification)