Noah Fram-Schwartz
Greenwich, Connecticut, USA
Jumping Spider Eyes
Reflected Light
20X

Mr. Jens H. Petersen
MycoKey
Ebeltoft, Denmark
Anagallis arvensis (scarlet pimpernel)
Macroscopy
80X

Dr. Philipp Keller
Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)
Ashburn, Virginia, USA
Live zebrafish embryo at 22 hours post-fertilization
SiMView Light-Sheet Microscopy
0X

No medium straddles the fields of art and science quite like photomicrography, and Nikon Small World has held its position as the leading international competition of photos captured through a microscope since its founding in 1974. As the competition celebrates its 40-year anniversary, it invites top scientists and media professionals to curate a diverse collection of imagery featuring everything from insect eyeballs to the molecular composition of the earth’s minerals.

This year’s judges include Dr. Paul Maddox, Assistant Professor of Biology at University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and the Principal Investigator of Mitotic Mechanisms and Chromosome Dynamics unit at the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Dave Mosher, Laura Helmuth, Science Editor at Slate, Michael W. Davidson, Director of the Optical and Magneto-Optical Imaging Center at Florida University, and Popular Science’s Online Director Dave Mosher.

In a world saturated by larger-than-life imagery, few photographs ask that we pause for a moment to gather information and to reflect upon the astounding diversity of our planet. The 2014 Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition promises images that command attention, inspire the curious, and delight the eye. Here are some of our favorite unranked photomicrographs from the competition. The winner and rankings will be announced on October 30, 2014. Follow Nikon Small World on Facebook and Twitter.

Noah Fram-Schwartz
Greenwich, Connecticut, USA
Ant Eye
Reflected Light
20X

Dr. Jerzy Gubernator
Faculty of Biotechnology, University of Wroclaw
Wroclaw, Poland
Tradescantia zebrina (wandering jew) leaf stomata
Brightfield, Epi Ilumination, Image Stacking
40X

Mr. Charles Krebs
Charles Krebs Photography
Issaquah, Washington, USA
Chrysochroa buqueti (jewel beetle) carapace, near eye
Diffused, Reflected Illumination
45X

Mr. Amir Saberi
Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Urbana, Illinois, USA
Reproductive tissues (gray) surrounded by neurons (colors) in the freshwater planarian Schmidtea mediterranea
Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy
40X

Mr. Steven Wilbert
Confocal Microscopy Lab, Rochester Institute of Technology
Rochester, New York, USA
Young Starfish
Confocal
5X

Mr. Chao Zhang
National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Beijing, China
Magnesium chloride and potassium alum mixture
Polarized Light
25X

Mr. Steven Wilbert
Confocal Microscopy Lab, Rochester Institute of Technology
Rochester, New York, USA
Hydra and Volvox
Confocal
10X