Inventions like the microscope and the camera have allowed us to discover parts of the natural world that had remained hidden for the majority of the history of humankind. The Nikon Small World competition, which was founded in 1974, showcases the best examples of photomicrography—images taken under a microscope—from around the world, and year after year they continue to delight and amaze. In 2013, the competition received more than 2,000 entries from 80-plus countries around the world. These images happen at scales so small the recognizable becomes distorted, abstract, and revelatory. Whether it’s a shrimp’s eye, a turtle’s retina, or a mouse’s inner ear, below is a selection of images that details the inner world of animals, their body parts, their inner organs, and the internal structures that allow them to perceive the world and function in it.
Courtesy of Barbara Laurinyecz/University of Szeged/Department of Genetics/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Alvaro Esteves Migotto/Universidade de São Paulo/Centro de Biologia Marinha/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Greg Rouse/Scripps Institution of Oceanography/UCSD/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Fabrice Parais/DREAL de Basse-Normandie/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Fabrice Parais/DREAL de Basse-Normandie/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Kurt Wirz/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Vitoria Tobias Santos/Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro/Rodrigo Evo Devo Group/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Laure Twyffels and Benoît Host/Université Libre de Bruxelles/Center for Microscopy and Molecular Imaging/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Alexander Gow and Cherie Southwood/Wayne State University/Department of Genetics/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Barbara Laurinyecz/University of Szeged/Department of Genetics/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Kata Kenesei and Barbara Orsolits/Institute of Experimental Medicine/Hungarian Academy of Sciences/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of David Maitland/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of David Millard/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Jaime Gomez-Gutierrez/Centro Interdisciplinario de Ciencias Marinas/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Joseph Corbo/Washington University School of Medicine/Nikon Small World
Courtesy of Mark A. Sanders/University Imaging Centers/University of Minnesota/Nikon Small World
