The 44th Nikon Small World International Microphotography Competition has concluded. Its purpose is to show the extraordinary beauty of the microcosm, combining state-of-the-art science, technology and photographic art. The annual contest is for photo images taken with an optical microscope of any brand.
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Yousef Al Habshi, 1st place
This year’s contest attracted more than 2,500 submissions from scientists and photographers in 89 countries. First prize winner was Yousef Al Habshi from the UAE. It depicts the eye of the Asian red palm weevil, an insect that reaches no more than 11 millimeters in length. The photo was taken for the lab at New York University Abu Dhabi, which is studying methods of influencing the palm weevil population.
Despite its scientific purpose, the photo was also valuable in terms of photographic art. “The variety of colors and lines in the insect’s eyes made me feel like I was photographing a collection of jewelry,” commented Yousef Al-Habshi. – Not everyone is attracted to photographing micro-objects, much less insects. With microphotography, however, we can discover a whole new, beautiful world that we hadn’t noticed before. It’s like discovering what’s hidden beneath the surface of the ocean.”.
Rogelio Moreno, 2nd
Second place was awarded to Rogelio Moreno from Panama for his colorful photo of fern soruses, a cluster structure that produces and contains spores. The third place winner was Saulius Gugis from Naperville, USA. He captured the larva of the drooling weevil inside its “bubble house,” reliably sheltering its host from predators and temperature fluctuations.
Each of the winners will receive a cash prize – as well as 17 other participants who earned the highest score from the jury. Their photographic work is published on the Nikon website.
Saulius Gugis, 3rd place
Nikon under the name Nippon Kogaku KK launched its first microscope in 1925. Since then, it has refined and expanded its range of these devices, opening the production of 3D microscopes and other innovative models. Today, Nikon is the only microscope company that has its own optical manufacturing facilities, from high-precision optical glass to specialized lenses. Nikon microscopes help scientists around the world make crucial discoveries. For example, Japanese Shinya Yamanaka used Nikon technology in his iPS cell research, which won him the Nobel Prize in medicine.
What criteria were used to determine the winners of the Nikon Small World microphotography contest?