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Photographing the Microscopic: Winners of Nikon Small World 2026

Some of the winning and honored images from this year’s photomicrography competition, selected from more than 1,800 entries.

This article was originally published by The Atlantic and is republished here under license.
A very close view of the leg of a weevil on a reflective surface
Daniel Knop, Oberzent-Airlenbach, Hessen, Germany
Image of Distinction: A close view of the leg of a weevil
A microscopic view of mold spore structures, looking like small spheres atop narrow stalks
Eric Epstein, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Sixth Place: Hemitrichia slime-mold spore structures (fruiting bodies)
A very close view of the tip of a pencil being struck and illuminated by sparks
Dr. Marcel Clemens, Verona, Veneto, Italy
Eighth Place: Pencil lead during exposure to a high-voltage electrical discharge
A microscopic image of a turtle embryo, with neural pathways colored bright green
Amartya Tashi Mitra and Paul Maier, Aria Huang, Nathaniel Sweet and Anthony Wokasch, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Honorable Mention: Neurons of red-eared-slider (Trachemys scripta) embryo
A. black-white-and-red microscopic image of a many-tendriled cell
Nicolas Noel and Dr. Valentina Cigliola, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
Image of Distinction: Neonatal-mouse astrocyte in culture
A tiny water flea, near a cluster of green algae
Anne Gleich, Licoi, Kaiserslautern, Rheinlandpfalz, Germany
Image of Distinction: Daphnia sp. (water flea) and Volvox sp. (green algae)
A microscopic close-up of the face of a weevil
Přemysl Orlík, Opava, Czech Republic
Image of Distinction: Hazelnut weevil (Curculio nucum)
Purple-colored blobs, visible in a microscopic cross-section of a spruce tree
Gerhard Vlcek, Maria Enzersdorf, Austria
Image of Distinction: Cross-section of spruce treetop
A weevil pokes its head out of a hole it bored into a fava bean.
Zhang You, Kunming, Yunnan, China
Image of Distinction: A weevil pokes its head out of a hole it bored into a fava bean.
A dark image with a small creature at center, a limpet, with various cell structures illuminated in multiple bright colors
Amartya Tashi Mitra and Harsha Sen, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S.
Image of Distinction: Cellular structures of slipper-limpet (Crepidula fornicata) larva
A microscopic view of long, parallel neurons in a mouse brain, looking like loose columns or bits of hanging string
Kaelin Wulf and Ms. Rachel Flannery, Allen Institute, Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Third Place: Neurons in an expanded mouse brain
A close view of algae, diatoms, and microscopic creatures
Dr. Arlene Wechezak, Anacortes, Washington, U.S.
Image of Distinction: Red algae, diatoms, and protozoans
A close view of a gnat caught in sticky structures on a cannabis plant
Justin Zoll, Freeville, New York, U.S.
Image of Distinction: Adult fungus gnat caught in the sticky trichomes of a cannabis plant

Be sure to visit the Nikon Small World competition website to view the full set of winning and honored images.

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