The competition Nikon Small World 2011 micro-photos

Each year, Nikon holds a competition Nikon Small World. Participants invited photographers and scientists who served in the photography contest of objects and living beings, visible only under a microscope.

In the photos submitted to the contest this year, an amazing variety of living beings and natural phenomena, from the eyes of freshwater shrimp to fine scales on butterfly wings and snowflakes cancer cells.

This is a picture of an ant's head full face (with a magnification of 10 times) took the 11th place in the Nikon contest.

Dr. Douglas Clark, of San Francisco, California submitted to the contest this photograph of a butterfly wing scales (Cethosia Biblis), in the light of incandescent lamps.

Cancer cells are photographed with a magnification of 3,000 times. Photo Thomas Dirinka of the National Center for Microscopy in La Jolla, California, won the twelfth place.

The eye cladocerans (Leptodora kindtii), photo taken from Wim van Egmond Micropolitan Museum in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

to take fourth place in the competition, a photograph taken by Dr. Robin Young of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia. The photo depicted liverworts (Lepidozia reptans) to increase twenty-fold.

Crystal leucite crystal from volcanic rocks, photo taken by Dr. Michael M. Wright of the Steinmann Institute, University of Bonn, Germany.

Water flea (Daphnia sp.) In the green algae (Volvox sp.), Photo taken by Dr. Ralf Wagner, of Düsseldorf, Germany.

Pekka Honkanoshi of Iisalmi, Finland, took this photograph oblong snowflakes.

The embryonic pectoral Chiloscyllium plagiosum, spotted bamboo shark, photographed by Dr. Andrew Gillis, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.

to do on competition twentieth place Douglas Moore of the University of "Wisconsin-Stevens Point" in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. The photograph of Moore - a sample of bone cells dinosaur, fossilized cell structures of animals that lived about 150 million years ago, photographed with a magnification of 42 times.

Charles Krebs of Issaquah, Washington, photographed water boatman (Corixidae sp.), In the reflected light.

Primary rat neurons photograph was taken by Dr. Rowan Ormom from Keele University, Keele, UK.

The eyes of the male mosquito-tolstonozhki black (Bibio Marci), the picture presented by Dr. David Maitland from Feltvella, UK.

The formed naturally by frost, the crystals which have formed on the fence for a night at a temperature of -15 degrees Celsius. The photo was taken Jasper Grona from Silkeborg, Denmark.

Fish louse (Argulus), photographed with a magnification of 60 times by Wim van Egmond Micropolitan Museum of Rotterdam, Netherlands.

Dr. Torsten Wittmann of the University of California, San Francisco, presented to the contest this photograph endothelial cells of bovine pulmonary artery

Closeup photographed velvet trombidiidae (Eutrombidium rostratus), Photo by Dr. David Maitland from Feltvella, UK.

Deborah Leite from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil, photographed root slice sugar cane.

Get the tenth place in the contest made with a magnification of 100 times Photo freshwater flea (Daphnia Magna), represented by Joan Rohl from the Institute of Biochemistry and Biology in Potsdam, Germany.

James H. Nicholson of Science Center NOAA / NOS / NCCOS / CCEHBR in Charleston, South Carolina was the 15th place with a photo of coral (Porites Lobata).

to take first place portrait of a green lacewing larvae (Chrysopa sp.), A photograph taken by Dr. Igor Sivanovichem Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried Max Planck, Germany.

David Elliot and Benjamin Blonder took 18th place with a photo network veining on the leaf of a young aspen (Populus tremuloides). Elliot and Blonder University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona.

Xavi Dr. Sarfati, spokesman for the Israeli Veterinary Association in Ramat Gan, Israel, photographed the mouth flies.

Jonathan Franks of the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, photographed biofilm algae.

The head and eye freshwater prawns Photo Jose R. Almodovar Center of Microscopy, Department of Biology, University of Mayaguez, Puerto Rico.

who has taken the 17th shot of parasitic worms filaria (Litomosoides sigmodontis), made with 150-fold magnification. Photo made Dr. Witold Kilarski EPFL-Laboratory of Oncology and lymphatic bioengineering in Lausanne, Switzerland.

took 2nd place picture blade of grass with a 200-fold magnification, the picture Dr. Donna Stolz of the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Photo of Dr. John H. Brackenbury of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, United Kingdom, embodying a drop of water containing a couple of mosquito larvae.

Frank Fox from Trier, Germany took third place with a photo of the male moniliformis Melosira.

The three-dimensional image of the breast cancer cells made by Dr. Dzhonatasom Bussadorom Amaral and Dr. Maria Machado Santelli Glaus from the University of Sao Paulo in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

butterfly tip of the tongue in polarized light, the photo did Stephen S. Nagy, MD, of Helena, Montana.

The eyes jumping spider, photo made Walter Piorkovski from Illinois.

See also other photos of this contest:

• Microcosm