Marine Diatoms Capture Top Honors at Nikon Small World 2008
October 16, 2008
Astor Center Hosts Top Photomicrographs from Around the World
NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2008 -- With the appearance of gracefully swooping beams of light or a colorful array of feathers, a dazzling photo of Pleurosigma (marine diatoms) has won the 2008 Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition. Michael Stringer of Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, United Kingdom took home the top honor with this image, which was magnified 200 times and taken using darkfield and polarized light.
Nikon Small World recognizes Mr. Stringer's image, along with the other 2008 winners, for showing both scientific and artistic qualities. Nearly 2,000 entries were received this year, the most ever for the competition, from scientists and artists across the world. The winning images were selected by a distinguished panel of judges.
"My objective was to display diatoms in today's modern style, through the careful application of colors," said Mr. Stringer, "I couldn't be more pleased that the Small World judges recognized the artistic vision in this image. I dedicate this award to the diatom and especially to my dear friend, Klaus Kemp, who in my opinion creates the most exquisite slides of these tiny bits of silica."
Founded in 1974 to recognize excellence in photography through the microscope, Nikon Small World is the leading forum for celebrating the beauty and complexity of objects seen through the light microscope. The 2008 winning photographers were recognized last night at the Astor Center in New York City. Nikon also unveiled the complete gallery of winning photomicrographs set to tour science and art museums across the nation beginning October 24th. Images are also available in the Small World calendar, which can be purchased at http://www.nikonsmallworld.com/ , and in an online gallery featured at the same location.
"The photo that Michael Stringer produced is remarkable, as were all the contributions to Small World 2008," said Lee Shuett, executive vice president, Nikon Instruments. "To see the world's tiniest objects captured in such a majestic way puts our very existence into perspective."
The top three images include Mr. Stringer's diatoms, Paul Marshalls' picture of post-growth carbon nanotubes, and Albert Tousson's image of Convallaria majalis (Lily of the Valley). Nikon has also awarded several "Honorable Mentions" and "Images of Distinction" this year to outstanding photomicrographs that demonstrate superior technical competency and artistic skill.
This year's judges again represented top industry experts and included Ivan Oranksy, Managing Editor, online, Scientific American; Alice Park, Department Head, Science, Time Magazine; David L. Spector, Director of Research and Head of the Gene Regulation Program, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory; Ron Strum, Senior Petrographer, CTLGroup; and Michael Davidson, Director of the Optical and Magneto-Optical Imaging Center at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory at Florida State University.
THE OFFICIAL 2008 NIKON SMALL WORLD WINNERS
The 2008 gallery of winning images can be viewed at http://www.nikonsmallworld.com/
.
1st Place
Michael Stringer
Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, UK
Pleurosigma (marine diatoms) (200x)
Darkfield
and Polarized Light
2nd Place
Paul Marshall
National Research Council Canada
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Carbon nanotubes, post growth (30x)
Stereomicroscopy
3rd Place
Albert Tousson
High Resolution
Imaging Facility
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Convallaria majalis (Lily of the Valley) (1300x)
Confocal
4th Place
Matthew Springer, Ph.D.
University of California, San Francisco
San Francisco, California, USA
Differentiation of unicellular Dictyostelium discoideum into
Multicellular slugs (100x at 10")
Stereomicroscopy
5th Place
Charles Kazilek
Arizona State University
Tempe, Arizona, USA
Japanese specialty paper fibers (Sugixawa Tenjyo) (100x)
Confocal
6th Place
Klaus Bolte
Stittsville, Ontario, Canada
Chrysolina fastuosa (Micro leaf beetle) on a pin head (40x)
Stereomicroscopy
7th Place
Dr. Margaret Oechsli
Jewish Hospital, Heart & Lung Institute
Louisville, Kentucky, USA
Mitomycin (an anti-cancer drug) (10x)
Polarized Light
8th Place
John Hart
Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
University of Colorado
Boulder, Colorado, USA
Crystallized mixture of resorcinol, methylene blue, and sulphur (13x)
Polarized Transmitted Light
9th Place
David Walker
Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, UK
Compact disc case detail (5x)
Polarized Light
10th Place
Harold Taylor
Kensworth, Dunstable, Bedfordshire, UK
Orchestia gammarella (sand hopper) (10x)
Darkfield
11th Place
Wim van Egmond
Micropolitan Museum
Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Diatoms on red alga (100x)
Darkfield
12th Place
Charles Krebs
Charles Krebs Photography
Issaquah, Washington, USA
Rear leg section of Water Boatman (Hemiptera: Corixidae) (200x)
Rheinberg Illumination
13th Place
Milan Kosanovic
Belgrade, Serbia/Montenegro
Recrystallized Vitamin C (10x)
Polarized Light
14th Place
Charles Krebs
Charles Krebs Photography
Issaquah, Washington, USA
Closterium, diatoms and Spirogyra (40x)
Polarized Light
15th Place
Wim van Egmond
Micropolitan Museum
Rotterdam, The Netherlands
Radiolarians, fossil shells (160x)
Differential Interference Contrast
16th Place
Richard Bulgin
Imperial College London
London, UK
Transfected fibroblast with lamellipodia (100x)
Fluorescence
17th Place
Monica Pons
Institut de Biologia Molecular de Barcelona (CSIC)
Barcelona, Spain
Arabidopsis thaliana root (10x)
Confocal
18th Place
Dr. Tamily Weissman
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology
Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
"Brainbow" transgenic mouse hippocampus (40x)
Confocal
19th Place
Eric Kalkman
Laboratory of Phytopathology, Wageningen University
Wageningen, The Netherlands
Hyperbranching of the fungus Neurospora crassa (bread mold) exposed to Latrunculin B (200x)
Confocal
20th Place
Solvin Zankl
Solvin Zankl Images
Kiel, Germany
Sergestes larva (deep-water decapod crustacean) (30x)
Darkfield
Honorable Mentions
Dr. Pedro Barrios-Perez
National Research Council Canada - Institute for Microstructural Sciences
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Opening in wrinkled photoresist (200x)
Nomarski with Tone Reversal
Matthew Cook
University of Idaho, Manchester Research Station
Port Orchard, Washington, USA
Calanoid copepods (zooplankton) (50x)
Stereomicroscopy
with UV-b bulb placed next to stage
Karl Deckart
Eckental, Germany
Ammonium oxalate crystal (25x)
Differential Interference Contrast
Dr. Rachel Fink
Mount Holyoke College
South Hadley, Massachusetts, USA
Newly fertilized Fundulus heteroclitus (killifish) embryos (30x)
Brightfield
Dr. Andy Fischer
The Ohio State University
Columbus, Ohio, USA
Vertical section of a chick retina (400x)
Confocal
Michael Gibson
Northamptonshire Natural History Society
Northampton, UK
Single desmid, a species from the genus Closterium (200x)
Brightfield
, Oblique Illumination
Torri Hancock
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agriculture Research Service (ARS)
Ft. Detrick, Maryland, USA
Soybean leaf infected with Phakopsora pachyrhizi (Soybean Rust) (10x)
Brightfield
Charles Krebs
Charles Krebs Photography
Issaquah, Washington, USA
Wing scales of Urania riphaeus (Sunset moth) (100x)
Fiber Optic Illumination
Edwin Lee
Carrollton, Texas, USA
Shaving cream with water (310x)
Polarized Light
Dr. Jean Livet
Institut de la Vision, INSERM U592 and UPMC
Paris, France
"Brainbow" mouse brain stem with auditory pathway axons (40x)
Confocal
Dr. Tsutomu Seimiya
Tokyo Metropolitan University
Minato-ku, Tokyo
Micro-flow pattern in thinning soap film (8x)
Simple microscope
Dr. Jaswant Singh
Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences
University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
Heated micropipette containing oocytes (mammalian eggs) (20x)
Brightfield
, Phase Contrast
Daphne Zbaeren-Colbourn
Bern, Switzerland
Acrostichum aureum, mangrove fern (TS leaf midrib) (20x)
Fluorescence
with Brightfield
Dr. Petr Znachor
Institute of Hydrobiology
Ceske Budejovice, Czech Republic
Coiled filamentous cyanobacterium Anabaena sp. (600x)
Nomarski Differential Interference Contrast
ABOUT THE NIKON SMALL WORLD PHOTOMICROGRAPHY COMPETITION
The Nikon Small World Photomicrography Competition is open to anyone with an interest in photography. Participants may submit their images in traditional 35mm format, or upload digital images directly at http://www.nikonsmallworld.com/ . The first and second of 20 prize winners will receive a selection of Nikon products and equipment worth $3,000 and $2,000 respectively. For additional information, contact Nikon Small World, Nikon Instruments Inc., 1300 Walt Whitman Road, Melville, NY 11747, USA or phone (631) 547-8569. Entry forms for Nikon's 2007 Small World Competition may also be downloaded from http://www.nikonsmallworld.com/ .
ABOUT NIKON INSTRUMENTS INC.
Nikon Instruments Inc., world leader in microscope and advance digital imaging technology, is committed to providing its customers with quality products for bioscience research and industrial applications; high-performance semiconductor wafer handling and inspection equipment, and advance high-speed, vision-based and optical measuring tools. For more information, visit the Nikon Web site at http://www.nikoninstruments.com/ . Product related inquiries can be directed to Nikon Instruments at 800-52-NIKON.
CONTACT: Beth Starkin of Peppercom, +1-212-931-6108,
bstarkin@peppercom.com, for Nikon Instruments Inc.
