Here we present ten of the finalists from Nikon’s 35th Annual Small World Photomicrography Competition, which recognizes photographs shot through a microscope. Contest winners will be announced on October 8. Until October 2, the public can select their favorites in the “Popular Vote” section of the Nikon Small World web site.

Above: © Shamuel Silberman, Ramat-Gan, Israel
Embryo of guppy fish (40X)
Reflected light by fiber-optics

© Fabrice Parais, DIREN Basse-Normandie, Hérouville-Saint-Clair, France
Atherix ibis (fly) aquatic larva (25x)
Stereomicroscopy

© Karie Holtermann, Rancho Cucamonga, California, United States
Raindrop on butterfly wing (20X)
Differential interference contrast

© Yanping Wang, Beijing Planetarium, Beijing, China
Snowflake (40X)
Reflected and Transmitted Light

© Gerd A. Guenther, Düsseldorf, Germany
Sonchus asper (spiny sowthistle) flower stem section (150X)
Darkfield

© Norm Barker, Department of Pathology, Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Dinosaur bone, Jurassic period (15X)
Reflected light from fiber optic

© Viktor Sykora, Institute of Pathophysiology, First Medical Faculty, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
Hoya carnosa (wax plant) flower (10x)
Darkfield

© Daniel Vega, Madrid, Spain
Gall (plant tissue growth) formed by Trigonaspis mendesi (4X)
Incident light and transillumination

© Massimo Brizzi, Microcosmo Italia, Empoli, Firenze, Italy
Snail eggs (200x)
Differential Interference Contrast

© Frederique Ruf-Zamojski, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, United States
Zebrafish embryo, 22 hours post-fertilization, living specimen (40X)
Confocal