Photograph: Ole Bielfeldt/Nikon Small WorldWed 21 Oct 2026 16.00 CEST2nd - John Oliver Dum – Bendorf, Germany Jumping spider (Salticus scenicus) with pollenPhotograph: John Oliver Dum/Nikon Small World3rd - Kaelin Wulf & Rachel Flannery – Seattle, USNeurons in an expanded mouse brainPhotograph: Kaelin Wulf & Rachel Flannery/Nikon Small World4th - Justin Theodore Benttinen – Berkeley, California, USTip of a ballpoint penPhotograph: Justin Theodore Benttinen/Nikon Small World5th - Mike Crutchley – Pembrokeshire, UK Inner structure of a closed daisyPhotograph: Mike Crutchley/Nikon Small World6th - Eric Epstein – New York, USHemitrichia slime mould spore structures (fruiting bodies)Photograph: Eric Epstein/Nikon Small World7th - Dr Bruno Cisterna & Dr Eric Vitriol – Georgia, USHuman neurons reprogrammed from skin cells growing in a microfluidic chamberPhotograph: Dr Bruno Cisterna & Dr Eric Vitriol/Nikon Small World8th - Dr Marcel Clemens – Verona, ItalyPencil lead during exposure to a high-voltage electrical dischargePhotograph: Dr Marcel Clemens/Nikon Small World9th - Dr Francisco Lázaro-Diéguez – New York, USDedifferentiated liver endothelial cellPhotograph: Dr Francisco Lázaro-Diéguez/Nikon Small World10th - Michael Parra Puentes – Bogotá, ColombiaA parasitoid wasp (𝐶𝑜𝑛𝑢𝑟𝑎 sp.) emerging from a butterfly chrysalis (𝑂𝑝𝑠𝑖𝑝ℎ𝑎𝑛𝑒𝑠 sp.)Photograph: Michael Parra Puentes/Nikon Small World11th - Svenja Carolin Kling, California, USA 20-day-old sea urchin larva with blue fluorescent nucleiPhotograph: Svenja Carolin Kling/Nikon Small World12th - Dr Gonzalo Quiroga Artigas – Montpellier, FranceA tardigrade moulting and laying an egg in the old skinPhotograph: Dr Gonzalo Quiroga Artigas/Nikon Small World13th - Sebastian Sparenga – Chicago, USRecrystallised estrogenPhotograph: Sebastian Sparenga/Nikon Small World14th - Mike Crutchley – Pembrokeshire, UKPilobolus fungi on sheep dungPhotograph: Mike Crutchley/Nikon Small World15th - Dr Julien Resseguier – Oslo, NorwayMouse trachea showing tiny hair-like cells that move mucus and nearby nerves (blue) associated with the muscles (yellow)Photograph: Dr Julien Resseguier/Nikon Small World16th - Pierre Nouaux, Laurent Kodjabachian and Camille Boutin – Toulouse, FranceA172 Embryonic Xenopus skin cells, showing cilia (green), centrioles (red), and cell membranes (white)Photograph: Pierre Nouaux & Laurent Kodjabachian, Camille Boutin/Nikon Small World17th - Dr Gauri Kulkarni – North Carolina, USLab-grown human intestinal tissue showing glowing, brick-like epithelial cell connections that form the intestine’s protective barrierPhotograph: Dr Gauri Kulkarni/Nikon Small World18th - Bilal Akhtar – Mainz, Germany14-day-old mouse hippocampal neurons showing nuclei (green) and synaptic proteins (red)Photograph: Bilal Akhtar/Nikon Small World19th - Satu Paavonsalo and Dr Sinem Karaman – Helsinki, FinlandCross-section of a mouse eye showing retinal blood vessels and the optic nervePhotograph: Satu Paavonsalo & Dr Sinem Karaman/Nikon Small World20th - Justin Theodore Benttinen – California, USLarge sea snail (abalone) shellPhotograph: Justin Theodore Benttinen/Nikon Small World1st - Ole Bielfeldt – Cologne, Germany | Microscopic view of an inkjet printer depositing ink on to paperBielfeldt is a student and experimental photographer based in Cologne. His image of ink droplets suspended inside an inkjet printer as it prints was captured using a self-constructed imaging rig, using a microscope objective.

Bielfeldt’s image sheds light on the previously unseen intricacies of a common process: printing words on to paperPhotograph: Ole Bielfeldt/Nikon Small WorldHonourable mention – Dr Mark Slabodnick – Galesburg, USA pair of elongated Stentor coeruleus cells during mating. The cells are fused at the anterior edge of their mouth to allow for the transfer of DNAPhotograph: Dr Mark Slabodnick/Nikon Small World