Do tears of joy look the same as ones of woe—or ones from chopping onions? In “The Topography of Tears,” the Los Angeles-based photographer Rose-Lynn Fisher explores the physical terrain of one hundred tears emitted during a range of emotional states and physical reactions. Using a Zeiss microscope with an attached digital camera, she captures the composition of tears enclosed in glass slides, magnified between 10x and 40x. “There are many factors that determine the look of each tear image, including the viscosity of the tear, the chemistry of the weeper, the settings of the microscope, and the way I process the images afterwards,” she says.

A new species of monkey found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and identified as Lesula (Cercopithecus lomamiensis) is seen in this undated photograph from an article published September 12, 2012 in the science journal PLOS One. The monkey was first seen in 2007 by researchers John and Terese Hart of the Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale Research Project. The finding of C. lomamiensis represents only the second new species of African monkey to be discovered in the past 28 years, according to the research article. (Photo by Hart J. A., Detwiler K. M., Gilbert C. C./Reuters)

Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima walks the runway during the 2025 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in New York City, U.S., October 15, 2025. (Photo by Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

American rappers Megan Thee Stallion and Cardi B perform onstage during the 63rd Annual GRAMMY Awards at Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California and broadcast on March 14, 2021. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

A woman holds an elderly woman on her back to cross a flooded street after a heavy rain in Shenyang, Liaoning province on July 14, 2017. (Photo by Fred Dufour/AFP Photo)

Projectionist Antonio Feliciano, 75, checks his projector before showing a film in Monforte, Portugal May 16, 2015. Shades of Oscar-winning classic "Cinema Paradiso" run through the life of Feliciano, a sprightly 75-year-old who fears he may be the last of Portugal's travelling film projectionists.After six decades travelling four million km (2.5 million miles) to screen 4,000 films in Portugal's far-flung villages, Feliciano does not plan to retire just yet. But he is resigned to the fact that the Internet, digital TV and distribution monopolies have made his craft obsolete. (Photo by Rafael Marchante/Reuters)

Annual celebration of Dinagyang festival of Iloilo, Philippines. (Photo by Raniel Jose Castañeda/Sony World Photography Awards)

Philadelphia Phillies Ben Francisco reacts after being hit in the head with a pitch by Cincinnati Reds Logan Ondrusek during the MLB National League Division Series baseball playoffs in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States in this October 8, 2010 file photo. (Photo by Tim Shaffer/Reuters)