“Sergey Mikhaylovich Prokudin-Gorsky (August 30 1863 Russian Empire – September 27, 1944 Paris, France) was a Russian chemist and photographer. He is best known for his pioneering work in color photography of early 20th-century Russia”. – Wikipedia

Photo: Dinner during haying. Russian Empire, Novgorod province, county Cherepovets, 1909. (Photos by Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky via US Library of Congress and Prokudin-Gorsky.org)

P.S. All pictures are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture (if available; this principle works anywhere on the site AvaxNews). Enjoy.

“Microscope images forge an extraordinary bond between science and art, said Hidenao Tsuchiya, Olympus America's Vice President and General Manager for the Scientific Equipment Group. We founded this competition to focus on the fascinating stories coming out of today's life science research laboratories. The thousands of images that people have shared with the competition over the years reflect some of the most exciting work going on in research today – work that can help shed light on the living universe and ultimately save lives. We look at BioScapes and these beautiful images as sources of education and inspiration to us and the world”. – OlympusBioScapes

Photo: Pretarsus of the third leg of a female drone fly (Eristalis tenax), ventral view, by Dr. Jan Michels, Institute of Zoology, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, Germany. (Photo by Olympus BioScapes)

Belgian chocolatier Dominique Persoone snorts cocoa powder off his Chocolate Shooter in his factory in Bruges, February 3, 2015. When Belgian chocolatier Dominique Persoone created a chocolate-sniffing device for a Rolling Stones party in 2007, he never imagined demand would stretch much beyond the rock 'n' roll scene. But, seven years later, he has sold 25,000 of them. Inspired by a device his grandfather used to propel tobacco snuff up his nose, Persoone created a “Chocolate Shooter” to deliver a hit of Dominican Republic or Peruvian cocoa powder, mixed with mint and either ginger or raspberry. (Photo by Francois Lenoir/Reuters)

Have you ever tried painting with light? Yes, you’ve heard us right. It is not a figure of speech, and it is actually possible to draw with light if you have a good camera and a tripod. All you have to do is to set your camera on a tripod in a dark place (preferably at night in some park), set exposure time to the max, turn on a single bright light (the screen of your mobile phone will do), and you can start painting. Darren Pearson is a photographer who specializes in making such drawings. The level of intricacy with which he creates his paintings is astounding, considering the fact that making such a drawing is like painting with a blindfold on.

These may look like alien creatures from another planet, but the odd organisms are, in fact, colorful, microscopic life forms found in our forests. The bizarre slime molds, known as mycetozoa or fungus animals, were captured by geologist Valeriya Zvereva. She spent months documenting the common life forms that are found beneath our feet – but are rarely seen. Incredibly, the organisms can move and hunt for other microscopic life forms on which to feed. Zvereva, who is from Moscow, used a special macro lens to capture the vibrant and up-close shots, which show off the organisms’ unlikely beauty. (Photo by Valeriya Zvereva/Caters News)

A poster for the IMAX presentation of “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” (left), and a teaser poster for “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part I”, both created by the Los Angeles-based design firm IGNITION. Both are nominated for the 2014 Key Art Awards in the category of Theatrical Domestic One-Sheet. The Hollywood Reporter's annual competition for the best in film and TV advertising honors some of the most creative imagery used in movie posters. Here is a selection of some of this year's nominees. (Photo by Key Art Awards 2014)