Most people know Nikon as a purveyor of pro and consumer-grade digital cameras. But the company's expertise with optics bleeds over into related markets – it's one of the science community's major suppliers of microscopes. And each year the company asks the community to send it some of their favorite images of tiny objects. A panel of scientists and journalists have chosen the best of this past year's submissions, which Nikon has placed on its Small World site.

Photo: Honorable Mention. “Snow crystal, illuminated with colored lights (5x)”. (Photo by Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht, California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Department of Physics, Pasadena, California, USA)

«Little Red Riding Hood». “The moment I pulled this sweater out of the drawer for Frankie I knew what I wanted for my picture today. I envisioned the look, the style, and the composition. When working with a 2 year old it is never easy to actually get the shot you want, especially when they decide to skip nap time. But I really like how this one turned out” – Rich. (Photo by Rich)

A woman rides an electric bicycle on her way as she wears a sunscreen mask towards off strong ultraviolet rays in Fuyang, China on August 14, 2022. The Central Meteorological Observatory of China issued a high-temperature red warning. It is expected that the maximum temperature in some parts of China will reach above 40°C on August 14. (Photo by Sheldon Cooper/SOPA Images/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Ukrainian serviceman fires with a heavy machine gun during a combat with Russia-backed separatists on the front line near Gorlivka, Donetsk Region on September 28, 2019. (Photo by Anatolii Stepanov/AFP Photo)

Tourists watch roaring torrent carrying a large amount of yellow sediment at the Hukou Waterfall on the Yellow River on August 15, 2024 in Yan'an, Shaanxi Province of China. (Photo by VCG/VCG via Getty Images)

An air tanker flies low over a wildfire burning on the edge of the Cariboo region city of Williams Lake, British Columbia, Canada on July 21, 2024. (Photo by Spencer Stratton/Handout via Reuters)

“Early morning in Mandawa, rural Rajasthan: it was the morning of Diwali and the streets were swept by smiling women in brightly coloured sarees as I took an early morning cup of chai. Celebrations started later, when darkness fell”. (Photo by Hamish Scott-Brown/Guardian Witness)

An Iraqi soldier plays with an accordion found on the street while on patrol in the western neighborhood of Tamuz in Mosul on May 23, 2017, after the area was retaken during the ongoing offensive against Islamic State (IS) group fighters. (Photo by Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP Photo)