A model has her hair sprayed backstage at the Ukrainian Fashion Week in Kyiv, Ukraine on August 31, 2020. (Photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters)

Models get their makeup backstage during the Ukrainian Fashion Week in Kiev, Ukraine, 01 September 2020. (Photo by Sergey Dolzhenko/EPA/EFE)

A model presents a creation by designer Anja Gockel during the Fashion Week in Berlin, Germany, September 7, 2021. (Photo by Michele Tantussi/Reuters)

A model poses in front of phone boxes for a photographer in London, United Kingdom on Friday, October 1, 2021. (Photo by Frank Augstein/AP Photo)

Japanese–British singer-songwriter and model Rina Sawayama, date unknown. (Photo by Press Handout for SFTW)

Australian model Shanina Shaik attends the Interview x Equinox party during NYFW on February 7, 2024. (Photo by Rupert Ramsay/BFA.com)

With its huge eyes, comical name and diminutive size, Mark R. Smith’s image of a baby Hawaiian bobtail squid can’t help but raise a smile. A curiously endearing creature, the cephalopod is just 1.5cm across, its mantle cavity bearing more than a passing resemblance to a rather natty shower cap. But it is also a beautiful example of symbiosis – nature’s version of “I’ll scratch your back if you scratch mine” – for on the underside of the squid is a light organ which houses bioluminescent bacteria. The squid offers the bacteria protection and food, while the bacteria emit a glow – a handy trait that the squid uses to offset its silhouette, helping it to evade predators in the depths below. Mark R. Smith’s entry combines several images of a Hawaiian bobtail squid with different focus lengths to create a final picture with greater depth of field than normal. (Photo by Mark R. Smith/Wellcome Images/Macroscopic Solutions)