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)

(L-R) American actor Chase Stokes, American singer-songwriter Kelsea Ballerini and American comedian Tiffany Haddish seen backstage during the 2023 Video Music Awards at Prudential Center on September 12, 2023 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for MTV)

American singer-songwriter Billie Eilish, American rapper Lizzo and models Bella and Gigi Hadid had a bit of fun inside the gala on May 2, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Lizzo/Instagram)

American model Emily Ratajkowski attends the 2023 CFDA Awards at American Museum of Natural History on November 06, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Matt Baron/BEI/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

American singer Tinashe arrives at the 2022 American Music Awards at the Microsoft Theater, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., November 20, 2022. (Photo by Aude Guerrucci/Reuters)

American singer-songwriter and TV personality Katy Perry takes advantage of “American Idol’s” Disney Night to dress up as Cinderella on May 12, 2024 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Eric McCandless/ABC)

American actress Sydney Sweeney and American model Emily Ratajkowski cuddle up at the Kerastase Pop-Up at Lavan New York in the first decade of April 2025. (Photo by sydney_sweeney/Instagagram)

Italian-American actress and model Julia Fox and American actress Chloe Fineman attend the Marshall Columbia x Cash App Pink Party during NYFW on September 7, 2023. (Photo by Deonté Lee/BFA.com)