Nikon Small World

Nikon’s Small World

Recognizing Excellence in Photography through the Microscope

The Nikon International Small World Competition first began in 1974 as a means to recognize and applaud the efforts of those involved with photography through the light microscope. Since then, Small World has become a leading showcase for photomicrographers from the widest array of scientific disciplines.

A photomicrograph is a technical document that can be of great significance to science or industry. But a good photomicrograph is also an image whose structure, color, composition, and content is an object of beauty, open to several levels of comprehension and appreciation.

The Nikon Small World Competition is open to anyone with an interest in photography through the microscope. Truly international in scope, entries have been received from the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Winners have included both professionals and hobbyists.

The subject matter is unrestricted and any type of light microscopy technique is acceptable, including phase contrast, polarized light, fluorescence, interference contrast, darkfield, confocal, deconvolution, and mixed techniques. Entries submitted to Nikon are then judged by an independent panel of experts who are recognized authorities in the area of photomicrography and photography. These entries are judged on the basis of originality, informational content, technical proficiency and visual impact.

Entries may be submitted either on film (in 35 millimeter transparency format) or uploaded digitally through your web browser. The links below provide options for entering the contest.

Digital Entries

Entrants may enter Nikon's Small World Competition by uploading digital images directly. Before you begin, read the Contest Rules and prepare your images for uploading according to the instructions. You may also download an Entry Form in portable document format (*.PDF) for submission of entries by mail.

Prize List

Winners will receive one of 20 prizes, sorted according to rank in the competition. First prize is $3,000 toward the purchase of Nikon equipment. In addition, the winner is invited to attend an awards presentation ceremony in New York City as Nikon’s special guest.

Exhibition Tour Schedule

Each year, the top 20 prize-winners are exhibited at numerous museums and science centers throughout the United States and Canada. Many winning images are also featured on the covers of prestigious scientific and industrial journals.

Small World Gallery

The Nikon Small World Gallery gives you a glimpse into a world that most have never seen. It is a window into a universe that can only be seen through the lens of a microscope. Included in the Small World Gallery are images from the most recent competition and winning photomicrographs dating back to 1977.

For more information and to purchase the calendar, click here.

Visit MicroscopyU

Additional Small World images can be found at Nikon's MicroscopyU, an educational forum for all aspects of optical microscopy, digital imaging, and photomicrography. Together with the scientists and programmers at Molecular Expressions, Nikon microscopists and engineers are providing the latest state-of-the-art information in microscope optics and imaging technology including specialized techniques such as fluorescence, differential interference contrast (DIC), phase contrast, reflected light microscopy, and microscopy of living cells.