Small World Speaks
The Top 3 Challenge
Dr. Samantha Yammine
In this Small World Speaks episode, Dr. Samantha Yammine, Neuroscientist & Science Communicator, Science Sam Media, and a 2024 Nikon Small World judge, shares the judges’ challenge in selecting the top three winners due to the exceptional quality of all top 20 entries, which they ultimately resolved by choosing three diverse images that tell completely different stories about the microscopic world.
“The challenge we had as judges was that there were so many strong images. They're also good. Looking at this gallery of the top 20. Any one of them could have been in first place. They're all that good. We struggled the most in filling the top three because how can you narrow it down? We were trying to think, what are we going to do here?
“I thought we weren't going to finish it. I thought we weren't going to be able to decide. And ultimately, we're like, let's go for something varied. Let's get a top three that are all a little bit different, showing different parts of the world through the microscope, showing really different things that really different levels and, stunning detail regardless.
“That's how we landed on the top three. Trying to see which three tell really different stories, because it is the small world competition. The world is not just biology. It's not just animals. It's not just the physical world. It's everything. I think we captured that well in the top three. But again, everything in the top 20 was so good.
“They all could have won one first, and they all did win.”
Follow Nikon Small World
