Oct. 23, 2012

-- This year, a few entrants to Nikon's Small World Competition were able to capture images they claimed were the first of their kind. In some instances this simply meant a traditional subject was photographed using a new technique. In other cases, the competitor captured the best image of a subject to date. Finally, some competitors claim to have taken the first ever photograph of their subject. In this image, fossilized Turitella agate contains the remains of ancient freshwater snails known as Elimia tenera and seed shrimp called ostracods -- both representing perhaps a very early form of life. Photographic Technique: Stereomicroscopy Magnification: 7x PHOTOS: It's a Nikon Small World After All

The blood-brain barrier in a live zebra fish embryo plays a critical role in neurological function and disease. Drs. Jennifer Peters and Michael Taylor St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn. developed transgenic zebra fish to visualize the development of this structure in a live animal. Photographic Technique: Confocal Magnification: 20x

Bat embryos of the species Molossus rufus, the black mastiff bat, as shown inside the womb. Dorit Hockman, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, U.K., placed embryos of different ages side-by-side to follow the process of development normally hidden from view. Photographic Technique: Brightfield

Here, rod-like filamentous bacteriophages known as fd viruses are shown undergoing a phase transition. Photographic Technique: Polarized Light Magnification: 100x

This image is thought to be the first confocal picture of chewing lice of the common buzzard, or Colpocephalum platystomus. Photographic Technique: Confocal, Autofluorescence Magnification: 10x

This is the dorsal view of a newly discovered deep-sea copepod, the Pontostratiotes. Copepods are a kind of plankton and are an important prey item for fish, whales and other ocean organisms. Photographic Technique: Confocal Magnification: 10x PHOTOS: 20 Best Microphotos of 2011