A glimpse of ink droplets suspended above a page earned Ole Bielfeldt first place in the 2026 Nikon Small World photomicrography competition. Announced on 21 October, the results of the 52nd annual contest recognised 86 images. Bielfeldt, a design student in Cologne, Germany, began exploring microscopic photography around 2021, after finding an old school microscope in his attic during pandemic quarantine. His winning image reveals the process through which an inkjet printer creates crisp, uniform lettering.
Capturing that process required a customised apparatus: rather than allowing the ink nozzles to move, Bielfeldt moved the paper, keeping the nozzles stationary and in focus. He estimated the droplets’ speed at nearly 20 metres per second, beyond what even his best slow-motion camera could resolve. Working in darkness, he used a single brief flash to arrest their motion photographically.
John-Oliver Dum took second place with a pollen-dusted jumping spider, revealing bristling hairs and several of its eight eyes. His preparations can begin years before submission; his wife grows plants specifically for the pollen he uses in photographs. In 19th place, University of Helsinki cell biologists Sinem Karaman and Satu Paavonsalo captured a cross section of a mouse’s eye, displaying its intricate blood-vessel network. They sought a three-dimensional view rather than the flattened retinas typically used in Paavonsalo’s research. Their work examines how vascular networks function within tissues, with their arrangement potentially offering clues to the mechanisms behind dysfunction in obesity and diabetes.
