The year is drawing to a close, and with it the winding down of several global photography competitions. The Nikon Small World competition has been running since 1975, and with 45 editions under its belt, the quality of the images has reached a whole new level. Earlier this week, the organizers of the 2019 edition announced the winners, and today we're sharing a gallery of the finest entries.

The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
First place: Fluorescent turtle embryo (Teresa Zgoda - Teresa Kugler)

Galleries dedicated to macro photography and images under the microscope are among the most popular here at NeoTeo. There's clearly an enormous interest in getting a closer look at the world of the small and the mini, exploring colors, shapes, and patterns that would otherwise remain hidden. Of course, the best photographs of this kind deserve recognition, which is why we return to the Nikon Small World competition.

The 2019 edition already has its definitive winner, but I must admit that all the shots display extraordinary quality. Whether it's cellular activity or the crystal of a common mineral, thanks to the skill, experience, and talent of all those photographers and scientists, the invisible takes shape for our pleasure and knowledge. If you want to see the complete list, this link will take you to the right place, but don't miss our humble selection:

The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
First place: Fluorescent turtle embryo (Teresa Zgoda - Teresa Kugler)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Second place: Projection of trumpet animalcules (Dr. Igor Siwanowicz)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Third place: Caiman embryo (Daniel Smith Paredes - Dr. Bhart - Anjan S. Bhullar)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Fourth place: A male mosquito (Jan Rosenboom)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Fifth place: Snowflake (Caleb Foster)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Sixth place: White-haired spider (Phidippus audax?) (Javier Rupérez, we know him!)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Red Chinese carnation stamen (Dr. Guillermo López López)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Frozen water droplet (Garzon Christian)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Tulip cross-section (Andrei Savitsky)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Bovine pulmonary artery endothelial cells in mitosis (Jason M. Kirk)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
A pair of ovaries from an adult Drosophila (Dr. Yujun Chen - Dr. Jocelyn McDonald)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Mosquito larva (Anne Algar)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Cuprite, copper oxide mineral (Dr. Emilio Carabajal Márquez)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Oxyopes dumonti, female (Antoine Franck)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Daphnia magna, pregnant (Marek Miś)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Eye pattern of the common fly (Dr. Razvan Cornel Constantin)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Vitamin C (Karl Deckart)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Cristobalite crystal suspended in quartz (E. Billie Hughes)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
California two-spot octopus embryo (Martyna Lukoseviciute - Dr. Carrie Albertin)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Blood vessels of a mouse heart after a heart attack (Simon Merz - Lea Bornemann - Sebastian Korste)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Endothelial cells in the intestine of a mouse embryo (Nathan Burns)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Myoepithelial cells wrapped around milk-producing alveoli in a mouse (Caleb Dawson)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Penicillium spores (Dr. Tagide de Carvalho)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Garden shrub seed (Güray Dere)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Mold on a plum seed (Sergii Dymchenko)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Human herpesvirus 8 replicating (Anthony Brent Eason)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
A louse on a hair (Dr. Walter Ferrari)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Dog kidney cells in a circular adhesion pattern (Nicolas Harmand - David Pereira - Dr. Sylvie Hénon)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
The heart of a Geranium dissectum (Frederic Labaune)
The Best Photomicrographs in the World: Nikon Small World 2019 Winners (Gallery)
Ammonite fossil (Dr. Balint Markus)