When it comes to photography, it takes quite a bit to drop my jaw these days. It's not that things are awesome, it's that I've seen so much that it's hard to stand out. Well, these photos taken with an electron microscope floored me. Due to their microscopic size, we rarely get to see these creatures in such striking detail. To be able to see the eyes of a caterpillar, the hairs on the back legs of a parasite, or the ridges on a worm just boggles the mind.
The microorganisms making up an entire ecosystem that is virtually invisible to is staggaring. Billions upon billions of tiny creatures inhabiting a world we can't even see, and often times are completely unaware of. This kind of photography brings us into their world, and makes their lives as real as ours.
Hydrothermal worm
Captured by Philippe Crassous
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 57
Horizontal Field Width: 5.26 mm
Vacuum: 10-4 mbar
Voltage: 5.0
Spot: 5.0
Working Distance: 12mm
Detector: SE
Caterpillar
Captured by Oliver Meckes
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 30x
Horizontal Field Width: 5mm
Vacuum: high vac.
Detector: SE+BSE
Spider's Head
Captured by Oliver Meckes
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 50x
Vacuum: Low Vac.
Voltage: 7 kV
Spot: 3
Working Distance: app.12mm
Detector: LFD + BSE
Worm polychaete
Captured by Philippe Crassous
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 150
Horizontal Field Width: 1.99mm
Vacuum: 10-4mbar
Voltage: 5
Spot: 4
Working Distance: 11.4
Detector: SE
Water Mite
Captured by Nicole Ottawa
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 700x
Horizontal Field Width: 183µm
Vacuum: 40 Pa
Voltage: 7 kV
Spot: 3
Working Distance: app. 10mm
Detector: SE+BSE
Parasitic Mite on Mosquito Larva
Captured by Nicole Ottawa
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 200
Horizontal Field Width: app. 500 µm
Vacuum: High-Vac
Voltage: 7kv
Spot: 3
Working Distance: 9,8
Detector: LFD, BSE
Mosquito Larva and Parasite
Captured by Nicole Ottawa
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 60
Horizontal Field Width: 2000 µm
Vacuum: High-Vac
Voltage: 7kv
Spot: 3
Working Distance: 10,3
Detector: LFD, BSE
Marine worm
Captured by Philippe Crassous
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 58
Horizontal Field Width: 2 mm
Vacuum: 10-4 mbar
Voltage: 5 KV
Spot: 4.0
Working Distance: 10.0 mm
Detector: SE
Tardigr Pm kenianus
This tardigrade, first discovered in Africa, feeds on bacteria and protozoan.
Captured by Oliver Meckes
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 300x
Vacuum: high
Voltage: 7kv
Spot: 3
Working Distance: 9mm
Detector: SE+BSE+BSE
Leg of a Gekko
Captured by Oliver Meckes
Image Details
Instrument used: Quanta Family
Magnification: 120x
Vacuum: Low Vac Mode, 100 Pa
Voltage: 15kv
Spot: 3
Working Distance: app. 8mm
Detector: LFD, BSE, BSE
[Via Twisted Sifter & FEI Company Flickr]
Soooooo everything is terrifying under an electron micoscope.
Agreed, I think it just made my germ and bug phobia that much worse.... still pretty cool to see that much details that close
Now it's staring at me on my FB wall.... I think he is judging me. I know I'm supposed to be working, LEAVE ME ALONE, STOP IT, STOP LOOKING AT ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Seeing these creatures makes me grateful that evolution brought us to where we are. Imagine if these freaky bastards were big as horses. I wouldn't be sleeping very well at night.
Probably worth noting that these are all falsely colored, because electron microscopic images are only black and white... the color gets added later in photoshop
They aren't 'falsely' coloured as such. They probably used the chroma values of the black and white images to add the colour afterwards. So it's their true colour but added afterwards.
That made my skin crawl.
Am I the only one that can't see a single image?
It felt like my Tshirt came alive when I went through these images. Suddenly it's itching and twitching all over haha!
Fantastic.
Absolutely stunning and fantastic to see that much details that close.
Absolutely stunning and fantastic to see that much details that close.