1:07 p.m., Oct. 14, 2009----“Stunning” is not a word most people typically would use to describe a pocket watch or a fungal infection of a plant root.

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But the images of these humble subjects photographed by University of Delaware scientists Rebekah Helton and Kirk Czymmek using high-powered microscopes at the Delaware Biotechnology Institute's Bio-Imaging Center may just stop you in your tracks.

The two have won high honors in the 2009 Nikon Small World Competition, which bills itself as “the preeminent forum for the world's best photomicrographers.”

The contest showcases the beauty and complexity of life as seen through a light microscope and recognizes achievements in capturing images at the intersection of science and art.

The 2009 competition, the 35th on record, received more than 2,000 entries from around the globe. Helton's magnified pocket watch titled “Stopwatch” placed 17th among the 20 winners, and Czymmek received an honorable mention for his image of a root of the common laboratory plant Arabidopsis being attacked by a fungus.

This was the first time each had entered the contest.

Helton, who holds a Ph.D. in plant and soil sciences from UD, is a postdoctoral researcher at DBI's Bio-Imaging Center and in the Department of Biological Sciences. She submitted the pocket watch image to show “a unique view of an everyday object.”

As part of a confocal course special project, Helton, as laboratory instructor, quided a student learning to use a Zeiss LSM 510 confocal microscope to take the digital image of the watch. Helton then enhanced the image prior to submission with special “stacking” software that enabled her to shade different levels of depth within the timepiece.

Czymmek, who is an associate professor of biological sciences and director of DBI's BioImaging Center, said he decided to image a fungus infecting the common laboratory plant Arabidopsis because it was novel.

“Maintaining the delicate plant roots while watching the disease process in living samples without damaging them was part of the challenge, as well as coming up with an aesthetically pleasing image,” he says.

He used a confocal microscope to create a three-dimensional image of the highly magnified plant root. He received an Honorable Mention, one of 15 awarded in a new category established this year by Nikon to recognize “outstanding photomicrographs that demonstrate superior technical competency and artistic skill.”

Czymmek says he's pleased with the recognition his team of scientists at the DBI Bio-Imaging Center have achieved this year and will be framing UD's Nikon-honored images for display at the center alongside other winning images.

At the 2009 Microscopy & Microanalysis Meeting this past July, Deborah Powell, a research associate at the DBI Bio-Imaging Center, won first place with her image of snow crystals, and Helton won second place for her view of flower pigment cells and pollen grains.

“Scientific data is not about pretty pictures even though the University of Delaware has outstanding imaging resources and competence available to its researchers,” Czymmek says. “However, almost daily, we can observe the inherent aesthetic beauty in living cells and other tiny structures with our microscopes and it is great to have the opportunity to share them beyond our hallways.”

Helton and Czymmek both plan to enter the Nikon Small World Competition next year.

“I feel honored to have placed among the top 20, and I hope I can do the same next year,” Helton says.

What will be the subject for her next image?

“My mind is already trying to come up with ideas, but I have not settled on a final decision,” she says. “You will have to wait and see.”

The 2009 winning images may be viewed on this Web site. The top images also will be exhibited in a full-color 2010 calendar and through a national museum tour, according to Nikon.

Article by Tracey Bryant