Microscopy as Art - Teri Zgoda

Often microscopes are only used for one purpose: to reach a scientific answer and understanding to solve a problem. It could be difficult to have the time to focus purely on the enjoyment and aesthetic of a microscope slide, rather than be constrained by the experiment, needing to glean as much data as you can from an image. It can be surprising what will end up auto fluorescing when activated by a certain wavelength of light. From pre-made, mass produced slides for high school biology classes, to hastily arranged slides of tea leaves and makeup, it is an incredible adventure to see how these ordinary objects turn extraordinary with a little magnification and light.

Experimenting for fun with available slides is how I placed into Nikon Small World’s competition, starting with image of distinction, moving up to honorable mention, 4th place, and eventually a first place collaborative image with a fellow intern, Teresa Kugler. Even though these images were not part of a scientific experiment, they still hold a mass of information and scientific value.

The first place image of a turtle embryo took the most effort and time of any of our previous images. It involved tiling, z-stacking, and merging of three fluorescent channels to create the final image.