Nature's building blocks up close
Human embryonic stem cell
Andrew Paul Leonard's photographic eye makes it easy to forget you're looking at very tiny things. Magnified by a powerful microscope, kidney stone crystals evoke an epic Martian landscape, and microplankton resembles an interstellar spaceship.
Up close, nature's smallest building blocks alternate between rigidly geometric and expressively organic shapes and textures. Leonard's photographs imbue these microscopic organisms with larger-than-life personality.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Kidney stone crystal
Leonard studied photography and biology at Hampshire College, where he explored leukocytes (white blood cells) on optical microscopes. Subsequent stints at University of Massachusetts and Cornell Medical College honed his skills and fostered a lifelong passion for electron microscopy.
During the economic downturn of the late 1980s Leonard started APL Microscopic to market his scientific images to pharmaceutical companies. His work has evolved to explore their aesthetic value too.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Breast cancer cells: HER-2 positive
Some of Leonard's subjects - like a cat's claw and budding grass - are charmingly domestic and easily acquired. Others are more sinister, like breast cancer cells. For human cells, Leonard procures specimens via an extensive network of physicians and researchers.
He examines samples with a field emission scanning electron microscope, which uses a focused beam of electrons to capture a digital image of topography and composition.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Microplankton: radiolarian
According to Leonard, every session with the microscope is unpredictable: "Every sample is different. Sometimes you cannot find what you're looking for [because] what you're looking for is not what you thought it would look like. Sometimes the sample gets ruined doing preparation and you have to start from square one. Sometimes you have a look and immediately see lots of what you like."
Nature's building blocks, up close
Bryozoan from the Indian Ocean (a micro-marine colony of individuals)
Andrew Paul Leonard's photographs capture the big personality of microscopic organisms.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Microplanton: Radiolarian
Nature's building blocks, up close
Human lymphocyte (white blood cell)
Nature's building blocks, up close
Shedding cat claw
Nature's building blocks, up close
Unknown collection of microplankton remnants
Nature's building blocks, up close
Microplankton: radioloarian (Saturnalis)
Nature's building blocks, up close
Microplankton: radiolarian
Nature's building blocks, up close
Microplankton: radiolarian
Nature's building blocks, up close
Synthetic fiber
Nature's building blocks, up close
Human lung tissue, showing alveoli, brachial and capillary
Nature's building blocks, up close
Carbon adhesive tape
Nature's building blocks, up close
Surface of human embryonic stem cell colony
Nature's building blocks, up close
Neuron
Nature's building blocks, up close
Cryptosporidium (parasite)
Cryptosporidium is a microscopic parasite that causes diarrhea. It is a leading cause of waterborne disease in the United States.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Kidney stone crystals
Nature's building blocks, up close
Monocyte-derived human dendritic cell undergoing apoptosis (programmed cell death)
Nature's building blocks, up close
Monocyte-derived human dendritic cell undergoing apoptosis (programmed cell death)
Nature's building blocks, up close
Toxoplasma gondii (cause of toxoplasmosis)
Toxoplasma gondii is a parasitic organism that reproduces only in cats and can infect most animals, including humans.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Parakeet feather
Nature's building blocks, up close
Budding grass
Nature's building blocks, up close
Microplankton: radiolarian
Radiolaria are single-celled aquatic animals that produce intricate and varied mineral skeletons.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Ruins of a radiolarian (microplankton)
Radiolaria skeletal remains make up a large part of the ocean floor as siliceous ooze.
Nature's building blocks, up close
Two human embryonic stem cells
Nature's building blocks, up close
Mosquito wing
Nature's building blocks, up close
Ruins of a radiolarian
Nature's building blocks, up close
Unidentified marine organism
Nature's building blocks, up close
Radiolaria scraps
Nature's building blocks, up close
Radiolarian surface
Nature's building blocks, up close
Folical stimulating hormone (FSH) drug
Nature's building blocks, up close
Pile of kidney stone crystals