Photography

Our Answers to the Most Burning Questions of 2014

Here are the ten most popular installments of "Ask Smithsonian" this year

7th Place: Butter daisy (Melampodium divaricatum) flower at 2x magnification. Fluorescence. Oleksandr Holovachov, Ekuddsvagen, Sweden.

Some of the Most Beautiful Things in Nature Come in the Tiniest of Packages

The winners of the 2014 Olympus BioScapes Digital Imaging Competition capture a rat brain, the mouthparts of a vampire moth and other small wonders

British fashion photographer Rankin has a new book out featuring collaborations with makeup artist Andrew Gallimore.

Fashion Photographer Rankin Has A New Book of Models in Wild Makeup

The British photographer reveals some unusual new portraits, with a hodgepodge of influences

It’s Possible to See Exoplanets Without Schmancy Equipment

A cheap DSLR and some light computer processing can unveil far off exoplanets

The Shape of Things to Come, Antarctic Sound, February 2010: "As we sailed with the land to our backs, I saw this bright, jagged iceberg with a dark-blue sea," writes Seaman.

These Photos Capture a Decade of Change at Earth's Poles

From courting penguins to moody icebergs, photojournalist Camille Seaman shares her personal journey through polar habitats

Off for the Sabbot, circa 1927

The Photographer Who Ansel Adams Called the Anti-Christ

William Mortensen’s grotesque, retouched photos of celebrities were a far cry from the realism favored by the photography elite

Lts. Frank Ballou and Samuel Peterson test out a new metal bulletproof shield. The shield's inventor, Elliot Wisbrod, is the man holding it.

Up-Close and Personal With Chicago's Most Infamous Criminals

"Gangsters & Grifters," a book by the Chicago Tribune, recalls a time when photographers had unprecedented access to the world of crime

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The Physics of Whisky’s Aesthetically Pleasing Residue

A photographer teamed up with scientists to figure out the fluid dynamics behind patterns left in whisky glasses

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This New Video of the Earth Is the Best Ever Made

The video was made with images taken by a Russian satellite

Karo warriors, Omo Valley, Ethiopia. "Five warriors show off their gorgeous body painting and the ostrich plumes sticking out of their headplates, distinguishing adornments of their culture."

"I’ve Lived the Life of 500 People": The Photography of Art Wolfe

<i>Earth Is My Witness</i> chronicles Wolfe's 40-year career as a photographer

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Gorgeous Portraits of Spineless Sea Creatures

In a new book, San Francisco-based photographer Susan Middleton captures the curious gestures and expressions of marine invertebrates

Estes has been painting scenes of cities and nature for half a century.

Richard Estes' Incredibly Realistic Paintings Require a Double Take

Like stage sets, there seem to be a million stories embedded in the works of Richard Estes, icon of photorealism

In the U.K., Posting Nude Pictures of Another Person Is About to Become a Jailable Offense

This year, 28 states introduced or proposed legislation pertaining to revenge porn, though many are still pending

There are more than 400 species of mantis shrimp, including some with claws that can strike with the speed of a bullet and crack glass. But it’s the animal's vision, sensitive to polarized light, that is helping scientists build a compact camera that can see cancer.

A Mantis Shrimp Inspires a New Camera for Detecting Cancer

The mantis shrimp's eyes, which can see differences in polarized light, are informing researchers building a tiny, easy-to-use camera that can spot cancer

Artist Clement Valla finds irregularities in Google Earth imagery and compiles his findings in a series, "Postcards from Google Earth." This landscape is in Italy.

This Artist Finds Strange Beauty in Google's Apocalyptic Glitches

Clement Valla makes art out of Google Earth's surrealist irregularities

In The Neighborhood Tour, Michael Vasquez says he is telling the story of a boy who grew up without a father.

Six Artists In Search of Themselves

With drama, theater, magical realism and a twist of the absurd, these artists give the self-portrait a makeover

Nigerian photographer Solomon Osagie Alonge is the subject of a new exhibition at the African Art Museum. He took this self-portrait in 1942.

The Man Who Reclaimed Photography from Colonialism's Grasp

A new exhibition at the African Art Museum honors Chief S.O. Alonge, the first Nigerian court photographer during colonial times

Curtains of light weave across the sky over Fairbanks, Alaska, on September 12.

Powerful Solar Flare Paints the Sky With Candy-Colored Auroras

Two back-to-back flares sent clouds of charged particles racing toward Earth, creating auroras that may last through the weekend

Sugar gliders, marsupials native to Australia.

Adorable Portraits Put Nocturnal Animals in the Spotlight

A new photo book showcases animals we humans rarely see—while a new study says we may have more in common with night-dwellers than thought

William Greiner's photographs, including Merry's, are on view in "Oh! Augusta!" at the Morris Museum of Art in Georgia.

Capturing First Impressions of a City in Transition

William Greiner's photographs are on view at the Morris Museum of Art in Augusta, GA

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