Become a fan on Facebook
Follow Me on Twitter
Subscribe to feeds
Martin Oeggerli: Revealing The Secret Life Of Pollen

Martin Oeggerli: Revealing The Secret Life Of Pollen

Pollen may be associated by many of us in spring with hayfever, but as Swiss scientific photographer Martin Oeggerli reveals, it has a whole hidden life.Delving into the miniscule world of pollen, the “micronaut” shows that the grains are in fact very varied and very beautiful. His work recently featured in National Geographic, which devoted a whole article to the topic of pollen, along with an Oeggerli gallery. He is only the second Swiss photographer to feature in the prestigious magazine.

As the micronaut, Oeggerli uses scanning electronic microscope (SEM) images to capture what is usually barely visible to the human eye. During a recent pollen awareness event in Zurich, where he was presenting some of his pictures, he then colours the images using a secret formula, spending up to 20 hours per picture. The result is both stunning and unexpected (see gallery).

“During my project on pollen I began to realise that this pollen universe is so beautiful that I would like to take the chance and send some images to National Geographic just to see if they would be interested or not,” said Oeggerli, an avid reader of the magazine.

The youthful looking 36 year old works on his images part time, as by day he is a Basel hospital molecular biologist. He has won many awards for his work. But he was nevertheless surprised to be accepted for the December 2009 magazine edition.

Todd James, Senior Photo Editor at National Geographic, said that he was impressed by the subtle, natural colouration of micronaut’s work.

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

Martin Oeggerli

SEM images start off in black and white and capture incredible details not visible through traditional light transmission microscopes, he explains. Like images from space, false colour is added after the images are recorded. Many SEMs are coloured too garishly, using colours that do not exist in nature. But Oeggerli’s were different.

“His use of colour enhances the veracity of the image along with the sensual experience of looking at something you have never seen before. He reminds us of the miraculousness of nature.“ James also appreciated Oeggerli’s passion for the natural world. “His curiosity becomes our curiosity. He is not simply making beautiful images, he is exploring the natural world at the intersection of science and art.”

Oeggerli was involved in writing the captions for his gallery. “We wanted to point out that pollen are male sperm cells and they need to find a mate, to find their way to the egg cell,” Oeggerli said. “There are far fewer eggs cells than pollen, so there is also a dramatic journey, which is sometimes very long, going over thousands of kilometres in the air or very adventurous, such as sticking to a leg of a little insect.”

Martin Oeggerli

SUBSCRIBE to Fun Guerilla's News Feed to receive our fun articles as soon as we publish them. Fight boredom with our unique fun and amazing articles. DON'T FORGET to join our online communities on FACEBOOK and TWITTER

Latest Posts on Fun Guerilla

Most Beautiful Villages Around The World

Most Beautiful Villages Around The World

Village on the bank of the Niger river, Mali. Photo by: Yann Arthus-Bertrand Village located in Himalayas, Tibet. Photo by: Coolbie Re Mountain Village, Iran. Photo by: Mohammadreza Momeni Riomaggiore is a village and comune in the province of La Spezia, situated in a small valley in the Liguria region of Italy. Photo by: James […]

Adorable Friendship  Between Baby Kangaroo And Baby Wombat

Adorable Friendship Between Baby Kangaroo And Baby Wombat

Some of the best friendships are the product of the most unlikely pairings. Case in point? The union of Peggy the wombat and Anzac the kangaroo. Orphaned at birth, the dynamic–and devastatingly adorable–duo first met at an animal rescue center in Victoria, Australia. As evidenced by the following photos, their friendship is certainly a vibrant […]

Zonkey: Half Zebra, Half Donkey

Zonkey: Half Zebra, Half Donkey

Meet Zonkey, adorable Italian half zebra, half donkey. About four months ago, an adorable half-zebra, half-donkey was born in Italy named Ippo. The rare crossbreed, known as a zonkey, is the offspring of a male zebra and female donkey. There are a variety of zebroids (a hybrid of zebra and any other member of the […]

Cats In Stockings

Cats In Stockings

 One of the latest online hits – cats in stockings. I’m sure – if they could, they would have done the same thing to their stupid owners  

Gruesome Drawings of Cute Cartoon Characters

Gruesome Drawings of Cute Cartoon Characters

Artist and freelance graphic designer Pez created this remarkable series, called Distroy, in which the many cute cartoon characters whom we have grown to know and love are transformed into unexpectedly gruesome illustrations.

You Look Just Like Your Mother!

You Look Just Like Your Mother!

Photography project “Genetic Portraits” takes “You look just like your mother” to a new level! French-Canadian photographer Ulric Collette created mash-ups in which he takes photographs of two family members, edits half of each face and creates one seamless portrait. By doing this he is trying to show how strong family resemblances are. Mother/Daughter: Francine, […]

Architectural Watercolors by Maja Wronska

Architectural Watercolors by Maja Wronska

In her amazing works, Poland-based watercolor artist Maja Wronska has captured some lovely scenes from Paris, Venice, Prague, and elsewhere. Catch more of her work over on DeviantArt. (via my darkened eyes) Via my darkened eyes.

Cenote Angelita: An Underwater River Photographed by Anatoly Beloshchin

Cenote Angelita: An Underwater River Photographed by Anatoly Beloshchin

It seems improbable, but these photographs by Anatoly Beloshchin tell the story of a hidden underwater river in in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula called Cenote Angelita or “Little Angel”. While it appears as though the divers are hovering in the air above a small creek, the photos were shot entirely in a submerged cave formed from […]