Can you capture nature's secrets?

There are cash prizes of £8,500 in the 2003 Daily Telegraph / Novartis Visions of Science Awards, Says Adam Hart-Davis

Even Science is lovely stuff - it's the best way we have of examining the universe and trying to work out the secrets of nature. The ideas of science are often beautiful, and so is nature itself, from quarks to woodlice and from galaxies to DNA. Photography is an excellent way to bring out that inherent beauty, and Visions of Science provides an opportunity for scientists and photographers to delight the public and win cash prizes.

The event began three years ago, and was originally a photography competition, but now we have widened the field to include photographs that have been digitally manipulated, and images generated entirely by computer. In 2002, several winning images were computer-generated, including some sumptuous pollen grains - imaginary visions of science.

Past winners: ice crystals by Dr Keith Wheeler (top), the surface of a cranefly's eye by Liz Biddlecombe (centre), and random phases by Sir Michael Berry
Run by Novartis, the pharmaceutical company, and supported by The Daily Telegraph, the contest receives wide publicity. The Science Photo Library is providing cash prizes in all categories and many of the winners will be published in connected.telegraph and The Daily Telegraph. This year for the first time, Nesta - the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts - has joined the event with a generous supporting grant.

This is great news, because it will allow the organisers to take the exhibition of winning photographs on a wider circuit, and show them to a far broader spectrum of the public, as well as provide a series of lectures across Britain based on the awards. What better way could there be of inspiring people to take a scientific look at the world?

People need to know about science; how else can we all argue sensibly about global warming, or genetic modification of food or of animals?

A recent YouGov poll revealed that people do not trust politicians on scientific issues, but prefer to listen to environmental pressure groups. How much better if they could listen to the evidence and make up their own minds.

I am delighted to be involved with Visions of Science, since I am both a scientist and a photographer. Most of the winning images are ones that I wish I had had the skill to take myself.

Winner MP Andrew Miller at the exhibition of winning photographs shown at the House of Commons

Anyone can enter this competition. You do not have to be a professional scientist, nor a professional photographer. You do not need an electron microscope or any other high-tech equipment; some of the winning images have been taken with simple point-and-shoot cameras; others with digital cameras; and some have been generated entirely by computer. This year there are five main categories, to cater for and encourage various types of images. In each category, the winner will get £1,000 and the runner-up £400.

Action: capture a moment in time, perhaps a time-lapse sequence of a flower opening, a volcano erupting or an explosion. Last year's image of a trickle of liquid not quite making the trip to a wine glass delighted us with its black-and-white graphic starkness.

Close-up: this is the section for images that show nature in a way that cannot be seen with the naked eye. It's for thermography, X-rays, satellite, astronomical, magnetic resonance imaging and kirlian pictures, and those exquisite electron micrographs.

Ever since Robert Hooke published his drawing of a flea in 1665 we have been fascinated and horrified by these vastly magnified pictures of the microscopic world. Last year's overall winner showed cells from the brain that looked like a regiment of matchsticks.

People: scientists in action, or people directly affected by science, technology or medicine. In previous years, there have been few powerful images in this area; so your chances of winning a prize in this category may be high. We're interested in single images, or documentary photography as a feature portfolio of up to six images.

Concepts: the ideas of science embodied in pictures. Gravity, geomorphology, gene therapy - a rich field if you can find a strong idea. The 2002 computer-generated image of a louse-like machine injecting a red blood cell elegantly embodies the idea of nanotechnology. These pictures can be manipulated or entirely computer-generated.

Art: many science photographs are just beautiful; the winners will be the ones we would most like to hang on our walls. But they still have to be scientific; the judges will reject stunning landscapes or sunsets.

We also have some special awards.

DNA: 2003 is the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the structure of DNA, and this award is to celebrate that milestone in genetics and molecular biology. Sponsored by the Medical Research Council, the best image will get £500.

Healthcare: the impact of science and medicine on people's lives. Not an easy subject; we have seen too many operating theatres and glamorous doctors. Sponsored by the British Medical Journal, the prize is £500.

Veterinary award: for the best image showing veterinary science - any animals, any treatment, but compelling photography. The £500 prize is provided by Novartis Animal Health.

Young photographer: open to students in full-time education; one prize for under 17 years and one for under 19.

This field is wide open; we have had few strong entries; so if you are a teenager and can use a camera or generate strong computer images you may have a good chance. Kodak is providing an EasyShare Zoom digital camera for each winner. Each of the winners will get £500 to spend on science equipment, supported by Nesta's education programme.

This competition demands and generates a mixture of art and science. C P Snow famously wrote about "the two cultures", but here is one place where they are brought together, and in the most graphic way.

As one of the judges, I thoroughly enjoy the fierce arguments we have had over whether a particular entry is scientific - and whether another is artistic. The competition is tough, but the winning entries are those that make you want to look at the world with a scientific eye.

The panel of judges

This year's judges are a mix of broadcasters, writers, photographers and scientists.

They include: Dr Adam Hart-Davis, author and broadcaster; Prof Kathy Sykes, of Bristol University; Dr Simon Singh, author and broadcaster; Prof Frank Close, Oxford University physicist; Dr Mark Lythgoe, University College London neurophysiologist; Sandra Lousada, Association of Photographers; Prof Raymond Clark, the Royal Photographic Society; Dr J Harris, Novartis; Bob Bodman, picture editor, The Daily Telegraph; Adam Goff, picture editor, New Scientist, and David Derbyshire, science correspondent, The Daily Telegraph.

Download entry details from Enter The Daily Telegraph Novartis Visions of Science Photographic Awards 2003, visit website www.visions-of-science.co.uk, write to Visions of Science, PO Box 29670, London E2 8TZ or telephone 020 7613 5577.

The closing date for entries is May 30.

12 feb 2003